LEAD 502 - Developing Scholars Seminar

View posters created by other undergraduate researchers at K-State. 

Congratulations! You are officially a researcher.

This page offers resources to help you navigate the process of transforming your poster into an article for publication. Many of the resources we share focus on publishing in undergraduate journals, but much of the information is relevant for other academic journals.

This box includes key steps in the process. While numbered, you may not necessarily complete them in the order listed. The exception is speaking with your mentor. Always speak with your mentor first. Be prepared to revisit some steps.  

1. Speak with your mentor 
2. Identify potential journals
3. Scan the journals to learn more about the topics they publish and the quality of writing
4. Ascertain the author guidelines and deadlines
5. Determine the focus of your article; it may not be exactly the same as your poster
6. Write your article, consulting K-State experts and style guides (see boxes on the left)
7. Submit your article
8. Await feedback from editors
9. Edit your article based on editors' feedback
10. Re-submit your article
11. Once published, share your article with everyone! Be sure to include it on your resume

Unsure about publishing your research? This video from Elon University features students who have published their undergraduate research talking about working with their mentors to identify what they would published, where, and how. 

Consult with your mentor before submitting anything for publication. 

Questions to ask your mentor:

• Is it okay if I publish this research? 
  • Grants funding the research may place restrictions on when and how results can be published.
  • Your mentor may be planning to publish the research elsewhere.
  • The results of the study may need to be sequestered until a later time.
• Are there guidelines about whether I am the sole author, first author, etc?
  • Different disciplines and even labs have guidelines about who is listed as an author on a publication and in what order.
• Do you recommend that I publish in a specific journal?

There are many publishing opportunities for undergraduate researchers. Below are links to both specific journals and sites that maintain lists of undergraduate journals. 

Visit a journal's website to learn more about:

• Disciplines covered (e.g. interdisciplinary, any subject, humanities, sciences, social sciences, etc.)
• Frequency of publication
• Author guidelines

Author guidelines vary from journal to journal. They may also be called submission guidelines or something similar.

Read the guidelines closely for journals you are interested in publishing in. If you do not understand the guidelines, speak to your mentor, a librarian, or the Writing Center.

Author guidelines may include: 

• Who can submit 
• Submission deadlines
• Formatting (length, font, file type)
• Copyrights (does the author retain any rights to disseminate or store the publication, does the journal retain all rights?)
• Concurrent submission (can you submit your article for consideration to multiple journals at the same time?)
• Citation/bibliography/reference requirements
• Editor's email

Writing an article does not have to be daunting. Below are links to sites explaining how to write a journal article.