10 Tips For Writing Effective E-Mails For Your Professors At Online Colleges

Receiving a thorough education is important; online students must be sure to practice good communication with instructors in order to get the most of what they are learning. Online classes usually involve communication via e-mail with instructors. Following is a list of 10 tips for writing an effective e-mail to a professor.

1. Make the subject line relate to the e-mail. Avoid writing things such as “question” or “important;” it is better to write something more explanatory, such as “question about economics assignment.”

2. Be sure to address the professor respectfully. Unless he or she instructs otherwise in the syllabus, address the instructor as “Professor,” accompanied by their last name.

3. Keep the e-mail concise and simple; online instructors receive many e-mails and have a busy schedule, so it is best to keep the message as short as possible.

4. Include the necessary self-identification information for the professor’s convenience; name and student number should be sufficient. Avoid sensitive information, such as a birth-date and social security number.

5. Remember to use e-mail etiquette, commonly called “netiquette,” since non-verbal messages may sometimes seem cold, rude or angry without proper etiquette. Most instructors include detailed instructions for proper netiquette in the syllabus or supplemental material.

6. Try to focus on only one or two subjects. Avoid contacting the professor with multiple issues in one message, unless absolutely necessary. The more subjects are covered in one message, the more confusing it will be.

7. Avoid using attachments in an e-mail message, unless they are necessary and the instructor has approved them. Only send an attachment if permission is obtained or the professor requests it specifically.

8. Proofreading a message before sending it is important. E-mails to a professor should not be formatted the same way an e-mail to a friend would be; they should be in letter format.

9. Be sure the message makes sense. Read it as if thinking from the professor’s perspective, ensuring that no important information has been omitted.

10. Sign the e-mail respectfully and properly, using “respectfully yours” or “sincerely” instead of simply signing by first and last names.