Is it not OK to just call POIs?

[psychdocstudent]

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I wonder if it's ok to just pick up the phone and call, like asking whether they are taking students and/or their current research projects, etc.

I imagine that if I am a professor, I wouldn't mind at all and feel flattered. And if I am busy I will schedule another time to talk. Anything wrong with calling?

 

[Ollie123]

I'm not sure it would be held against you, but our undergrads have brought this up in multiple context and the faculty here have generally said they greatly prefer email communication for things like this. Its less intrusive and easier to take time to reply when they need to rather than try and schedule in a time that they have to block off.

I also suspect that unless you get someone very, very junior, they will have gotten over any sense of feeling particularly flattered by undergraduates or post-bacs being interested in their work.

 

[PsychPhDone]

I wonder if it's ok to just pick up the phone and call, like asking whether they are taking students and/or their current research projects, etc.

I imagine that if I am a professor, I wouldn't mind at all and feel flattered. And if I am busy I will schedule another time to talk. Anything wrong with calling?

I don't know a single professor who would likely be free enough to chat for 5-10 minutes unscheduled. All who I know would prefer an email or at least an email to set up a phone chat (and very few I know would think that has any advantages over email, either).

 

[cara susanna]

I wouldn't, but maybe that's just me.

 

[deleted176373]

It's rude, don't do this!

If you contact them and ask them if you can call via email and they agree, that's appropriate. If you catch them at a conference, that's often a great time to talk, especially if you contact them ahead of time. Cold calling out of the blue however will not have the desired effect.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

It's rude, don't do this!

If you contact them and ask them if you can call via email and they agree, that's appropriate. If you catch them at a conference, that's often a great time to talk, especially if you contact them ahead of time. Cold calling out of the blue however will not have the desired effect.

Agreed. I don't know that even the majority would get upset, but the risk is not worth any minor potential benefit, especially when you consider that emailing offers the same upside with a much smaller chance of things breaking bad.

 

[beantownpsych]

Agree w/ what everyone else has said. Calling POIs directly is definitely not a good idea (and I doubt you'll get past their secretaries anyways)...