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Why Is a mentor important?

Most of the students that win awards at Science Fair or other research–based scholarships consists of students with mentor assistance. A mentor can help you specialize in the fields you are interested in and give you the resources necessary to shine in that field.

Mentors are especially able to help you with idea formation; most students struggle with coming up with ideas. Further, having a mentor brings you funding to carry out your research, sometimes in flagship laboratories.

Contacting the Right Mentor

Most Universities and Laboratories split into lab groups. Therefore, it is very important to make sure you are contacting a person that is in charge of the lab group, so that they can get you involved with the larger project. Graduate students and Postdocs might do a lot of work at the lab, but they might not be the right mentor for a high schooler.

You must also consider if you want to do your own work or join the faculty to assist them with their work. Generally, choosing your own work is more challenging, but is more rewarding at competitions.

Assisting faculty can be valuable to gain experience in niche fields. It definitely has potential to reach heights, but does not have the same impact at competitions, unless you are able to sell your work.

Contacting Potential Mentors

The easiest way to contact someone is through email. However, a lot of PhDs and researchers are known to struggle to answer emails, regardless an email from a high schooler. That is why it is important to stay concise, while communicating your ideas and passion for research. Sending multiple emails out at a time is also a great idea (3-5 a day). The more specific you get in the email, the more it proves to the mentor, that you are knowledgeable in that field.

Here are some general tips to include in your email

1. Include a brief greeting and introduction
2. Communicate your interest in having a mentor
3. Talk about what interested you in their work (their papers, apps, presentations, etc.)
4. Mention your goals (Science Fair, publishing papers, etc.)
5. Suggest that you would like to meet them virtually/in person to discuss your options
6. Offer to send a resume upon their request

Ultimate Guide to Cold Email for Research Mentorship in High School

It is so very important to emphasize the specifics of what got you interested in their work. Further, give them areas you wish to explore with them. By keeping it goal-oriented, it makes it easily for the mentor to sponsor you.

Resources and Remarks

Now that you understand how to get a mentor, you should work towards specific targets. Research-based competitions such as Science Fair is really valuable for things such as college applications and the future.

To master specific competitions such as ISEF check out this course.

Watch this playlist, for full training on doing research at the high school level.

These research opportunities give way to priceless connections and huge weights for your resumes. Publishing papers and presenting your research will teach you really important skills. Most successful researchers starting their research career in their high school years.

So what are you waiting for? Send out those emails and get started on your research career today!