Examination Process of Thesis by Publication
Emergent Forms Of Doctoral Education In Nursing: Exams by Publication Challenges and Advantages. It is usual that all these, whether submitted by traditional monograph or submitted by publication, are required to undergo formal external examination. Although candidates may have successfully published several refereed research papers on their findings, this does not render the work exempt from formal examination.
Major Challenges in Thesis Production by Publication
While different institutions will naturally have variations on the requirements for thesis production whether by publication or in traditional format, some of the challenges in producing a thesis in such a format need to be considered. Such challenges include the time taken to prepare papers for publication; the time taken to gain acceptance; and again the time for the paper to appear in print.
Therefore, it is important to consider the timeline for preparing papers in the early stages of the development of the thesis and to be mindful that the structure of some thesis topics may not lend them easily to a thesis by publication.
In some instances results may not become available until late in the program of study and therefore the topic may not lend itself to writing up publication. In such situations it may be possible to publish the results of the pilot study in terms of its development, validation and reliability. Case study 1 provides a suggested thesis format to overcome some of the challenges mentioned.
Case study 1 Using secondary data analysis in undertaking a thesis by publication
This case study describes a format using secondary data analysis, which has worked extremely efficiently for producing a thesis by publication, Not all research questions can be answered in such a way. However, in this case, a preliminary review of the literature revealed that the research questions being asked were important in terms of providing an increased knowledge base in relation to improving health outcomes in an area where knowledge was scarce and what was there was outdated.
The format for writing up the complete thesis by publication is as described previously:
- comprehensive critical literature review
- methods chapter which provides a rationale and detail of the methods used, which are often limited in published papers
- four publications
- final linking chapter which generalizes findings from the specific papers, extracts material from the findings which can be used by researchers, policy makers and practitioners for future initiatives, and provides recommendations for future research as well as indicating limitations to the study.
Advantages of Thesis Production by Publication
There are several advantages in preparing a thesis in a format as outlined in case study 1:
- production of a comprehensive focused thesis which can be produced in a limited time
- experience in at least two areas: (i) development of comprehensive data analysis skills ; and (ii) understanding experience of the whole process of a small study
- developing skills in writing refereed published papers
- faster dissemination of research findings as papers are written during the course of study rather than waiting until after graduation
- time is used more efficiently as there is no requirement to first write a traditional results chapter in the thesis. The student can immediately write the results via a refereed article and this can then be inserted into the body of the thesis
- validation of findings by blinded peer-reviewed journal referees
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https://nurseseducator.com/emergent-forms-of-doctoral-education-in-nursing-evolution-and-nature/
https://nurseseducator.com/emergent-forms-of-doctoral-education-in-nursing-challenges-and-benefits/