5 Critical Tips for Professional Emails

5 critical tips for professional emails

Email might not be college students’ favorite form of communication, but it is a critical communication method in the world of work and your job search.  Be certain to make a positive impression by following these 5 quick tips:

1) Reply within 24 hours. Keep on top of your email and reply to emails efficiently, ideally within 24 hours. (Open an email account dedicated to your job search ensuring you won’t miss important messages.)

2) Use a professional email signature.  If you haven’t already, create an email signature and include it at the end of every correspondence.

Suzy Smith
Bachelor of Arts, English, June 20XX
University of Denver
303.555.5555
student.sample@gmail.com

3) Be descriptive in your email subject line.  Don’t get lost in the shuffle of emails, resumes and cover letters.  Make sure that attachments and email signature lines include your name and the position. 

Suzy Smith Application – Communications Assistant

4) Write concise emails. Professionals have limited time to read your messages. Learn about the 5 sentence email, a new productivity trend in business.

5) Send error free emails with excellent grammar. This sounds obvious, but many job seekers make a bad first impression through simple mistakes.

By Heidi J. Perman
Heidi J. Perman Assistant Vice Chancellor, Career & Professional Development