Preprints for degree graduation requirements – ASAPbio

"Different institutions around the world have varying requirements for PhD students to graduate. Some require a thesis whilst others require published papers (or several!). Publishing a paper can take months or even years, delaying the graduation of students in programmes with this requirement. Delays in graduating can have serious consequences for students.

Preprints speed up the dissemination of scientific findings but they can also aid in student graduation requirements. Once submitted to a preprint server, manuscripts are usually available online within 2 days. Preprints also allow the sharing of negative data (see our negative data winners!) and shorter formats that journals would not accept. By utilising preprints instead of published papers as a requirement for graduation, science would still be accelerated forward, students would get invaluable skills in writing in addition to the credit for their findings but without the delay and restrictions of traditional journal publication.

This year, a group of 2023 ASAPbio Fellows are addressing this topic as one of their projects.

We need your help to understand the current role (or not) of preprints in the graduation requirements at your institution. Help us by taking part in a short survey (10 minutes) by selecting the appropriate language below."