On my previous article, we have been talking about how to write a proposal research for applying master degree or scholarship. Now, after we know, it is the time for us to take a new level! After we finished with our proposal research, we can start to contact several professors from universities that probably will become to our supervisor. Contacting professors is best idea to do cause Professors or lecturers in university are holding authority to give recommendation on certain students to get Letter of Acceptance (LoA).
If you did not have relation with any professors from you prospective university, you can always send them an email, with introducing your self and brief biography, and pray they will interested with your research and reply your message. Don't give up if they don't reply your messages, some of the email with get response but it takes time 3-4 weeks. Okay! let's go to the point.
Tips and Tricks to ask professor to become your supervisor
Find out the experts in your field, Already decide the university, now the time for you to surf entire university official website to find professors that continuously worked in your field. For instance, if you eagerly study in palynology you may find professors who probably work in closely similar field such as plant sciences, entomology, botany and etc. You can start to list several names, because we still not sure whether they willing to supervise you or not.
Write proper email, write an email to all the list of names with proper grammar, it will show your initial credibility from the way you send them an email. Give them brief introduction about yourself and what intention you are going to say briefly. No need sugar coating, just come to the point!
Attach your CV and Research proposal , you must attach you CV to give them quick review about yourself and what you have done, it will affect on their assessment toward you and also do not forget your research proposal. You can always attach other papers that you have done and please make sure that was related to this research. No need to boast about your singing competition awards :D
Tell them how much you want to get supervise by them and how much your put interest on certain field and willingness to work with them as assistant in their laboratory or field.
Like I have said in previous article, I will attach the sample of proposal in biological science. I have applied for INPEX Scholarship last year using this one. As my experience, I have sent emails to 20 professor but only few of them replied but in the end I have got Letter of Acceptance from university of Chiba. It hurts to talk about this but unfortunately I could not make it. I hope its going to useful for you. Best of Luck!
Dear Professor ____________,
Your Perspective University
I am _____________, I did my undergraduate education in Biology Education Department, Teacher Training and Education Faculty from Syiah Kuala University, Banda Aceh, Aceh Province, Indonesia (www.unsyiah.ac.id). The University is rated as top 10 University in Indonesia.
I graduated in 2016 with distinction (GPA: ,_). My bachelor thesis was “Identification Morphology of Pollen Grains Inside Domestic Honey, Banda Aceh’s Honey Products (Indonesia) and Zagreb’s Honey Product (Croatia). In precise my bachelor thesis discussed about observation morphology of pollen grains inside domestic honey product and comparation between Banda Aceh’s honey and Zagreb’s honey based on botanic origin as initiation for quality of honey product.
I initiate to conduct further research for my master thesis, I hope you my study plan will be considered favorably. I am planning to do research about Palynology (Study about Pollen grain and plant reproduction), especially The Pollen Spectrum of the Honey in Japan (Apidae). I want to collect honey samples from two beehives (Family of Apidae) that located in similar environment, the range between beehives under 150 km. In the next move we need to conduct microscopical analysis using acetolysist method that using microscope. We expect to see pollen spectrum inside the honey.
From qualitative analysis of pollen grains it become possible to determine botanical species that make up the pollen spectrum of honey samples The pollen spectrum shows whether the honey samples are from different geographical and floral regions, and also the flowering time of the bee plants and their value as nectar and pollen suppliers. Through quantitative analysis of the pollen grains, it is possible to establish the proportion which each plant, as a nectar supplier contributes, to the constitution of the honey.
The reason why I persist to conduct this research in Japan because I have found one literature that mentioned about honey product in Japan quite rare and become luxury things, and it will be great to conduct this research to determine more characteristic about native-bees in Japan that known quite different than European bees. This research will help to give new perspective about honey and native-bees in Japan and bring new wind to initiate strategy and method to increase the productivity of honey product. The parameter that might be measure from this research is:
- is that any differences of pollen spectrum inside two honey that localities in distance?
- Is there any similarity of pollen spectrum inside two honey that localities in distance?
- What Pollen grains will be dominated inside two honey?
The hypothesis from this research even though the honey from colonies A and B were localities a distance from one another. They will present pollen grain for same species, this will suggest these bee (Family of Apidae) attract some floral supply (Iwama and S. Melhem, 1979). Moreover, I believe University could provide me advance facility in laboratory to conduct this research that probably I can’t afford in Indonesia. The primary thing is University in Japan has Professors that expertise with my major of study and become my supervisor for my master thesis. I hope you my study plan will be considered favorably. Thank you very much.
