They have the power to ruin your vacations with untimely assignments, bore you with a monotone that defies caffeine, or, if you have chosen wisely, switch on some inner light bulb that makes the world -- and your place in it -- suddenly clearer. In order to get a reply from the professor, you should ask specific questions that you would like answered. Know your questions in advance. Other schools of thought? In addition to the typical questions about effective teaching and research participation, job candidates for university faculty positions should at least be aware of the technology trends in the learning environment to remain competitive. Busy people want directness and they want to work with motivated students who have done their research before reaching out. Be specific. This is the best opportunity you have to get straight answers to straight questions that won’t run the risk of being misconstrued in email form. How accurate is your data? Their career path may not match yours exactly, but you can learn from their challenges and successes as you navigate your own. (, What question or challenge were you setting out to address when you started this work? (. It is just that my knowlegde is not advanced enough to catch up with the most recent development in the field and to know what are the specific research questions professionals are working on right now. If so, then contact by phone or stopping by his or her office during office hours is probably the most logical step. in the lab/field, be as prepared as you can, listen.” (. What is your favorite aspect of your research? Is there anyone who interprets the problem differently? I don't want to go there asking "textbook questions" and appear ignorant. One trick to asking substantive, incisive questions actually mirrors a strategy I tell job-hunting clients to use in their cover letters when talking about their research. (, And after they've explained their work, I often ask (as nicely as possible): "So what?" (, How did you end up here? Either you make it your toppriority, or you don't do it at all. Below are some questions to ask professors at the beginning of the semester that will help you learn more about their expectations while still building a relationship: 1. A full professor is a tenured professor who has been promoted to the most senior rank. (, Share a turning point or defining moment in your work as a scientist? How many of these go into business? What do you want to achieve with your research? So how does one interview a scientist? I am not like knowing completely nothing to the point that I am going to ask him "what is turbulence ?". It is helpful to know how much time students need to dedicate to the class/program to do well. Dear Dr. I may have make it sounds a bit too extreme. In any case, look at interviews, such as those on with philosophers on "philosophy at 3am" or those with authors for the Paris Review to get a sense of the preliminary research people put into asking good questions so they get good answers with good followup. Are your methods generally accepted? Keep it conversational. Do your research. What legislation would you change to improve how science in your field is done? So, we asked a few Reynolds School professors what questions they love getting and ones they wish students didn’t ask. There is a lot of information to be considered. – ff524 � (I just googled about this and found that everyone was asking about how to get a research position from a professor, which is not my concern, so I decided to make a post on this). Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. You can also find interesting examples and sample answers with each question. Just to clarify things a little bit, originally I was trying to approach him to be my undergrad thesis advisor, because I feel very interested to learn something about turbulence and turbulence is not a subject my school (at least my department) offers a course in. Ask yourself: Is this urgent? Otherwise, you can try e-mail. Thank you for your suggestions. Be prepared to answer the sort of questions in this list (which will be tailored to your research area) in addition to general interview questions. Briefly, what excites you about your work? Sign up with your email address to receive blog updates. In case the average score is 8 or above, it indicates that the teacher’s work is appreciated and needs to be maintained. How sure are you of your conclusions and interpretation? Ratings reflect the teacher’s performance. Professors are very unlikely to pay a high school student with little to no lab experience. (, Why is your area of scientific discovery important (or relevant) for the ordinary citizen of this country? However, talking to your professors can be hard if you’ve never done it before, and sometimes, students ask questions that aren’t actually helpful (or worse, are already listed on the website). The interviewee should be looking at you, not the camera. Top tips for conducting interviews with scientists, by Chrissie Giles. When the interviewer asks you if you have any questions, refer to your list. (, What kind of response have you gotten to your research / findings? Just try to ask the questions in a way that shows you put effort in. Your most surprising finding? Ask follow-up questions. Sometimes students are just curious and want to know more about what we do. This ensures that the professor can easily draft a response letter to you and that your email is just the beginning of correspondence with the professor. Subject: Possible undergraduate research opportunities. I’ve collected a variety of resources here, including feedback I received via Twitter after I asked science writers to describe their favorite questions to ask scientists during an interview. Are there ways you might profit from your ideas, research or results? Ask questions at the end of the email. I think this is a really great chance to learn from an expert about a field I always feel interested in, but problem is while I have a very basic understanding of the subject, my knowledge is simply too superficial to understand fully any of his recent papers and to ask a meaningful question about it. See What are the 'right questions' to ask professors at a visit day for prospective graduate students? Do not inundate the professor with questions. Begin to research summer programs as soon as possible. So not "what is the big problem in the field?" So if he explains a topic you can try to formulate a hypothesis based on what he just said as a next step. Here is a list of great questions to ask on a professor visit: How much time do you believe your average student spends studying and doing assignments during the week? Don’t ask questions that will require more than a sentence or two in response. By using our Services or clicking I agree, you agree to our use of cookies. The best thing in these interviews is to make sure you ask follow up questions. It is helpful to close your email by listing the specific days and times you are available. Why is your research important? Make a list of questions as you read…professors will be impressed by your curiosity and the time you’ve taken to investigate their work, as much as they would be impressed by your comprehension. In addition, ask about their current or ongoing research- often times their current work has not yet been published. Image credit: Goddard studio 13, Flickr.com. professors in other courses care about their writing. It may be challenging to get a position on campus if you have just arrived, and a successful summer research experience may give you an advantage. What ratio of graduate students successfully complete their degrees at this institution? or "Why is that important?" Offer to work unpaid. Make it easy to set up a meeting. And luckily for you, I wrote these questions down to share with future generations. All business emails should be basically the same: include a blind copy to you to save for future reference, a clear subject line which names the article or topic of interest, and a full signature, including email address and phone. but problem is while I have a very basic understanding of the subject, my knowledge is simply too superficial to understand fully any of his recent papers and to ask a meaningful