How should I address a lecturer in an email?

Dear Dr. or Dear Professor with their surname. Check their staff page rather than guessing — getting the title wrong is the one thing that is noticed immediately. Use Mr. or Ms. only if you know they hold no doctorate.

What should the subject line say?

The module code and what you want, in that order — for example, [IS2011] Extension request — Assignment 1. A lecturer filters hundreds of emails by module code.

When should I ask for an extension?

Before the deadline, not after. Before, it is a request and it is usually granted; after, it is an appeal and it usually is not.

Free resource

How to email a lecturer

Two emails you can copy, and the five parts every academic email needs. Free, from the Campus Survival Pack.

How an academic email is built

Five parts, in order: a subject line that names the module code and what you want, the correct title, one sentence saying who you are with your index number, the ask itself, and a plain sign-off. Keep it under six lines. Use Dear Dr. or Dear Professor with the surname — check their staff page rather than guessing, because getting the title wrong is the one thing that is noticed immediately. Use Mr. or Ms. only if you know they hold no doctorate. Send it from your university address, not a personal one, or it may never arrive.

Asking a lecturer a question

Subject: [IS2011] Question about the week 6 reading

Dear Dr. [Surname],

I am [Your name], index number [2026IS1234], in your [module code] class.

I have read the week 6 brief and the [chapter or paper name], and I am not clear on [the one specific thing]. I understood it to mean [what you think it means] — is that right?

Thank you for your time.

[Your name]
[Index number]

Asking for an extension

Subject: [IS2011] Extension request — Assignment 1, index [2026IS1234]

Dear Dr. [Surname],

I am [Your name], index number [2026IS1234], in your [module code] class.

Assignment 1 is due on [current due date]. [One sentence on what happened.] I am asking for an extension until [the new date you want].

[I have attached my medical certificate. / I can provide documentation if you need it.]

Thank you for considering this.

[Your name]
[Index number]

Before you send it

Check the name and the title. Check every square bracket is gone — an email that still says [module code] says you did not read your own message. Check the attachment is actually attached. And if you are angry about a mark, write the email, then send it tomorrow.

Campus Survival Pack

Three more email templates, a university assignment template with automatic contents, an APA and Harvard guide with real Sri Lankan examples, a Python starter notebook and more.

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