How long to wait after sending an email to a professor before I should assume that I will never receive response?

7,662

It depends on how long you think it takes to answer your email!

If you are just asking a few simple questions (= request for information), you can politely email again the professor after one week. Make sure you make your email as simple to answer as possible (bullet points, yes/no questions).

If you are asking the professor to do something for you that goes beyond answering an email, it is more complicated. An absence of answer can often be interpreted as a 'no'.

Share:
7,662

Related videos on Youtube

Jeromy Anglim
Author by

Jeromy Anglim

Updated on October 04, 2022

Comments

  • Jeromy Anglim
    Jeromy Anglim about 1 year

    I have sent an email to a professor at a local university. The email asks for assistance with a fairly large science fair. I have done much of the work and the email was asking about how I could improve it. After 4 days I have not received a response yet.

    Usually people check their email on a fairly regular basis (Once a day, usually) and so I am naturally worried about it.

    Is it possible the professor has not read the email yet or should I email other professors?

    • xLeitix
      xLeitix over 8 years
      Don't confuse "has read my mail" with "has had time to answer my mail". I very frequently read mails, but I answer them in batches, unless they are trivial to answer or very important.
    • Anonymous Physicist
      Anonymous Physicist over 2 years