Initial Email to Faculty Mentors:

This is an example email of the initial email you'll send to a faculty member you're interested in working with through the STEM Leaders Program. Only use this email format if you have completed the necessary steps listed on our "Choosing a Research Mentor" page

 

Example:

Dear Dr. [XXX],

My name is [XXX] and I am an incoming [freshman/transfer] student who has been accepted into the STEM Leaders program. Stephanie Ramos has notified me that you would be willing to meet with me regarding the possibility of doing research in your lab. I am extremely interested in your research regarding [insert topic here]. As a [XXX] major, I am eager to learn more about [insert topic of interest related to faculty research] and gain more experience within my field of study. I am excited to connect with you and look forward to meeting with you soon.

Here is my availability for this week:

Thurs., Oct. 17th: 8 AM - 5 PM
Mon., Oct. 21st: 8 AM - 5 PM
Tues., Oct. 22nd: 8 AM - 5 PM

Please let me know if you are available during any of these times or if I should propose more for the coming weeks. Thank you for taking the time to meet with me.

Respectfully,

[Your Name Here]

 

Follow-up Emails:

Sending follow-up emails after concluding a meeting can make your life easier, more organized, and it informs those you’re meeting with that you’re interested. Following up can summarize what your meeting was about and reiterate the important details and action items or announcements. You can keep track of tasks and hold others and yourself accountable!

Items to include in your follow-up email:

  • Any important topics that were discussed
  • Goals, plans, or ideas
  • Highlight action items by including due dates and who the task was assigned to. Make these items stand out by bolding, underlining, or highlighting. 
  • Include information on where important items are located (e.g. Box, Google Docs, etc.)
  • Attach any supporting documents or links of importance 
  • Include a reminder for your next meeting, if applicable

Note: Don’t feel inclined to include every piece of information discussed in the meeting, only what is most important! 

*Send the follow-up email within 48 hours of the initial meeting, if possible. 

 

Examples:

Research Meeting Follow-Up Email

Subject line: Week 4 Meeting Recap

Dear Dr. [XXX],

Thank you for meeting with me this week! We discussed the following topics during our meeting yesterday: introductions, the logistics of your lab, lab training, mentoring plan, and communication.

  • My official start date is: 11/15
  • Regarding the logistics of your lab, you said there are other undergraduates and a few graduate students. You listed a few projects such as outreach and seawater hydrolysis electrolysis.
  • In terms of lab training, you mentioned there was not a lot. I remember you mentioning that some work could even be done outside! I am reading through some articles, and I have received the link for training. If there is anything else I can do, please let me know.
    • Lab training: Completing by 11/12
  • For the mentoring plan, the plan was very flexible. The general idea is that I would be paired with a graduate student and would also receive additional mentoring from you.

Some questions I still have:

  1. I asked about group meetings and you mentioned that they are Fridays at 9:00 AM. Could I join the group meetings next week?
  2. Do you have strategies for researching remotely/online?
  3. Lastly, I want to ask about the next steps. Is there anything else I should do beforehand?

Again, I would like to thank you for taking the time to meet with me. I am very grateful for the opportunity to work with you and look forward to it!

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

 

School-Related Follow-Up Email

Subject line: ANS 121 Group Project

Good afternoon everyone, 

Thank you for taking the time to meet and discuss the logistics of the project as a group. We were very successful in getting things going and appointing tasks for everyone to get started on. Below I have included what we agreed to work on for our presentation.

  1. Haelyn: Introduction slide
  2. Diana: History slide
  3. Stephanie: Description slide
  4. Juriana: Location/distribution slide
  5. Jessica: References slide

We’ll be meeting next week, December 12, 2020, at 2 pm. We agreed to have a rough draft of our slides completed by that day and then go on from there. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me! 

Thanks again and talk to you soon,

[Your name]