Brad Miller Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 (edited) so I worked on 2 research projects with a prof, each spanning about 3 months each, starting about 2 years ago and ending about a year and a half ago. I got some results during the project, but since I wasn't terribly interested in the projects and I hate writing papers, I never bothered to ask about the possibility of submitting a paper to get a publication. I have no clue what this prof has done with my results. I 've already been admitted to grad school, and I realize I should've asked this question about a year ago, but it still matters now since I plan on applying for fellowships (ie NSF GRFP) for this upcoming fall. This prof rarely responds to emails, unless its a pretty important matter. Should I ask him at this point if he plans to ever publish my results? Could I also ask if hes willing to include my name on the papers? Should I also phone call him with these questions if he doesn't reply by email (I doubt he would for these kinds of questions)? Edited May 1, 2011 by Brad Miller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mandarin.orange Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 This prof rarely responds to emails, unless its a pretty important matter. Should I ask him at this point if he plans to ever publish my results? Could I also ask if hes willing to include my name on the papers? Should I also phone call him with these questions if he doesn't reply by email (I doubt he would for these kinds of questions)? Yes, this sounds perfectly reasonable, if asked tactfully. If he has no publication plans, develop a strategy for moving along your own presentations and publications. For awhile I could list only the inclusion of my abstract in a conference abstract volume as my "Publications" on my CV. Do you have any of those? Looking forward, how do you plan to tackle your aversion to writing papers? This is an essential skill for abstracts, journal articles, grants, and finally, your thesis, and you have to keep moving forward with it to finally develop a robust, attractive list of pubs on your CV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teelee Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 (edited) Clarify this for me please. You completed 2 separate research projects and each project was 3 months long? Does your 3 month long research have enough data for publication? Also, how much of the research project was your contribution? If all you did was set up the experiment outlined by your professor and just collected data but you didn't actually come up with any of the experiments on your own, analyze the data and/or interpret it, there is a good chance that you will probably not be included in the publication but maybe get credit on posters. It definitely doesn't hurt to ask. Also, if you plan on submitting a full research article, you will have to research the journal you plan on submitting and write 2000 - 3000 words or more (pending on journal). That includes some what extensive background information and a lot of literature review prior to writing. Do you think you can do this between now and when you start grad school? Edited May 1, 2011 by Teelee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Miller Posted May 2, 2011 Author Share Posted May 2, 2011 (edited) Yes, this sounds perfectly reasonable, if asked tactfully. If he has no publication plans, develop a strategy for moving along your own presentations and publications. For awhile I could list only the inclusion of my abstract in a conference abstract volume as my "Publications" on my CV. Do you have any of those? Looking forward, how do you plan to tackle your aversion to writing papers? This is an essential skill for abstracts, journal articles, grants, and finally, your thesis, and you have to keep moving forward with it to finally develop a robust, attractive list of pubs on your CV. The other professor I did a research project with presented a talk at a conference, and he listed me as a co-author on the abstract. It was nice of him to do that since I didn't even ask for him to do that. But the prof this topic is about didn't mention that to me. I looked at the abstracts he submitted at the conferences he attended, and I don't think they're related to the work I did. Thats why I'm confused as to what he did with my work. Clarify this for me please. You completed 2 separate research projects and each project was 3 months long? Does your 3 month long research have enough data for publication? Also, how much of the research project was your contribution? If all you did was set up the experiment outlined by your professor and just collected data but you didn't actually come up with any of the experiments on your own, analyze the data and/or interpret it, there is a good chance that you will probably not be included in the publication but maybe get credit on posters. It definitely doesn't hurt to ask. Also, if you plan on submitting a full research article, you will have to research the journal you plan on submitting and write 2000 - 3000 words or more (pending on journal). That includes some what extensive background information and a lot of literature review prior to writing. Do you think you can do this between now and when you start grad school? Yes, 2 separate projects each 3 months long. They were similar projects, but not quite the same. I dont know if theres enough data for publication. I'm rather ignorant to the whole submitting a publication process. In the project, the prof specified the physics involved and mentioned how he would do the simulations on a computer. I did the simulations as he suggested, but the way the code was actually written was entirely up to me. We both analyzed and interpreted the data, because my plots and graphs of the data were initially wrong. I might be able to take the time to submit a full article. But how much will the NSF committee actually care that I submitted an article, as opposed to it being an actual publication? Edited May 2, 2011 by Brad Miller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mandarin.orange Posted May 2, 2011 Share Posted May 2, 2011 I might be able to take the time to submit a full article. But how much will the NSF committee actually care that I submitted an article, as opposed to it being an actual publication? You can list it as "in preparation" or "submitted to" or "accepted with revisions" or "in press." As far as how much the committee cares, that will be relative to the pool of applicants you are competing with. If it gives you an edge over someone with limited or no publications, so much the better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Miller Posted May 9, 2011 Author Share Posted May 9, 2011 (edited) I see. Anyways, I'm having alot of trouble as to knowing where to even start for writing the Research Proposal and what to come up with for the Hypothesis. Is it ok to ask my undergrad research prof for recommendations of what papers to look at and what areas are hot in this research area? Edited May 9, 2011 by Brad Miller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Miller Posted May 12, 2011 Author Share Posted May 12, 2011 so I just emailed him and he told me the results arent important enough by themselves to warrant a publication. He hasnt used the results for any of his publications. Great. If I want to get a 1st author publication (to improve my GRFP and improve my apps in case I decide to apply to transfer to another program), should I try to find another research project with this prof? Or get started on research with a prof at my new school? Or, since I'm currently living at home, try to work on research with a prof at the nearby school? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eigen Posted May 13, 2011 Share Posted May 13, 2011 I would think it would be highly doubtful that you could do enough work between now and the NSF application date to get a first author paper. That's really stretching it. Some fields are faster than others, but ~ 4-5 mos is pushing it in even the "fastest" fields, and that's assuming full time work on the research. Maybe if you were talking a really low impact factor submission, but then a first author paper in a really low impact journal isn't all that great either. If you're applying for the NSF as a senior undergrad, I wouldn't think the committee would expect first author papers- honestly, I'm not sure they'll really *expect* peer-authored papers at all. Presentations/posters perhaps, and evidence of lots of involvement in research, which will show up in your "statement of past research" as well as your letters of rec. It's not until the second year grad school applications that I think publications really start to become standard fare. rising_star 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Miller Posted May 13, 2011 Author Share Posted May 13, 2011 I start grad school this fall and want to apply for the NSF also. So in that case I still wont be at a disadvantage for not having any 1st author pubs? I was just thinking of ideas that would both improve my app for the NSF and my grad schools apps in case I apply to transfer this Fall Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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