Must you contact a supervisor before applying to graduate school?

Before contacting a prospective graduate supervisor, establish whether the department requires prior approval or an advisor confirmation document. An exploratory discussion about research and a required approval are different stages. This distinction helps you decide what application work can continue while you wait.

Find the prior-approval requirement first

UNIST's international FAQ for Spring 2027 second-round admission states that its general application procedure does not require a professor's prior approval. That application round closed in October 2026. It illustrates an application route that can proceed through the official process without such approval.

For your own target, check eligibility, the document list and department-specific instructions. Distinguish “recommended”, “permitted” and “required”. If an approval form exists, record who completes it and how it reaches the institution. A laboratory's recruitment page and the graduate admission office's application instructions serve different purposes.

Send different questions to the right people

A professor can discuss research fit and your relevant preparation. Application deadlines, accepted qualifications, document formats and required approval forms belong with the official admission or department office.

Make your materials explain your interest

Prepare a concise CV covering your education, relevant courses, projects and research. If you read a paper, identify the question or method that interested you rather than listing titles. One concrete connection to your own experience gives the recipient something useful to discuss.

Distinguish work you performed, work completed with others and skills you want to learn. Do not present an unfamiliar method as an existing skill or a team's achievement as your individual output. Keep names and dates consistent with the history you will use in the application.

Build a short first email

GEA suggests this structure:

1. State your present qualification, intended degree and intake.

2. Explain the research topic and why you considered this laboratory.

3. Describe one or two relevant tasks you personally completed.

4. Ask a specific research-fit or recruitment question.

5. Attach the materials requested by the department.

A subject line identifying the degree, intake and field is more useful than “admission enquiry”. Select contacts from the department's published instructions and write to the relevant group with a clear purpose.

Does no reply mean you should stop?

Follow the verified requirement. Where prior approval is optional, you can continue preparing academic documents, language evidence, the study plan and application schedule. Where approval is required, establish the materials and procedure with the relevant office. A pending reply remains pending.

In a fictional preparation example, a student waiting for a laboratory reply obtains transcripts and refines the research-interest paragraph. The tracker shows “laboratory discussion: awaiting reply”, “academic documents: issued” and “official application: being prepared”. Separate statuses reveal whether the whole plan really depends on one pending task.

Put three things on one page today

Record the department's approval requirement, a research interest you can explain and the next official application deadline. Keep the research conversation and university application stages separate so that waiting and confirmed decisions are visible.

Record your intended field, current qualification and target intake in the free study roadmap. To compare university options, review the scope and application route for GEA university matching.

Related reading: Study plan and personal statement · Steps after choosing a university

Sources: UNIST Spring 2027 second-round international FAQ. Sources checked: 24 October 2026 · Prepared by GEA