Publishing Your PhD: From Chapter to Journal Article

So much work goes into writing a thesis or dissertation, but if we’re completely honest with ourselves, not even our committees read the entire document all the way through. Once a thesis or dissertation has been defended, it’s submitted and published online via ProQuest, but it’s not likely readers will stumble upon it there either. While you can’t publish every chapter of your dissertation and have it accepted by the university, policy does allow you to publish a few chapters and this is a wonderful way to ensure greater readership. It’s also a way to show future employers your research is relevant. There is a lot of pressure for graduate students to publish and a thesis or dissertation can produce two or three articles before you graduate. It’s likely the only time in your academic career that you’ll be able to send off an article to a publisher that’s already been reviewed by three professors. While your committee will certainly recognize the amazing work you’ve done, having the contribution you’ve made recognized by other peers will make the intensive effort of writing a thesis or dissertation that much more gratifying and worthwhile.

To begin, identify a target journal that’s appropriate. Your committee can definitely help you with this and may be more familiar with which journals are out there. Be sure to find out what you can about different journals’ purposes, rates of acceptance, reviewing processes, and previously published content. You’ll need to shorten your chapter before sending it off for consideration, giving you the opportunity to make your research even more clear and concise. It will also be necessary to repurpose parts of your thesis or dissertation. For instance, you may have to reformat your introduction into an abstract for publication. Combine multiple research questions included in the longer thesis or dissertation into one coherent focused question. Be sure also to situate your research in the literature and discuss how future study can expand upon your findings. Limit your citations to the most up to date and relevant. Remember as your tailoring your chapter for an academic journal that a journal has different requirements and a different audience than a university. Review your findings for value and impact when condensing to be sure to give yourself the best chance of being published. Have your committee comment on the article once you’re done condensing before sending. Whatever you do cut may find its way into another article, so don’t get too upset about cutting up the hard work you’ve completed.

Reviewing chapters for consideration before sending them off to prospective journals is also a fabulous way to prepare for your defense. Your committee will be encouraging you to publish but it’s important to remember that you are driving the publication of your thesis or dissertation so plan to include publishing as an important step in the process.