The Art of the Cold Email in Science

If you’re looking for a lab/prof to sponsor your grad work or post doc, it can be difficult to find a match. Responding to advertisements is one way. Cold emails are another way.

Like a lab, but no ad? Apply anyways. Almost everyone I know is almost always looking to hire good people. Cold email them. I rarely post ads, but I’ll always find a way to hire good people who are a fit.

— Spencer LaVere Smith (@Labrigger) June 21, 2022

But how to craft such a cold email? Here’s some advice: (Different things work for different people, so not everyone is going to agree on this advice.)

• Keep it brief. Around 1-2 paragraphs. You just need to get their interest. If they write back, then you’ll have a chance to say and ask more.
• Make it easy to read and respond to quickly. They’re fielding 100s of emails per day. Probably poorly. Overcommitted and letting things slip through the cracks. Make it easy for them. Don’t ask for a ton of information. Have the last line something like, “Would you like to know more about me or talk sometime?” that way they can respond with a 1 line email to keep the conversation going if they’re interested. This is called “managing up”.
• Make it custom for that person. I’m not going to prescribe how to do this, but know that everyone gets multiple emails per day that are impersonal form emails, often using automated systems and databases. They’re not hard to spot. They often say nothing other than the PI’s name that is specific to the lab. There might be a reference to a recent paper, but it’s vague (for example, “I read your paper ___paper title___ and found it interesting.”). So you need to write an email that is unlike a form email. It shouldn’t be too hard.
• Make it authentic. Show you’re a real person and not just an AI agent that can make a non-form email. Say something to the PI that maybe no one else would. For example, have you been working on or reading about similar scientific problems? Is there something about the graduate program that seems unique and attractive to you? Have you been to the town with the lab is? Did that visit play a role in you wanting to reach out to them?
• Attach a CV / resume, and/or a transcript, or a link to a web site. Make it easy for the reader to find out more about you. This also helps you keep the email brief. What have you done, what are you like. We’re hiring a person, not a robot, so a little bit of information beyond a CV can be helpful in making a human connection (hobbies, where you grew up, your favorite tree, etc.). If you attach a file, make it a PDF and make it a reasonable size (e.g., <10MB).
• Keep a normal level of formality. I’m flexible about formality, but many others aren’t, so do keep it formal (use titles, at least at first).
• Don’t worry about poor English or awkwardness. Maybe not everyone agrees, but I’m pretty forgiving of this.
• Keep it plain text– zero or very little formatting. I don’t know why, but the worst form emails I get contain frequent font changes, varying text sizes, bold and italics, maybe even a script font somewhere. It’s terrifying. Looks like a ransom note. Don’t do that. Formatted hyperlinks are okay.
• If there’s no response, keep moving. One or two follow-ups, maybe each a week apart, are understandable (and sometimes very helpful!), but after that let it go. They might get back to you much later (maybe you caught them on vacation), or they might just not see it as a match and won’t respond. Other people will. Keep moving.
• Use your network. Maybe you have a professor that you worked for that could reach out on your behalf. They’re busy too of course, so respect their time. But sometimes social networks like that can make all the difference. It’s not a fair aspect, but it is reality. Use your unfair advantage. Many of you have many more unfair disadvantages, so don’t feel bad about using a rare unfair advantage.