What is cold and warm mailing?

One of the very important steps in exploration of opportunities in foreign universities with fully funded scholarships is through mailing the professors and knowing about the opportunities & vacancies in their research groups especially for direct or integrated PhD, PhD, and postdoctoral fellowships.

Cold mailing is like the same format and same content mailed to numerous professors of foreign universities in one go. You will mention your research interest, inclination, background, and research domain to each and every professor whom you are mailing.

Warm mailing, on the other hand, is tailor-made for a particular professor, mentioning his research work, which he is doing in his research group, and showing a high degree of correlation between his research work and the research interests of the candidate. In the warm mailing, the professor can see his work being mentioned. Unlike cold mailing, which is more generic, warm mailing is specific and tailor-made as per the research work of a particular professor. You mention the research publication or project of a particular professor in the warm mailing and try to justify your inclination to join his research group.

Why should warm mailings be done?

Warm mailing done to an international professor has a very high probability of a positive response from the professor, which further enhances the probability of getting fully funded PhD opportunities or postdoc options in the research group of particular professors. When the professor sees that you have done an assessment of his research work and you have knowledge about his research work, he is convinced that you are genuinely interested in his research group and you have a fairly good idea about his research field, which makes you more suitable as a prospective PhD or postdoc candidate compared to others who must have done cold mailing to the professor.

High probability of professor response in warm mailing

The probability of getting fully funded scholarship opportunities in the research group of particular professors in foreign university is very high if a warm mailing is done. Response will be quite positive from professor if you drop warm mail to him mentioning his research work and his research group.

Component and Format of warm mail

Warm mail must have a format, and a particular sequence must be maintained:

• The first paragraph should introduce you to the professor, mentioning your name and academic background, including what you want from the professor. Looking for a PhD opportunity in your research group in this research field.
• second paragraph must mention the research work of the professor and how this is linked to your research interest
• Third para related to your academic and research background, your research project or internships
• The fourth paragraph must mention how you will be helpful for particular research group of the professor