How do I prepare for my research program 2 months ahead of its beginning? I'm starting a PhD program in the Fall. I know this can be specific to my program, but more generally, what's your advice for an international student preparing for academic success?
I'm going to email my advisor for some advice. I'm still not very familiar with formal and professional emails in academia . So is this OK?
&quot;Dear Dr.???,
Can you give me more info on our research and how I can prepare for it?&quot;
Thanks
You can reasonably guess that your research when you join the group will be closely related to the research the group has published in the past 1-5 years. Therefore, the biggest leg-up you can get is to go through their recent publications (ask for them from the professor if you don't have access to the journals from home or your current school's network) and try to understand what was done, why it was done, and what tools were used?
Reading one or two review articles in the area would also be useful.