You've got mail! Why checking your inbox is an important skill to master

Working as an International Student Advisor, I read many emails from students every day. Some of them are well-written, some of them....hmm, not so good.  Here are my top tips to master this important skill that everyone needs to be a successful student.

Familiarise/refamiliarise with email, it’s an essential part of professional settings here.

Email is a formal communication channel used in professional settings like workplaces and universities in Australia. This might not be the case in other countries or where you're from. For example, in my home country, people don’t usually check email and it’s a bit “out of date” as a communication method.

Tip #1 for students coming to Australia: Familiarise or refamiliarise yourself with emails, link your email account to your phone and check every day, it really helps.

Check your university email - I can’t stress more.

Each student is assigned a university email while studying with us. I can’t stress more how important it is for a student to use their university email. All communications from the university, whether that’s your lecturers or student support services, will be sent to that account. Check it regularly because I am sure no one wants to miss information like their exam timetable, tuition fees invoice, or class announcements.

Using your university email will also confirm your identity as one of our students. If you use a personal email account that is not in the university’s record, we will probably ask you to send from the university email again. The last thing we want to do is to reply to an email with confidential information without knowing for sure the recipient is the right person.

What’s more, the university IT system is highly unlikely to block an email from a student account. How good is that.

Tip #2 for students coming to Australia: In order to stay up to date and informed while you study you need to use your student email and check it every day.

Tell us who you are - that's fundamental

Whenever you talk to us in person, over the phone, or in email, you need to include your Student ID and full name in every communication. Especially Student ID because it’s your unique reference in the university system (and you don’t know how many people share your name). With a Student ID, a staff member can check your record and provide the most accurate information and personalised advice. Otherwise, we will need to spend some time to investigate who you are or ask you to provide your ID number - it will delay the responses.

Tip #3 for students coming to Australia: Always include your name and student ID when communicating with the university because this will help you get the most accurate answer the fastest.

Provide as much detail as necessary in your email - don’t use it as an instant message.

Try to include sufficient information so university departments know what is going on and how you would like them to help. Less back and forth, more effective.

Email is not like a chat box that you can expect instant response. It will generally take up to 2 working days. If a student writes in their email “Can you help me?”, they will probably receive a response next working day saying: “Could you please provide your Student ID and elaborate how we may help you?”

Sometime students may not know who the best person is to contact and start with someone they know. That’s totally fine. It would be a good idea though to include a written consent for the person or team to forward the email to the most relevant department, of course, if you are OK with that. Otherwise, the person may contact you and seek consent, especially when the email contains personal or sensitive information.

Tip #4 for students coming to Australia: Include enough information in your emails so that we know what the situation is, how you want us to help, and if necessary, who to contact.

Best of luck with all your studies and remember we are here to help!