As a PhD student, you all know how important it is to write your dissertation or thesis. After writing your dissertation, the next most challenging task is to publish a peer-reviewed article from your research. Your publication is the core requirement for completing your doctoral degree. However, getting your dissertation published takes a lot of work. You first have to modify your dissertation for peer review. This peer-reviewed article is essential for your degree as it ensures your work’s best content quality.
If you find it difficult to modify your dissertation or thesis into a peer-reviewed article, you should read it carefully. This article presents some tips you can use to publish your manuscript for peer-reviewed journals.
What is peer review?
Every journal has a team of reviewers called peer-review to judge and analyse your article before approving it for publication. Peer review helps the author improve the quality of their manuscript by giving them necessary feedback and to prepare it for publication.
Open peer review is essential for the academic development of a PhD student. It gives you the foresight to review the points technically you have made in your article and to prepare a high-quality peer-reviewed article for the journals.
How to prepare your manuscript for peer-reviewed journals:
Preparing your PhD dissertation or thesis for peer-reviewed articles is very technical. You must follow every requirement deemed necessary to approve your work for publication. It is a difficult crux in the life of a PhD student, and many students find it worrying. However, do not take tension, not anymore. This article will help you cross this phase of your PhD program seamlessly.
Plan your article:
The first thing you need to do is to plan your articles. Make sure while writing that your article conveys your key message properly. Plan your article length. A dissertation is a long-winded piece of academic writing and, thus, is not fit for publication. You have to reshape your dissertation into a peer-reviewed article. Keep the following points in view:
- Adjust your lengthy dissertation to the minimum size required for publication
- Your content and arguments should be coherent
- Your arguments alone should support your central idea or claims
- Keep your target audience in view
- Use technical terms and jargon related to your field
- Avoid using the free-style language you often use in your dissertation
Do a thorough literature survey of the article:
Your peer-reviewed article has to go through various authors for revisions. Make sure you have properly searched every aspect of your study. You should have complete command and knowledge about your topic; only then will you be able to write high-quality content for your articles deemed important for publication.
If you let your reviewer find a missing aspect in your study, it will not be a good point for your article. You will find difficulty in getting your work published later. Therefore, refrain from giving any chance to reviewers to point out any mistakes in your article.
Keep your target journal in view:
Before preparing your peer-reviewed article, consider the target journal in which you want to publish your work. Every journal has a set of criteria, like word count for abstract, discussion and some other points. Read those guidelines before writing your article; it will save time and prevent unnecessary tension afterwards.
Your article should follow the IMRaD format:
Although every journal’s requirements are different, one common thing for every journal is that they follow the IMRaD format. Your peer-reviewed article must base on the IMRaD format. Following is the format every PhD student must follow if they want to publish their work:
- Title page
- Authors and affiliation
- Abstract
- Keywords
- Introduction
- Methodology
- Results
- Discussion
- Acknowledgements
- References
Properly address your problem and solution in the article:
You should convey your message properly in your article. There is a simple trick to it. Just remember whom you want to target. Does the article target members of your field or generally everyone? Through this, you will make sure your readers get your message.
Your article must address any social issue. It acts as a plus point for your article’s publication. Ensure your readers understand how you approach that problem and your findings easily. When readers are satisfied with your work, they will cite it or use it as a reference for your work. It will increase your article’s worth.
Proper representation of figures and tables:
While writing an article, ensure you properly explain every figure and table. If you have taken figures from someone else’s work, cite them properly. If figures depict your findings, they should be of high quality. You should give the necessary information in the figure legend and cite it properly in front of the relevant text.
Proper referencing:
Ensure you have properly cited other authors’ work. You should ensure the proper format of in-text citations and bibliography. Read the guidelines of your target journal and use that format for your references like APA, Vancouver, Harvard or MLA.
Clarity is necessary:
The key thing that you should prioritise in your article is clarity. Your writing and content should be understandable to the readers, and you can ensure it by using simple and clear language. You should ensure there are no typos or grammatical errors as it affects the readability of your article.
Make sure you write in such a way that it covers the broader target audience. It would be best if you were confident in your writing as it will give certainty to your articles and convince your readers of your claims. Be sure to explain the acronyms properly when they first appear.
Avoid plagiarism:
While writing a peer-reviewed article, make sure your content is original. Plagiarising the work of other authors, whether intentionally or unintentionally, will be a negative point for your work and will be a reason for rejection. It is a major drawback of your work, as you will find it difficult to publish later.
If you are using someone else’s work as a reference, cite it properly and write it in your own words. Taking material from your dissertation is not plagiarism.
Multiple proofreading of your article:
Proofread your article repeatedly before sending it to the journal. It will help you identify mistakes you have made in your work. Through proofreading, you will know whether you have properly addressed your problem statement, whether you are clear in your findings or whether you can convince your readers with your work. It will help you improve the quality of your article.
Discussion with supervisor:
One of the most important things you must do before sending your article to journals is a discussion with your supervisor. Your supervisor is experienced in article writing and reviewing. Having your article critically analysed by your supervisor will help you determine important technical aspects that you have missed in your study and how positively support your findings. So, always ask your supervisor to check your article before peer review.
Seek online article writing services:
If you still find it perplexing to deal with the peer-review process, you can hire the PhD peer-reviewed article help services at The Academic Papers UK.
Conclusion:
Writing your PhD research study into a peer-reviewed article is difficult, as it entails many technical aspects. It would be best if you wrote your article keeping in consideration the journal you wish to publish your work. Read all the guidelines before starting to write your article. Your article has to go through multiple authors for revision before approval for publication; therefore, try to cover all its technical aspects. The tips mentioned above will help you write your PhD article for a peer-reviewed journal.
