Question

zarocat

I am waiting for a decision on my University application and a relative I've never met, but my parents are close with (on my step-fathers side), was a well respected professor at the university I applied to. My family and I went to the university spring gala 2 weeks ago, and after doing so my mother emailed this relative and said hello, stating that she was reminded of him because of the gala. In his reply he stated that if he could do anything for me & my application, he would.

How should I approach an email to this man that i've never met but would like something from because of his reputation and personal achievements ?
(It's sticky)

NOTE: My submission to the university is in order and I am a perfect candidate for the program I applied for. They accept 80 people out of 1000 + so any pull will help, you know ...

Thanks

Claireack

I'm no expert, but I would just say hello your parents said they might be able to help with the application, that you've done all the forms etc and they are ready to go off and that you would be open to any help they had to offer.

_

I'm confused. I took his reply to mean there's nothing he can do. :?

It seems like he could really only try to do something if he is actually a friend of someone on the selection committee. Of course, I've never had any such connections, so I probably don't really know. All I know is that I run a fellowship at a university & we once got an email from a seemingly big deal faculty physician from our institution, asking us to consider her neice's application - and we thought it was pretty obnoxious.

Good luck to you though! Let us know how it turns out.

bytterman

_ wrote:

It seems like he could really only try to do something if he is actually a friend of someone on the selection committee. Of course, I've never had any such connections, so I probably don't really know. All I know is that I run a fellowship at a university & we once got an email from a seemingly big deal faculty physician from our institution, asking us to consider her neice's application - and we thought it was pretty obnoxious.

Good luck to you though! Let us know how it turns out.

Agreed, all he could do would be to talk to people on the committee, prof's rarely have direct role in admissions to undergraduate programs. Is that an ON program Zarocat? I thought admissions were centralized? Regardless best of luck.

zarocat

_ wrote:

I'm confused. I took his reply to mean there's nothing he can do. :?

It seems like he could really only try to do something if he is actually a friend of someone on the selection committee. Of course, I've never had any such connections, so I probably don't really know. All I know is that I run a fellowship at a university & we once got an email from a seemingly big deal faculty physician from our institution, asking us to consider her neice's application - and we thought it was pretty obnoxious.

Good luck to you though! Let us know how it turns out.

My thoughts exactly on the obnoxious front. Thanks.

What happened after 'obnoxious' ? Did you look at her application and let her in or did you look at her application plus uncle and let her in ?

I'll let you know what happens. Should be any day now, really.

zarocat

bytterman wrote:

_ wrote:

It seems like he could really only try to do something if he is actually a friend of someone on the selection committee. Of course, I've never had any such connections, so I probably don't really know. All I know is that I run a fellowship at a university & we once got an email from a seemingly big deal faculty physician from our institution, asking us to consider her neice's application - and we thought it was pretty obnoxious.

Good luck to you though! Let us know how it turns out.

Agreed, all he could do would be to talk to people on the committee, prof's rarely have direct role in admissions to undergraduate programs. Is that an ON program Zarocat? I thought admissions were centralized? Regardless best of luck.

Yes, Ontario program. Centralized admissions means ?

_

zarocat wrote:

My thoughts exactly on the obnoxious front. Thanks.

What happened after 'obnoxious' ? Did you look at her application and let her in or did you look at her application plus uncle and let her in ?

I'll let you know what happens. Should be any day now, really.

We look at everyone's applications, but only grant a few interviews. She got an interview, but it was because she had a good application and DESPITE her aunt's email to us.

It's not that the content of the email was obnoxious or anything - it's just that she sent it at all. We don't want to work with someone who thinks she should get special treatment. We gave her the benefit of the doubt and assumed that maybe she didn't know her aunt sent the email.

On the other hand, if our director is at a conference and has dinner with a friend who happens to mention that one of the tops residents in his program is applying for our fellowship, we keep a special eye out for that application. He would trust his friend's judgement that the applicant is good, so that recommendation holds some weight. But his friends are the people who trained our applicants - not their relatives.

