GRS Seminar Thesis as a Series of Papers

Graduate Research School Seminar Series

Today’s Seminar

• Background

• 12 common questions & answers

– UWA rules - thesis format & examination

• Support & additional information

Background

• Pressure to publish has increased thesis as series of paper option in higher research degrees

• No worldwide agreement on higher research degree thesis format and no agreement on thesis as a series of papers format ….not even agreement on name - thesis by papers / thesis by publication / thesis as a collection of papers / the hybrid thesis / the continental model

• Wide variation in Australian universities approach to thesis as a series of papers format and examination

Questions 1 & 2

My supervisor wants me to publish during my candidature – why should I? My supervisor wants me to submit my thesis as a Series of Papers – why should I?

Advantages

• Career progression

– Track record of publications

• Thesis improvements

– Write as you go – Peer review process often improves quality of writing and

research – Using papers for both publication and thesis may improve

writing efficiency

Points to consider

• Examiner(s) may not be familiar with, or supportive of, inclusion of published material within a thesis or Thesis as a Series of Papers

- Indicate this is allowable according to UWA Rules

• Time required for publication

• Not all projects are suited to Thesis as a Series of Papers format

Question 3

Where are the specific rules for theses structured as a Thesis as a Series of Papers?

Rules – UWA Handbook http://handbooks.uwa.edu.au/course-rules#id-69908

Content and format of a thesis

• A thesis may be presented in the form of a typescript, a published book or a paper or series of papers which have been published in refereed journals.

• A typescript may be structured in any of a range of ways, including, but not limited to: a monograph; a paper or series of papers suitable for publication in scholarly journals; or a combination of published and unpublished work.

Formatting Rules

http://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/thesis

Ability to include material that has been:

• Published

• Accepted for publication

• Submitted for publication

• Planned for publication (prepared as manuscript)

• Unpublished (but not unpublishable)

(and all combinations of the above in whatever format is most appropriate for your discipline and your project)

At UWA one (small) set of rules for all theses same criteria for examination

Questions 4 & 5

Is Thesis as a Series of Papers common?

Is inclusion of publications within a thesis common?

Study

• Thesis outcomes & publication

• Examiners reports

How frequently is published material included in thesis?

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

No Yes

Publication

Co-author

Sole Author

No

Study of PhD theses completed at UWA in 2012

%

How does this compare across fields of study?

87%

13%

STEM (N=203)

PUBLISHED /SUBMITTED /MANUSCRIPTS FORSUBMISSION

NO PUBLICATIONS41%

59%

HASS (N=65)

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

RESEARCH PAPER/ REVIEW PAPER

CONFERENCEPAPER

BOOK CHAPTER

NU

MBE

R PU

BLIC

ATIO

NS

(ALL

TH

ESES

)

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

THESIS AS SERIES OFPAPERS - ALL

PUBLICATION UNITS

MIX - SOMEPUBLICATION UNITS

TRADITIONAL -PUBLISHED IN

PARALLEL

NU

MBE

R O

F TH

ESES

HASS

STEM

Question 6

How many papers should I include in my thesis?

Discuss this with your supervisor. Consider what is normal for your discipline but understand your thesis may be different because you have chosen to publish in journals that have different length requirements.

Ultimately your examiner will look at the collective worth of your research – not how many parts it has been divided into.

Number of publications included (per thesis)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

1 2 3 4 5 6-10

NU

MBE

R O

F TH

ESES

HASS

STEM

NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS PER THESIS

Number publications included in ‘Series of Papers’ (per thesis)

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

2 3 4 5 6-8

NU

MBE

R O

F TH

ESES

HASS

STEM

Questions 7, 8 & 9

Can I include multi-authored papers in my thesis?

Can I include papers where I am not the lead author?

I’m working with another doctoral student on the same paper – can we include this paper in both our theses?

Author declaration

• The examination of the thesis is the examination of the work of the student. The work must have been substantially completed by the student during enrolment in the degree.

• Your contribution to the work in detailed in the authorship declaration form

• It is important that co-authors are aware, and approve of, the inclusion of the co-authored work in your thesis AND your statement of contribution to the paper

http://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/thesis/style#main

In accordance with the University of Western Australia’s regulations regarding Research Higher Degrees, this thesis is presented as a series of journal papers. The contribution of the candidate and co-author(s) for the papers comprising chapters 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 are hereby set forth.

Paper 1

The paper presented in Chapter 3 is first authored by the candidate and co-authored by ... and is published as

Bienen, B., Byrne, B.W., Houlsby, G.T and Cassidy, M.J. (2006) Investigating six degree-of-freedom loading of shallow foundations on sand. Géotechnique, Vol. 56, No. 6, pp.367-379.

The candidate planned and carried out the experimental program this paper is based on under the supervision of ….The experimental apparatus was developed by Dr … The candidate analysed the experimental results and wrote the paper, except the sections ‘Introduction’ and ‘Equipment’ which were written by …..

Bienen, B. Three dimensional physical and numerical modelling of jack-up structures on sand. 2007.

Question 10

Can I bind my *X* papers and submit them as a thesis?

If a series of papers is presented, there must be a full explanatory introduction (introduction chapter) and a review article at the end (discussion chapter) to link the separate papers and to place them in the context of the established body of knowledge.

Formatting Rules

UWA Rules – 2016 Handbook http://handbooks.uwa.edu.au/course-rules#id-69908

Question 11

Should I / can I reformat publications in my thesis? Should I have consistent fonts, consecutive numbering of headings, titles, figures? Should I use a consistent referencing style? Should I have a consolidated reference list?

Can I add extra text?

Can I delete text?

Work that has been published may be presented in the format in which it was published

or

with the formatting adjusted for consistency with the rest of the typescript.

Formatting Rules UWA Rules http://handbooks.uwa.edu.au/course-rules#id-69908

Points to Consider

The audience for your publications may vary from the audience for your thesis – the examiners

In addition to high quality research examiners are looking for a coherent & well-structured thesis, where students show an understanding of their field and the collective importance of their research.

• Disjointed – care to link papers to generate coherent document

• Incomplete – inadequate background, rationale, justification of methods, data not shown

• Repetitive – redundancy in introduction and/or methods

Question 12

What do examiners think of the inclusion of published work within a thesis?

Study findings

Examiners supportive of publication during candidacy Examiners can be concerned about omissions, redundancy/repetition & lack of cohesion in ALL theses

Does publishing equate to a ‘good’ examination outcome?

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Pass Pass Minor Pass Minor-Substantive

Pass Substantive Resubmit

Theses without Publications

Theses with Publications

Further Information • Graduate Education Officer contact details

http://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/resources/officers

• UWA Handbook HDR Rules http://handbooks.uwa.edu.au/course-rules#id-69908

• GRS Thesis advice http://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/thesis

• UWA Thesis Examination Forms & Guidelines http://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/forms

• UWA Library Copyright and Higher Degree Theses http://guides.is.uwa.edu.au/HDRtheses_copyright

• UWA Library Open Access Toolkit http://www.library.uwa.edu.au/research/open-access-toolkit

http://www.postgraduate.uwa.edu.au/students/resources/workshops

GRS Workshops

Dr Krys Haq Ext. 2095

Dr Michael Azariadis Ext. 1726

Dr Jo Edmondston Ext. 7010

Student Central (formerly Social Sciences South) - Second Floor

Graduate Education Officers