Thesis done? What next?

Members of our team at Thesis Upgrade frequently act as examiners on viva voces (thesis defences) at various institutions in Ireland and the UK. A common question we ask students when they are reaching the end of their viva presentation, or examination, is: ‘What next?’ Most full-time students say ’get a job’ and most part-time students say, ‘put my research into practice’.

It often occurs to us many students are missing out on capitalising on their thesis or dissertation. The part-timers we examined do, however, have the right idea. That is, making their research work for them and getting a return on the time invested in their masterpiece! Here are some ideas to benefit from your toil (and trials and tribulations!).

Publish your thesis on your own website: Create a low-cost website using a popular package such as Blogger or WordPress and upload your thesis to it. A day spent converting your academic manuscript into a more user-friendly text, and adding some free or inexpensive, creative photos, is a worthwhile endeavour. It will result in you publishing a professional, and accessible, version of your thesis on the world wide web.

Share your research online: If you have a website, you can then add a link to it as part of your email signature. In addition, you can include it in your CV, add it to your LinkedIn profile, and share it on your social media. You can send out tweets on X (formerly Twitter) containing little nuggets of information from your findings. Furthermore, you can also share your images and videos on Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, and so on.

Secure publish your thesis online: One student we worked with last year ‘secure published’ their thesis; a research study investigating unlawful claims in a specialist insurance market. As the thesis contained confidential information that was of great interest to potential employers in the sector, they uploaded it to a server that could only be accessed with a username and password. Their objective was to have it available to show potential employers when applying for a job, and at interview, an objective they quickly achieved.

Present at an academic conference: Many completed pieces of research make ideal papers for presentation at academic conferences. Have a look around in your topic area for conferences that will take place over the two- or three-years. Contact the organisers to find out the requirements for presenting your paper. For example, two members of our team, Sue and Mark, completed research on teaching methods. They emailed the Chair of a national conference in Ireland and presented their findings at the event.

Publish at an industry or professional conference: If your thesis has implications for a particular industry or profession, see if you can obtain a speaker slot at one of their practitioner conferences. One student we worked with was finding it difficult to choose a topic for her thesis. A colleague recommended she attend an annual industry conference in January, where she listened to presentations about the challenges facing the sector. This helped her to identify a gap in the research. She spent the next nine months doing her own thesis research on the topic, presenting her results in September. She then presented her key findings at the industry’s annual conference the following year.

Publish in an academic journal: Explore whether you can get a paper based on your research published in an academic journal. When one of our directors, Sue, completed her doctoral thesis, for example, she used her research to publish four papers in leading academic journals. This can be very rewarding and of great assistance to your career. Particularly so if you plan to continue to teach or research in the education sector. However, it requires you revisit your research and rewrite it in a form that is acceptable for a publisher. It may also involve making a pitch, or proposal, to the publishing company. It most definitely involves your draft paper being peer-reviewed, and facing the risk of not getting it published in the end!

Publish in a newspaper or sector magazine: If you are not planning to use your research further in the academic community, consider getting a summary of it published in the mainstream media. National and regional newspapers have many pages to fill every day, and at the weekends, publish longer pieces of more specific interest to their readers. Equally, there are numerous, general magazines, business magazines, and industry and trade journals. Let’s not forget your local newspapers, including the ‘free’ sheets. They are often delighted to publish work by local researchers. Of course, many industries and professions now have corporate websites, another potential avenue for your work to be published in.

Write a book chapter: Two members of the Thesis Upgrade team, Sue and Mark, teach on Human Resources Management and Organisational Behaviour modules. While researching and preparing for their teaching, they spotted a potential publishing opportunity. They put forward a research proposal to a publisher for a book chapter in an academic textbook. Their idea about career competencies was accepted, and thus began, a nine-month long, qualitative research study. Once the results of the research were evident, Sue and Mark spent a further three months writing-up the research and turned it into a 10,000 word-book chapter.

Write a book: If your research merits it, consider writing a book. While it is probably unlikely a major player will jump at the chance to disseminate your research, there are many other ways of getting a book published. It is, therefore, not necessary to use a traditional book publisher. For example, Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) provides resources and support for budding authors to self-publish, so they can then have work listed on Amazon.com.

Regardless of which route you take, distributing your research is only the first step in the process. The next stage involves promoting this publication around the world to the best of your ability. You can do this by informing others of the availability of the paper or chapter, the overall publication and its exceptional content. You can help by recommending the written material to your college library (acquisition librarians rely heavily on the expertise of their faculty members for recommendations of scholarly titles that will enhance the university’s library collection). Solidify the credibility of your publication by asking esteemed colleagues to write a review of your work. Inform practitioners and professionals in your area of research. Post announcements to social media sites, listservs and online research groups. Write short articles connecting your research to current events and submit them to relevant media (mainstream and social). Organise a launch party. Participate in written, audio, video or virtual interviews. Use your research results as a basis for obtaining invitations to present at related conferences … the list is endless.

All these activities will give voice to your research. They will help you reach a wider audience, build relationships with other researchers and encourage conversations about your research. What scholarship is truly about!