Do you want to apply for an internship or a PhD/Postdoc position? I am happy about any application, but unfortunately I receive many very non-professional applications, hence please follow these instructions if you want to be considered seriously.

First, unless you answer to a specific request for applications (such as mailing list announcements), don't send me your CV! I am not at all interested in which courses you visited, whether you belong to the only 0.00000005% of the accepted applicants for some program, or whether you have experience with Oracle databases. I may request your CV later, when things get more seriously, but please don't send it in your first email to me.

Second, don't send me a generic mail. Don't write "Dear Sir" or even "Dir Sir/Madam". Don't write "I am inspired by your research" when you haven't even taken a look at my research. If you want me to invest time considering your application, then make it obvious that you have also invested time in writing to me.

Third, tell me why you are specifically interested in my research area. Tell me about papers you have read - be it my own papers or other people's papers. Tell me what you liked/disliked about these papers. Tell me about your ideas: How do you want to improve on the state of the art?