Guidelines for HDR Students on Publishing During or After candidature

Work in progress

One model for publishing during candidature is to submit elements of HDR student research for publication, which then come to represent ‘work in progress’ within the broader achievements of the thesis.

In this case, the thesis needs to include clear acknowledgement of research published during candidature, in both a dedicated section and the reference list, to explain the timing of those publications, how they differ from the material as submitted in thesis format for examination, and the role of supervisors as co-authors, if relevant (see below).

Students who do not make clear how their publications relate to their thesis risk critique during examination.

Thesis by publication

The UNSW guidelines on Thesis Submission as a Series of Publications states that 'All Chapters except the Introduction/Literature Review and Conclusion/ Recommendations should be work that has been either published or submitted or accepted for publication in discipline appropriate venues at the time the thesis is submitted.'

Please note the guidelines provided by UNSW, as well as the more specific guidelines for students enrolled in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, and ensure that the intention to submit a thesis by publication is discussed and approved at the Confirmation Review.

Further information can also be found at UNSW Research.

Sole versus joint authorship

Students and supervisors must discuss their preferred arrangements for publication of material arising from doctoral research, including when their research has reached an appropriate stage to consider submission for publication, and intended co-authorship arrangements.

Please note that there can be some different disciplinary expectations regarding sole versus joint authorship, and supervisors may themselves hold different views on this issue, but the principles typically used to guide authorship decisions in peer reviewed journals (and in the UNSW Procedure for Authorship and for Resolving Disputes between Authors (PDF)) suggest that supervisors will usually have provided the requisite degree of input (advice on research design, conduct, interpretation, writing) to justify their inclusion as a co-author on publications emanating from HDR student research.

Further information can be found at UNSW Research.

Unethical publishing behaviours

UNSW Library also provides information for authors to identify issues where publishers may attempt to restrict individual researcher’s rights.

Publishing your thesis as a book

If you want to publish your thesis as a book, for example, students should consider putting a 24 month restriction on UNSW Library providing electronic publication of the thesis. You can find this information at UNSW Library.

Restrictions up to 24 months do not require approval, and a student can indicate the number of months the restriction will apply when submitting the thesis online. For applications for restrictions greater than 24 months it is necessary to obtain approval for a restricted thesis at least 6 months prior to the anticipated date of submission of the thesis. More information can be obtained from UNSW Research.

Publishing material after the thesis has been submitted

Publishing material from HDR student research after the thesis has been submitted/examined will require (sometimes substantial) further development of the manuscript to ensure it does not simply duplicate what was in the thesis.

Publishing in journals

Most journals will complete an automatic online scan to see if the manuscript you have submitted for review has been published before, and your digital thesis will be viewed as evidence of prior publication.

Publishing in books

Most book publishers will expect a book manuscript to consist of chapters which have been considerably revised from the thesis version, and often completely re-written to ensure appeal to a broad audience.

Institutional recognition

Publications developed from research conducted while enrolled at UNSW are required to be recorded through the Research Outputs System (ROS) to ensure there is institutional recognition of the outputs emanating from HDR candidature.

Please ensure ‘UNSW Australia’ is noted as the institutional affiliation in any publications arising from research conducted during enrolment in an HDR degree at UNSW.

Related Documents:

• Australian code of conduct for the responsible conduct of research. (Section 4.12) 
• UNSW Research Code of Conduct
• UNSW Code of Conduct (page 2 regarding public comment

Considerations when disseminating research outputs

To maximise the benefits from research, publications resulting from research activities should be disseminated as broadly as possible to allow access by other researchers and the wider community.

The Australian code for the responsible conduct of research notes that there are many ways of disseminating research findings. Formal publication of the results of research will usually take place in academic journals or books, but this is not always the case. Other forms of dissemination include non-refereed publications, such as web pages, and other media such as exhibitions or films, as well as professional and institutional repositories.

Students must adhere to the UNSW Research Code of Conduct, which states that where research that has not yet been subjected to peer-review is privately reported, researchers must disclose fully the unpublished status of the work and the peer-review mechanisms to which it will be subjected.

Students should be aware that any form of research dissemination that is made available online (eg. conference slides) may preclude publishing in other formats (eg. peer reviewed journals) for copyright reasons.

Research Students who are ready to publish their research findings should consider the impact of these factors on the effective dissemination of their work:

• Status and reputation of a journal, book, publisher or conference
• The peer review process of evaluating your research outputs
• Access by other stakeholders to your work
• The likely impact of your work on users of research and the further dissemination and production of knowledge.

Research Students are encouraged to discuss publication with their supervisors, including discussion of any media regarding their research.

UNSW Media Office

Staffed by a team of experienced journalists, the UNSW Media Office focuses on promoting newsworthy research and other achievements of the University, through external media, the UNSW Newsroom and key corporate publications. The Office is also responsible for internal communications.

The media office also coordinates a Media Experts Database. This is a reference source for staff who field media enquiries, and for external journalists and media professionals seeking expert academic comment on a range of issues.