How to write emails
Guidelines “How to Write Emails”
Emails are the preferred means of communication between students and lecturers, outside face-to-face interaction in class or during office-hours. Emails are usually short and to the point, but often they contain grammatical mistakes, stylistic infelicities which students can avoid by adhering to some basic guidelines.
Always specify the topic of the email (German: Betreff). Some spam filters will not allow emails through which do not have a subject matter
- Forms of Address and Titles
Greet the addressee with “Dear” and then use “Mr”, “Ms”, "Mx", “Dr” or “Prof” and the persons last name
o e.g.: Dear Prof. Schmitz
Do not write “Hallo X” (as you might in German). The English equivalent might be “Hi”, but that is very colloquial and would be normal among students but not appropriate between students and their lecturers. You must be on first name terms to say “Hi” to someone.
Do not use the first name of a lecturer unless he or she has offered this.
- Body of Email
Why are you writing the mail? What is the purpose? Clearly state your question, concern, matter.
Include enrollment number, your study programme, and the module / course you have questions about
- Salutation
Use “Best regards” or “Best wishes”
- Identifying Yourself
Use your own first name and surname, except if you know your lecturer well then you may use your first name e.g.: Max Mustermann
And don’t forget:
If you are sending an attachment, give it an explanatory name, e.g. “Shakespeare_Mueller_essay.doc”, but not “mein_referat_final_2.doc”
Some typical vocabulary you might need in an email to a lecturer:
Outline (German = Struktur)
References / bibliography (German = bibliographische Angaben)
Thesis (German = schriftliche Abschlussarbeit)
Term paper (German = schriftliche Semesterarbeit)
Written exam (German = schriftliche Prüfung / Klausur)
Oral exams /orals (usual in the plural) (G. mündliche Prüfung)
Mark (British) // Grade (American) (German = Note)
Think about your lecturers…
We all get lots and lots of emails (not just from students) so do not expect us to always answer within minutes. Consider a reasonable time frame for an answer. If you do not get a reply within this time, then just send the email again. It may well be that the receiver of the email did not notice it in among all the others or that it was suppressed by the spam filter (see above).
Some of these ideas are taken from Raymond Hickey, English Lingustics (Campus Essen)
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