How To Prepare A Scientific Doctoral Dissertation Based On Research Articles

The article-based thesis is becoming increasingly common, especially in the 'hard' sciences such as biology, medicine and technology, and is beginning to replace the traditional monograph. Format guidelines vary among universities. This is the first book to summarise the main features, showing the PhD student how to prepare a thesis in such a format. The suggestions are highly practical; both its good and bad examples from published theses support the author's wise advice on all aspects of such theses. Poor figures are not only scrutinised in detail but also redrawn for comparison. Guidance also covers the issues of reprint permissions and copyright. This informative and accessible book, from the author of How to Write and Illustrate a Scientific Paper, has been developed through the author's extensive teaching experience in scientific writing and also his experience as a journal editor. It is therefore an indispensable guide to article-based thesis success.

"The article-based thesis is becoming increasingly common, especially in the 'hard' sciences such as biology, medicine and technology, and is beginning to replace the traditional monograph. Format guidelines vary among universities. This is the first book to summarise the main features, showing the PhD student how to prepare a thesis in such a format. The suggestions are highly practical; both its good and bad examples from published theses support the author's wise advice on all aspects of such theses. Poor figures are not only scrutinised in detail but also redrawn for comparison. Guidance also covers the issues of reprint permissions and copyright. This informative and accessible book, from the author of How to Write and Illustrate a Scientific Paper, has been developed through the author's extensive teaching experience in scientific writing and also his experience as a journal editor. It is therefore an indispensable guide to article-based thesis success"--

A concise and easy-to-read guide to preparing an article-based doctoral thesis, also detailing examples of good versus bad practice.

The article-based thesis is becoming increasingly common, especially in the 'hard' sciences such as biology, medicine and technology, and is beginning to replace the traditional monograph. Format guidelines vary among universities. This is the first book to summarise the main features, showing the PhD student how to prepare a thesis in such a format. The suggestions are highly practical; both its good and bad examples from published theses support the author's wise advice on all aspects of such theses. Poor figures are not only scrutinised in detail but also redrawn for comparison. Guidance also covers the issues of reprint permissions and copyright. This informative and accessible book, from the author of How to Write and Illustrate a Scientific Paper, has been developed through the author's extensive teaching experience in scientific writing and also his experience as a journal editor. It is therefore an indispensable guide to article-based thesis success.

This engaging and highly regarded book takes readers through the key stages of their PhD research journey, from the initial ideas through to successful completion and publication. It gives helpful guidance on forming research questions, organising ideas, pulling together a final draft, handling the viva and getting published. Each chapter contains a wealth of practical suggestions and tips for readers to try out and adapt to their own research needs and disciplinary style. This text will be essential reading for PhD students and their supervisors in humanities, arts, social sciences, business, law, health and related disciplines.

How to transform a thesis into a publishable work that can engage audiences beyond the academic committee. When a dissertation crosses my desk, I usually want to grab it by its metaphorical lapels and give it a good shake. “You know something!” I would say if it could hear me. “Now tell it to us in language we can understand!” Since its publication in 2005, From Dissertation to Book has helped thousands of young academic authors get their books beyond the thesis committee and into the hands of interested publishers and general readers. Now revised and updated to reflect the evolution of scholarly publishing, this edition includes a new chapter arguing that the future of academic writing is in the hands of young scholars who must create work that meets the broader expectations of readers rather than the narrow requirements of academic committees. At the heart of From Dissertation to Book is the idea that revising the dissertation is fundamentally a process of shifting its focus from the concerns of a narrow audience—a committee or advisors—to those of a broader scholarly audience that wants writing to be both informative and engaging. William Germano offers clear guidance on how to do this, with advice on such topics as rethinking the table of contents, taming runaway footnotes, shaping chapter length, and confronting the limitations of jargon, alongside helpful timetables for light or heavy revision. Germano draws on his years of experience in both academia and publishing to show writers how to turn a dissertation into a book that an audience will actually enjoy, whether reading on a page or a screen. He also acknowledges that not all dissertations can or even should become books and explores other, often overlooked, options, such as turning them into journal articles or chapters in an edited work. With clear directions, engaging examples, and an eye for the idiosyncrasies of academic writing, he reveals to recent PhDs the secrets of careful and thoughtful revision—a skill that will be truly invaluable as they add “author” to their curriculum vitae.

A concise and easy-to-read guide to writing and illustrating a scientific paper, detailing examples of good versus bad practice.

Helping Doctoral Students Write offers a proven approach to effective doctoral writing. By treating research as writing and writing as research, the authors offer pedagogical strategies for doctoral supervisors that will assist the production of well-argued and lively dissertations. It is clear that many doctoral candidates find research writing complicated and difficult, but the advice they receive often glosses over the complexities of writing and/or locates the problem in the writer. Kamler and Thomson provide a highly effective framework for scholarly work that is located in personal, institutional and cultural contexts. The pedagogical approach developed in the book is based on the notion of writing as a social practice. This approach allows supervisors to think of doctoral writers as novices who need to learn new ways with words as they enter the discursive practices of scholarly communities. This involves learning sophisticated writing practices with specific sets of conventions and textual characteristics. The authors offer supervisors practical advice on helping with commonly encountered writing tasks such as the proposal, the journal abstract, the literature review and constructing the dissertation argument. The first edition of this book has helped many academics and thousands of research students produce better written material. Now fully updated the second edition includes: Examples from a broader range of academic disciplines A new chapter on writing from the thesis for peer reviewed journals More advice on reading and note taking, performance and conferences, Further information on developing a personal academic writing style, and Advice on the use of social media (blogs, tweets and wikis) to create trans-disciplinary and trans-national networks and conversations. Their discussion of the complexities of forming a scholarly identity is illustrated throughout by stories and writings of actual doctoral students. In conclusion, they present a persuasive and proven argument that universities must move away from simply auditing supervision to supporting the development of scholarly research communities. Any supervisor keen to help their students develop as academics will find the ideas and practical solutions presented in this book fascinating and insightful reading.