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I am a PhD student and my masters advisor is not replying to my emails. Why is he not replying?

When I was in the masters program he and I published a paper on a big journal. I am the first author. This has been cited ~100 times now.

About a year ago another researcher published a commentary article about our paper on the same journal. Since then I worked on a reply, and sent the full draft to my former advisor (coauthor of the original article) asking for review.

He has not replied so far, even though I reached out to him multiple times. As a last resort I informed him if you don’t reply by this deadline I will just submit this on my own. The deadline is approaching soon.

I don’t think I will get a reply. My question is, why would he do this?

LambdaPsi
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  • How long have you been trying? – Buffy Jul 25 '22 at 19:05
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    @Buffy A year, the same timeframe since the commentary got published. – LambdaPsi Jul 25 '22 at 19:08
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    Maybe he or a family member is ill? Are there third-parties you can contact him through or find out information from, like a current student you know, someone in leadership in his department, a mutual friend or colleague? – Bryan Krause Jul 25 '22 at 19:14
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    At the risk of stating the obvious: Pick up the phone and call him? If he can't answer, you call will likely be rerouted to his department's office, who will be able to tell you what's wrong or when and how to reach him. – Heinzi Jul 26 '22 at 06:15
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    I knew someone who got fed up with academic life, withdrew from it entirely, and took up farming. Anything is possible. – Michael Kay Jul 27 '22 at 00:20
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    Calling or emailing his department should at the least be able to tell you if he's still around and ignoring you or else on sabbatical, retired, indefinitely away to deal with a family situation, etc. For what it's worth, I had similar situation with a professor I had worked with, and after a couple of months of trying to contact him, found out he had unfortunately died of covid in the interim. – anomaly Jul 27 '22 at 11:58

1 Answers1

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There are a lot of possibilities, including retirement, new job, and death. It is even possible that your emails are going to spam if their mailer doesn't recognize your (presumably new) email address.

I suggest that you try to contact him indirectly through the department in which he works/worked or another third party known to both of you. The head of department might have something to say. Most people will reply to (correct) emails if they are able, if only to say they aren't interested or able.

But an administration office is almost certain to reply with something useful. And they are also likely to give the person a nudge if it is feasible.

Buffy
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    Right! And it would certainly be best to get some response/opinion/edits from your ex-advisor, rather than either put their name on something they've not endorsed, or omit their name from something relevant to their professional practice... Yes, it is awkward to not get any response, but I think you have a serious obligation to pursue things until you get some response. – paul garrett Jul 25 '22 at 20:55
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    Important messages need to go out over a more reliable channel in than just email. It happens sometimes that some domains block other domains so that your email is not even making it to the other person's junk folder. – Terry Loring Jul 25 '22 at 23:15
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    If possible (like a 2h drive), you might even want to go there in person. – usr1234567 Jul 26 '22 at 07:39
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    Why should the OP not reply on his own? Certainly he should try to call the advisor, but the advisor could have easily also noted the commentary article and contacted the OP for a reply, which has not happened either. The reply will reference the original article to which the advisor has contributed, and will otherwise be based on the current knowledge of the OP. Maybe it would be better if the advisor could also contribute to the reply, but it is not required in my view. – Radio Controlled Jul 26 '22 at 10:02
  • Also if the advisor put out an email on the original article and does not make sure he is reachable by this address, it is also his fault in my view. – Radio Controlled Jul 26 '22 at 10:04
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    @RadioControlled It is not about blame, it is how to get the best response and avoid any akward situation. – usr1234567 Jul 26 '22 at 10:38
  • @usr1234567 Why avoid "akward" situation? Is that what should motivate one's decisions? – Radio Controlled Jul 26 '22 at 11:08
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    @RadioControlled of course the OP owes their coauthor and mentor their serious effort at trying to reach them, and replying solo to the commentary is simply the wrong thing to do until those efforts have been made. A few emails hardly constitutes a serious effort. – Scott Seidman Jul 26 '22 at 13:43