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introduction
In this section your will find information on how to write an effective subject line.
Before we start
What is the purpose of the subject line?
Do you usually write subject lines?
When do you think they are necessary?
Which are the characteristics of a good subject line?
Real situation: A student sent an email to her instructor to ask her whether it was ok to arrive 20 minutes late to class the following day, as she had an appointment to get her student ID right when the class started.
Do you think the student wrote something in the subject line?
If so, have a look at the list below and guess which subject line the student wrote.
Do you think any of them is a good subject line?
a. No subject line
b. Tomorrow
c. Late arrival
d. Permission to arrive late
e. Permission to arrive late to tomorrow’s class
Do I need a subject line?
Many students frequently leave the subject line space blank, either because they think it is not an important part of the email or because they don’t know exactly what to write.
In other cases, they write something vague that does not really help the instructor identify the purpose of the email. In the real example above, the student did not omit the subject line, but wrote down option b, which is clearly not very informative.
Writing subject lines that are short, clear and informative is in fact really important, since university instructors receive tens of emails every day.
With such a full inbox, instructors appreciate good subject lines that help them easily understand the purpose of the student's email.
When interviewed about students' emails, American university professors shared the following opinions:
Good subject lines ensure emails do not get overlooked.
Clear subject lines allow professors to understand the urgency of a student's inquiry.
And they added views like these ones:
The subject line (...) matters just as much as the contents that are within the email.
Subject lines that properly summarize the contents of the message show professionalism.
So, how do I write a good subject line?
Subject lines should be as direct and informative as possible. In the case of student emails to faculty, they should include...
the purpose of the email and
the course (and the section, if relevant) the student belongs to.
Why do I need to include all this information? Because lecturers usually teach several courses per semester, and thus you make it easier for them to identify who you are and the class, assignment, presentation, deadline, materials, etc. that you are talking about. Basically you give them context they can work with.
In addition to this, you should try to be as specific as possible. For instance, instead of using generic expressions such as 'yesterday' or 'next week' include the specific date. You don't know when the instructor is going to read your email, so 'yesterday' may mean a different thing for them.
Finally, concerning structure, a clear way to organise your information is to start with a noun that clearly reflects the topic of your email (e.g., Request, Questions, Deadline, Approval) and to add specific information after that. Then you can add your course / section*.
Colons, parenthesis and dashes will help you visually organise your information.
*IMPORTANT: If you don't include the course here, remember to include it in the self-identification line.
vague
Feedback
Questions
Appointment
Deadline
specific
Request for feedback: English Grammar final project
Questions about oral presentation (Literary Translation)
Confirmation of appointment time -- Nov 17th
Deadline extension request -- Advanced Grammar
Here you have again the list of subject lines from the real example above:
b. Tomorrow
c. Late arrival
d. Permission to arrive late
e. Permission to arrive late to tomorrow’s class
Does any of them meet the criteria for a good subject line?
If they don't, try to think how to improve them.
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