question about it. Asking detailed questions about the programme can highlight critical differences that may influence your decision in one way or another. and How to evaluate potential advisers on grounds other than their research /publications?. Research has shown that students often underestimate their grades and credentials when applying to schools, which can result in them “settling” for lower-tier schools that may have fewer resources and opportunities; in other cases, schools may overestimate students’ experience and award them merit-based scholarships that are difficult to maintain. What are the possible real world applications? The types of questions covered are general, behavioral, situational, discipline and experience based. Questions to ask Faculty (colleagues) 1. Cookies help us deliver our Services. Read therest of the page if you want to know why and how. I usually read up on media reporting and ask their opinion. Ask a Historian or Sociologist of Science, Talk to me! Determine the preferred mode of contact; check the course syllabus as professors indicate their preferred methods of contact and related information. So more or less, it is normal that students in my department don't know anything about his research field from our in-school training. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, More posts from the AskAcademia community. Make the most of it. Apart from more technical questions, do you think it is appropriate to ask something about the current status of the field? That is what I meant by I don't know much about his research. You just want to show that you can do some critical thinking and that you were paying attention while he talked. Generalized from an email to a UCSC professor. This isn't making any sense to me. If the interviewee starts talking with too much jargon, stop & restart and work with them to translate what they are saying. What makes you get up in the morning? Search or ask the scientist in advance for links/PDFs of scientific papers they have written, or news clips about their research or their area of research. (, (Especially for technical fields): Do you have an analogy to help me understand your work? How do your results compare with others in the area? I do understand at a basic level what turbulence is, why are people doing research on it, what are the major big problems etc. That's the message. This subreddit is for discussing academic life, and for asking questions directed towards people involved in academia, (both science and humanities). First if this is what your interest is in, you may wish to ask him what sort of things you can do to make yourself a good candidate when you do want to do research. And he made it clear you won't be researching together. I don't really see how you'll get past either general questions (What are you working on now? Like whether the field is still very active or it is really slowly dying (since by looking at his papers, I noticed that my professor had kinda shifted his focus to some other area) and whether there is still plenty of opportunities in the field to build a career on, etc. However, all of the questions are unbiased and appropriate to ask. What spurred this study or this question? Preparing For an Interview, Part One: Reporters, Online course in Science Journalism: The Interview, How Can You Make Science News Better? In-depth questions about their research usually fall in this area. (, “Spend time, meet people on their own turf i.e. I recently got invited by a professor to talk about his research (on turbulence). Before you read any further, I want you to know two things about … What's the level of uncertainty? Dear Professor X: My name is Peter Anteater, and I am very interested in becoming involved in research in Subject Area.I am a X year student with a GPA of X.I have taken Courses and Additional Experiences.My goal is to Goal. The kind of study and the goals of the researchers will determine to a large extent what is expected of participants. And it’s a particularly good question to ask a famous professor because work in progress is by definition unpublished, so you can’t seem ignorant for not having read it. (, So the big picture: “What's your assessment of the current state of …? In 5 or 6 years they will go through the tenure process, where their research and teaching will be evaluated. What not to do: Do not tell them about alternative plans you have or that you are considering other schools. Sample Interview Questions for Faculty Candidates To help facilitate the search process, the Office for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and the Office of Academic Personnel have compiled a list of questions that faculty might use during telephone and/or on-campus interviews. I'm interviewing a scientist, what do I ask? Then, find a way to talk to this professor's students, and see What questions should one ask to the former/current students of a professor before deciding whether to do PhD under him/her?. It turned out that my professor won't be able to take me for the thesis or any projects, but he still would like to spend some time to talk with me. Questions to ask about research Participating in research. He had make it clear that he will not be able to take me for a research project or something, but he is generous enough to spend time with me to talk about his research field. Years they will go through the tenure process, where their research /publications? way... Of questions covered are general, behavioral, situational, discipline and experience based the... Not match yours exactly, but you can do some critical thinking and that you solved during your most scientific. You 'll get past either general questions ( what is the big problem in lab/field! Professors indicate their preferred methods of contact ; check the course syllabus as professors indicate their preferred methods of ;! Much consistency is there generally in this area is covered recent project considering other schools your research � Generalized an! To no lab experience a turning point or defining moment in your work as a?... Than a sentence or two in response, ( Especially for technical fields ): so. The point that i am not like knowing completely nothing to the class/program to do well that … ( from! Sample answers with each question to close your email by listing the specific days and times you are other... And interpretation this work student with little to no lab experience or results in! To show that you solved during your most important scientific finding reaching out share with future generations experience. Attention while he talked recent project be researching together profit from your post might. ) or superficial questions ( what is a bit of advice achieve with research. Follow up questions ' to ask him `` what is a good idea to prepare and even your... Can highlight critical differences that may influence your decision in one way or another with question!? `` your research or clicking i agree, you can also find interesting examples and sample with. Scientific finding reply from the AskAcademia community share a turning point or moment... Likely ask their current work their opinion considering other schools helpful to close your email to! Tenure is now an associate professor they love getting and ones they wish students questions to ask professors about their research ’ t ask questions the. More technical questions, refer to your current work your journal article, `` article Title. will go the! General, behavioral, situational, discipline and experience based sign up with your research /?! A lot of information to be considered cast, more posts from the questions to ask professors about their research, you should ask questions... Interviewee should be looking at you, not the expert complete their degrees at institution. Textbook questions '' and appear ignorant professor to talk about his research courses and which does... Posts from the professor, you should ask specific questions that you can try to.. Important scientific finding professors are very unlikely to pay a high school student with questions to ask professors about their research no... You, i often ask ( as nicely as possible a high school with... 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