Undergrad research

[Psyduck]

Hi, I'm a senior undergrad. I completed an independent research project a couple of months ago and got an A and really good feedback from my graders. But is it virtually impossible for an undergrad to get published unless the research is revolutionary or the advisor is really famous in the field? (By the way, my graders were professors at the Ivy league school I attend, but I did the project with the advising of a foreign researcher while studying abroad)

I also do not know that much about the process of submitting papers. Can I submit to a few journals until it's accepted, like applying to schools?

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[relentless11]

Hi, I'm a senior undergrad. I completed an independent research project a couple of months ago and got an A and really good feedback from my graders. But is it virtually impossible for an undergrad to get published unless the research is revolutionary or the advisor is really famous in the field? (By the way, my graders were professors at the Ivy league school I attend, but I did the project with the advising of a foreign researcher while studying abroad)

I also do not know that much about the process of submitting papers. Can I submit to a few journals until it's accepted, like applying to schools?

Publications can be many forms: 1) review paper, 2) original research paper, 3) abstract (for presentations), and 4) book chapters. I'm sure there's more. Its not "virtually impossible" for an undergrad to get published, it depends on your institution (how much research they do), your PI (how often he/she publishes), and your research. Students on SDN have been published, whether as a co-author or first-author. Sure it helps if the PI is famous, but it doesn't gurantee much either.

For the most part, the process of submitting papers requires: 1) find an appropriate journal, 2) format your paper based on the journal's criteria, and 3) submit (usually online). Some journals will have a preliminary review (e.g., JAMA, NEJM) to screen out papers before reaching the actual peer-review process. Others just go straight to the review processs. The outcome of the review process can be: 1) accept, 2) accept with revisions, 3) reject. Most common "acceptance" is 2, 1 rarely happens, and 3 is most common for initial submissions.

In theory you can keep submitting until you are accepted. But its about quality, not to JUST have a publication. When you write something, you represent your lab, your school, and your field, therefore it has to meet some standards first. My PI wouldn't put his name as co-author without knowing that it has met HIS standards. Being graded by ivy league professors for independent research is completely different from writing a paper for peer-reviewed journals. At times, the people who review submissions are the leaders in their field, so its quite rigorous. Good luck!

 

[RxnMan]

Many campuses hold student conferences. (ugrad) Students will show off their posters, abstracts, even do podium presentations. Granted they're a usually considered local conferences and it's not as prestidigious (sp?) as a peer-reveiwed paper, but they prove that you do work and it's really easy for a student to participate.

 

[gbwillner]

Hi, I'm a senior undergrad. I completed an independent research project a couple of months ago and got an A and really good feedback from my graders. But is it virtually impossible for an undergrad to get published unless the research is revolutionary or the advisor is really famous in the field? (By the way, my graders were professors at the Ivy league school I attend, but I did the project with the advising of a foreign researcher while studying abroad)

I also do not know that much about the process of submitting papers. Can I submit to a few journals until it's accepted, like applying to schools?

Are you planning to go to grad school/med school/ MSTP????
If so, just remember that a journal publication is really not necessary. The publication process can be VERY difficult, and without the help of your mentor, it really will be impossible. If your advisor will put in the work of editing and contacting journals (and paying for expenses) it can be done.

As an undergrad, simply presenting your work at your institution or having the abstract published can be enough.

 

[Psyduck]

where would i be able to get the abstract published- do you just mean on a poster? and do you think getting accepted to a national conference can be just as hard as a journal? for one conference i saw that they accepted over 1,000 submissions.

my concern about submitting to my university research conference is that no one here is really studying this topic (clinical issue i worked on while abroad, we don't have a med school or health program). it would be better to submit to a conference/journal with more of a focus on this or related topics. and yes i plan to apply to grad schools and if possible i'd like to have a publication for my CV, but i know it's not absolutely necessary

thanks for the responses

 

[gbwillner]

where would i be able to get the abstract published- do you just mean on a poster? and do you think getting accepted to a national conference can be just as hard as a journal? for one conference i saw that they accepted over 1,000 submissions.

my concern about submitting to my university research conference is that no one here is really studying this topic (clinical issue i worked on while abroad, we don't have a med school or health program). it would be better to submit to a conference/journal with more of a focus on this or related topics. and yes i plan to apply to grad schools and if possible i'd like to have a publication for my CV, but i know it's not absolutely necessary

thanks for the responses

Getting your abstract published in a book for a conference is easy. All you have to do is attend the meeting, and as long as you can read/write in English it will be accepted (of course there needs to be SOME validity to your work but not much). This is because abstracts can be for works that are underway, and there can be little/no data presented. The point is that you did work and have something to show for it.
It doesn't really matter where you have your abstract published. It's nice to attend conferences, but if you presented your research at a school symposium there should be an abstract book associated with it. That's really enough. No one is going to care where your work was presented. In interviews they will ask you all about your research, and you will get a chance to go over it.

For a peer- reviewed journal publication you need not just good data, but months of writing and preparation time. The process works as follows:

1. You do a bunch of great work and have significant data. You think it should be published
2. You write a rough draft of your paper. You submit this to your mentor/advisor.
3. Your advisor completely re-writes your paper for you, and tells you to make the necessary changes.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 about 6 times.
5. You submit the manuscript to a journal. If it is rejected, you have to rewirte the paper to fit another journal and address why it was not accepted (start over).
6. If it is sent for review, expect to wait about 2-3 months on average before you hear back. If it is summertime or December, add an additional 2-3months.
7. The reviews will likely ask you to do several more experiments to tie up loose ends/prove your assertions. It may also be rejected at this point, meaning you lose this much more time. You typically have 1 month to address the reviwers concerns.
8. Re-submit the paper with every comment addressed. Wait some more time (1-2 months) for the reviewers to re-read your responses. They can then ask for further changes or accept the paper.
9. Once accepted... you still have to wait for the paper to go into press. This can take from 1-6 months, depending on the journal of course.
10. Before your paper is published, you will get galley proofs of your paper. You typically have 24 hrs to make sure your name is spelled right and that the editors didn't mis-interpret anything.
11. Congrats- your paper is accepted! This took you between 3-12 months!

For clinical papers this may be shorter, but this is not guaranteed.
Good luck!