51 · Five Lines Maximum

Things you MUST avoid — the spam signals that instantly lower credibility. Emotional exaggeration: "MASSIVE respect," "phenomenal accomplishment," "living the dream life of millions," "huge inspiration," "I'm a massive fan." Why? It sounds like a teenager messaging a celebrity, not a peer. People at altitude get fanboyed constantly from below, and it is genuinely tiring. There's a difference between meaningful praise and buttering up — and they know it. LinkedIn NPC phrases — never use: "I hope you're doing well," "I know you're very busy," "Sorry to bother you," "It would be an honour." Generic networking filler everyone uses; there's no reason for them to read it. Too many questions — this is a big one. The current message asks seven. That overwhelms people. Rule: ask ONE good question — the one big question that allows the most flow. Excessive humility: do not frame yourself as inferior to these people. You'll be in their position within two quarters, and it's not even strategically correct — positioning yourself down there doesn't get you into the rooms. Bad: "millions dream of your school." (Their internal response: yeah, I know, and I earned it.) Better: "I applied for EFDS this year and I'm trying to understand the experience from students already in the programme."

The essentials: tailored praise tied to specific experiences — do your homework, read their LinkedIn profile, learn the details, mention them specifically. "Hi Jessie — I noticed you're currently studying EFDS at Imperial." And a pinpointed CTA that makes it real: "If you're open to it, I'd really appreciate a quick 10–15 minute call." Even the time matters — five minutes is decent, an hour is intimidating.

The enhanced structure. Step one — observation: signal you actually looked at their profile. Step two — context: why you're reaching out. "I applied for EFDS this year and I'm trying to understand the programme from students already inside it." Step three — one sharp question: "Would you say the course becomes more mathematically rigorous or more data-science oriented in later years?" Step four — soft CTA: "If you ever have 10–15 minutes for a quick call, I'd really appreciate hearing about your experience — including your summer at JP Morgan as a quantitative researcher." Step five — calm closing: "Thanks again — Jamie." Done. Message length: five lines max.

The don'ts, summarised like the freemium business model: cold outreach is the lowest barrier of entry. Don't pour out gallons of information, don't overwhelm with lengthy paragraphs of emotion, don't provoke spam vibes, don't intimidate with too much knowledge. The purpose of the first message is one thing only: getting them to open the door.

Hey — my name is Jamie Baek. I respect your time so I'll write three bullet points. Got 120/120 on the Putnam. Studying mathematics at Trinity College, Cambridge. Scaled £20k AUM into £200k in six months with a Euclidean-topology quant project. Want to intern for the summer. How? — Fam, shoot your shot. It's crazy to wait seven years for a ten-minute interview.