Are most PhD applicants published?

[red4tribe]

I'm just curious, are most PhD applicants published? Or are most not published? I'm sure it looks good on a application regardless.

[DCguy]

I am but its in the NCUR Proceedings, I'm sure you're familiar with the ncur conference for undergrads. I think like 98% of those who go to the conference and submit something get it published so I'm published but its not super prestigious or nothin

[JustChill]

The simple and essentialized answer is no. The vast majority of PhD applicants are not published. In fact, most PhD candidates are not even published. Most real peer-reviewed articles come out only at the dissertation writing stage, and even then no more than one or two before the defense. Of course, this depends on what you consider to be a publication, but in my experience few things aside from peer-reviewed articles count for much, at least at this early stage of our careers. 

[RevolutionBlues]

The best advice I've received about publishing is to only do so if you are absolutely ready to have your name on a piece of work. Remember, while publishing is a fancy line on your CV, the content will be accessible to any future hiring committees for the rest of your life.

[czesc]

Important to remember that history is somewhat different from other disciplines in this respect. Publishing tons, whenever it's ready, is the norm in some of the social sciences. The fact that these disciplines are more paper than book based (history is more book based), and tend to be more collaborative than individual (meaning there are more opportunities for students to co-publish with faculty) contributes to fewer papers being written by students (grad or undergrad) in general, meaning very few PhD applicants will have been published prior to beginning their programs.