MEMORANDUM
To: Evan Crisp
From: Karissa Garneau, Student of ENGL301 Technical Writing
Date: November 8, 2021
Subject: Best Professional E-mail Writing Practices
Evan,
You sent an email to a potential professor of an English course you were hoping to take at UBC recently. Thank you for reaching out for advice from the class of English 301. Your interest in the course is apparent and your initiative to reach out to the professor no doubt helps you stand out above the rest. There are many possible reasons why your professor has yet to respond to your request, but one is that they weren’t convinced of your intent to study the course by the content of your e-mail. While it was courteous, there were some areas that could use a more professional tone. In this memo are 7 best practices for writing a professional e-mail that I hope you find useful in the future when reaching out to professors.
- The email creates a positive reading experience by avoiding the use of jargon and abbreviations.
- The recipient of the email is properly addressed, including a subject to the email, a professional greeting, a thank you for their time and ending with a professional signature.
- The body of the email offers a brief explanation as to how the course is suitable.
- The email requests a timely response but does not expect an answer within an unreasonable amount of time.
- Demands are not made and there isn’t inclusion of unnecessary personal information, as your beach trip and vacation are likely not the professor’s priority.
- The text uses minimal imperative verbs and negatives.
- The email is read through and edited a couple of times before being sent to avoid including any emotional features and grammatical errors.
In the 21st century, professional communication is an essential skill. There can be challenges to writing e-mails in a professional tone but with practice it comes much more naturally. I hope you find these tips helpful. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Karissa Garneau RDH
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