How to turn your thesis chapters into journal articles

If you're a doctoral researcher, you’re in a unique position - you have time and space to focus on your own research in depth, without the competing demands that come later in academic life. One of the most valuable things you can do during this time is to start building your publication record.

Publishing is an essential part of an academic career, and your thesis can provide a strong foundation. But, developing a paper for submission to a scholarly journal is not as simple as just working on and submitting a chapter with just the addition of an introduction and conclusion. Instead, it requires strategy, planning, and a clear understanding of the type of contribution your paper is making to current theoretical knowledge.

Here’s a summary of key advice shared at our recent doctoral conference by Professor Costas Katsikeas on how to turn your thesis into high-quality, publishable research papers.
 

 

What can you publish from your thesis?

Your thesis is rich with content that can be developed into different types of papers. You could expand on a review of the literature, or/and you could progress the conceptual methodological and empirical parts of your thesis.

1. A review of the literature

A literature review can be published as one of two types:

• A meta-analysis - this uses data from previous studies to test a theory-based model
• A systematic literature review - this assesses the current state of research, synthesises existing knowledge, and identifies gaps worthy of investigation in future research. Read this blog post on how to conduct a literature review.

What makes a strong review paper?

• A topic of interest to one or more stakeholder groups
• A clear need for synthesis in the area
• Insightful research integration that offers new perspectives
• A rigorous, theoretically grounded conceptualisation
• An organising framework that presents constructs in a logical way.

What should you avoid?

• Simply describing past studies without critical synthesis
• Offering a basic taxonomy with no conceptual development
• Failing to cover related research areas that could strengthen the analysis.

Getting a literature review published early in your career is a great way to build your research profile.

2. Conceptual and empirical papers

You can develop individual chapters into:

• Conceptual papers - these define constructs clearly, offer strong theoretical arguments, and advance a theoretically anchored framework that (or parts of it) can subsequently be tested empirically
• Empirical papers - these test a theory-based conceptual model and demonstrate value-added insights (for the advancement of theory and practice).

An ideal model for conducting and publishing research

High-quality publications don’t emerge by accident - they come from a carefully structured process.

1. Develop your idea

Start by gaining insights from:

• Discussions with practitioners about real-world practice
• Conversations with other researchers
• Conducting literature reviews.

Identify a research problem that is meaningful and grounded in both theory and practice. This helps you understand the focal phenomenon and locate gaps in existing research.

Tip: Include a table of existing studies in your introduction to show how your work is positioned and what new contribution it makes.

2. Perform fieldwork and focus on a conceptual framework

Conceptual development is often overlooked, but it’s vital. A good conceptual model:

• Clearly defines constructs
• Provides a smooth theoretical “story” that links the study variables
• Acts as an umbrella for advancing individual research hypotheses based on conceptual arguments.

3. Conduct empirical studies

High-impact journals often expect empirical testing that supports the conceptual model.

Presenting your work at conferences can help you refine your research. Peer feedback acts as an early review and can improve your chances of positive reviewer comments and ultimate acceptance at an academic journal.

4. Publish strategically

Publishing isn't just about getting work out - it's about getting it into the right places.

To be published in your target journal, you need to be deeply familiar with that journal:

• Read recent issues to understand what’s accepted
• Learn about the journal’s priorities in terms of topics, methods, and contribution types
• Understand how that journal’s review process works
• Think about how your work fits within the journal’s positioning.

Submitting to scholarly journals: What editors look for

Level 1: The fundamental requirements needed to get a paper accepted are:

• A clear research gap and contribution
• A relevant and timely topic
• High standards of conceptual and methodological rigour
• Replication that adds value

Level 2: Elements that make a paper stand out include some of the following:

• Objective performance outcomes
• Cause-effect linkages (especially via longitudinal designs)
• Use of multiple methods
• Robust statistical testing (e.g. bias checks, omitted variable tests)
• Interesting or surprising findings
• Clear, engaging writing.

Level 3: Unique features of publications in leading journals include:

• A strong, theory-based conceptual framework
• Introduction of new mechanisms or methods
• New evidence that challenges established thinking
• Integration of multiple (even conflicting) theoretical perspectives
• High overall contribution to the field
• A manuscript crafted in a particularly compelling way.

By thinking early about your publication strategy, and taking a structured approach, you’ll increase your chances of publishing in respected journals and make a meaningful contribution in terms of theory development and the advancement of practice in your field.

 

As part of the conference session, we also heard from three panel members about their experiences of publishing research early in their academic career, and how they turned, or are planning on turning, their thesis into journal articles.

Here are some of their key takeaways.

Miguel Dindia, Research Fellow and Faculty Post Doctoral Fellows (International Business Department)

“Your thesis is one big, connected story, but a journal article has to stand alone. Focus on the parts of your PhD that can function independently – the front-end conceptual chapter is often a good place to start.”

“When you’re finishing your PhD, you’re tired and ready to move on – but stick with your topic for a little while longer. Once you start a new job, your time and energy will be divided. It’s much easier to publish from work you already know inside out than to start something completely new from scratch.”

Alexandra Seehaus, Post-Doctoral Fellow (People, Work and Employment)

“In your thesis, you build arguments over years. But for a paper, you need to narrow your focus. I picked out the ideas I hinted at in my PhD but didn’t have space to fully develop, and used those as the basis for one of my first draft publications.”

“Doing presentations, even internally, helped me shape and sharpen my arguments. It made me cut out the side stories and also prepare for the reality of peer review.”

“You’ll get lots of feedback – some of it will be conflicting. Learn to sift through it and decide what’s actually useful for your paper.”

Zhuo Wang, Postgraduate Researcher (International Business Department)

“I wrote several papers before one really felt ready. In the end, after speaking with my supervisor, I picked the chapter that we felt was the most mature and well-developed.”

“Don’t be afraid to aim high. I targeted a leading journal because there was an open call on a topic close to my research. I studied their format, saw the alignment, and went for it.”

“Different journals want different things. Always check the formatting and editorial requirements and tailor your paper accordingly.”

About the panel members