We have had applications from the spouses of our residents, though. (Residency is before fellowship in the training process, and the residents themselves weren't applying.) In those cases, we might keep an eye out for the application because we know the applicant's spouse, as kind of a professional courtesy, I guess. We might be more likely to grant them an interview - but not more likely to hire them - because we feel a little more pressue to justify why the spouse DIDN'T get an interview if they're a reasonable candidate, especially since the resident may hear rumors about who we did interview and judge that her husband is in the same league as them & so should have been granted an interview too. Plus, we're more likely to at least interview someone who doesn't have to make a special trip out here. (If we don't think an applicant is one of the very top candidates we usually prefer to save them the expense.)

Sorry - I wrote a book and probably didn't say anything helpful. I guess my main point is that it can be useful to get a casual recommendation from someone you know & trust who knows the applicant, but getting a random email from someone you don't know who thinks her neice should get an interview because of their clout in the instituation... well that's just irritating. It's almost as if they're saying you should listen to them because (they think) they're more important than you.

Go Beavers

zarocat wrote:

I am waiting for a decision on my University application and a relative I've never met, but my parents are close too (on my step-fathers side), was a well respected professor at the university I applied too. My family and I went to the university spring gala 2 weeks ago, and after doing so my mother emailed this relative and said hello, stating that she was reminded of him because of the gala. In his reply he stated that if he could do anything for me & my application, he would.

How should I approach an email to this man that i've never met but would like something from because of his reputation and personal achievements ?
(It's sticky)

NOTE: My submission to the university is in order and I am a perfect candidate for the program I applied too. They accept 80 people out of 1000 + so any pull will help, you know ...

Thanks

I don't know much about the Canadian higher ed system, but two people I'm close too have been "sponsored" in order to gain admission into college here in the U.S. One was through a professor, and another a staff person. Since the person offered, I would by all means take him up on it. Since you haven't met, start with an email reminding him of the offer and how grateful you would be, and then talk to him on the phone.

jethrojam420

Grammar Police alert!!!

I hope you put the correct usage of 'to' on your application. I had to reread half of your sentences to understand what you were saying.


Ok now that my grandmother has finished typing, good luck on your admissions

lukin2006

Nepotism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepotism

zarocat

jethrojam420 wrote:

Grammar Police alert!!!

I hope you put the correct usage of 'to' on your application. I had to reread half of your sentences to understand what you were saying.

Thanks. I just went back and re-read. The grammar was horrible. I don't understand how that happens.
I have corrected it.
My application was definitely proofed more than once.

jethrojam420 wrote:

Ok now that my grandmother has finished typing, good luck on your admissions

and thanks

zarocat

lukin2006 wrote:

Nepotism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepotism

Yes, yes, yes ... I know, I know, I know ... but that's the way it is, isn't it ... in most institutions nowadays ?

bytterman

zarocat wrote:

bytterman wrote:

_ wrote:

It seems like he could really only try to do something if he is actually a friend of someone on the selection committee. Of course, I've never had any such connections, so I probably don't really know. All I know is that I run a fellowship at a university & we once got an email from a seemingly big deal faculty physician from our institution, asking us to consider her neice's application - and we thought it was pretty obnoxious.

Good luck to you though! Let us know how it turns out.

Agreed, all he could do would be to talk to people on the committee, prof's rarely have direct role in admissions to undergraduate programs. Is that an ON program Zarocat? I thought admissions were centralized? Regardless best of luck.

Yes, Ontario program. Centralized admissions means ?

Sorry, I asked an entirely stupid question. I was thinking about the centralized application centre (at UGuelph I think), but of course that's not admissions and therefore irrelevant.

polaris_x

zarocat wrote:

Yes, yes, yes ... I know, I know, I know ... but that's the way it is, isn't it ... in most institutions nowadays ?

yeah ... i think what you're hoping for is that extra bit in case you are kinda tied with a bunch of people on the bubble ... hopefully, this program would not admit anyone who wasn't deserving ...

i got into my program at University despite having poorer grades than most who didn't - i base it on a letter of recommendation from my teacher and plus the program i was entering (environmental studies) - i had a 94 in ...

Godfather.

I wish you good luck and hope you get in.

Godfather.

zarocat

Godfather. wrote:

I wish you good luck and hope you get in.

Godfather.

Thanks. I appreciate that. Truthfully.

ShimmyMommy

I wish the same as Godfather. I hope you get your spot.