Publishing grad student research work

[Vid]

All,

I had a former Ph.D. student who graduated a year ago and joined the industry. he did good research but has not published his results. I revised his research paper (originating from his dissertation) last year but he has not gotten a chance to work on the paper. I have communicated with him 2-3 times and asked him to address my comments but with no response.

I am not sure what would be the best way to approach this. I am thinking of working on the paper during the holidays and submitting it in a journal. off course I will add his name as the first author, not the corresponding author. This research is funded by NSF and I like to publish the results.

Any suggestions?

Thank you.

[Parasaurolophus]

I don't know how things are done in the sciences, but something like this is just not done in my corner of the humanities (if someone did this, it would be a huge scandal). And, frankly, it seems rather morally dubious.

If it's their work, it's their work, and so they have to be part of the process. They're gainfully employed right now and have other priorities. If you so desperately want your name on another publication, then contact them offering to do the work. Try their office phone, since email isn't getting through--that's a perfectly normal communications channel in the non-academic world. You need their consent.

Stealth-publishing a student's dissertation work just seems... Well, frankly, really wrong. The dissertation was their work, not yours. They don't need to do the work, but they do need to give you consent to publish it on their behalf.

[Puget]

Para, with respect this is one of those cases where you really can't apply rules from the humanities to the sciences:

In the sciences, even if work is part of a student's dissertation it is not only there work-- there is generally a whole lab team involved, and always the PI, who got the funding and plays a big role in every stage of the research. You absolutely can't leave it up to the student whether to publish or not, especially for grant funded research-- you have to show that the grant has yielded products, or it will seriously hurt your ability to get more grants, not to mention failing to publish the work amounts to wasting taxpayer dollars.

This is a really common situation, where a student graduates and loses interest in the project. It is always best to have a conversation about authorship and continued involvement *before* they leave, but that ship has sailed in this case. I think it is right to leave the student as first author, and the PI to be last (presuming that is the senior position in your field Vid) and corresponding author. I'd send one more email with the final draft, letting them know that you plan to submit it on X date unless you hear back from them before then, then just go ahead.

One thing to confirm first though-- have you only tried emailing them at one email address? It seems possible they don't check that email anymore, so I'd try contacting them at least a few other ways (social media, another email address, phone if you have it) first.

[Vid]

Thank you, Para and Puget.

I contacted him on social media as well but realized that he did unfollow me on social media. I do not have his work phone number but I have his cell phone and I contacted him. It seems he changed his mobile number!!!


My students typically publish 3 papers and then merge the papers as their dissertation research and defend. this student's case was different as he caused issues in my lab and I had to let him defend his dissertation and leave.

I do not need additional paper I have plenty, but I do need to report his portion of research to NSF which was a big chunk of the work.


 
Thank you, all. 

[Parasaurolophus]

Para, with respect this is one of those cases where you really can't apply rules from the humanities to the sciences:

In the sciences, even if work is part of a student's dissertation it is not only there work-- there is generally a whole lab team involved, and always the PI, who got the funding and plays a big role in every stage of the research. You absolutely can't leave it up to the student whether to publish or not, especially for grant funded research-- you have to show that the grant has yielded products, or it will seriously hurt your ability to get more grants, not to mention failing to publish the work amounts to wasting taxpayer dollars.

Sure, I can accept that the conventions are different, as I noted at the beginning of my reply. Especially if it was clear to the student that they were working towards having this published, rather than just being a dissertation chunk (that was not clear to me from the original post).

I still vote for getting on the phone, though, rather than just emailing--though it seems Vid has done that, which is good. That helps to allay my worries some.

[jerseyjay]

As a humanist, my initial response was the same as Para, although I did surmise there were concerns along the lines as Puget.

Reading between the lines, it seems that the student left on at least strained terms with Vid and the lab.

I second Para's thoughts, however, about reaching out in other ways. It is completely possible that the student moved on (literally and figuratively) to another place, changed their phone number and email. Is there any other way you can try to get their contact information (employer? alumni association/registrar? professional association? mutual acquaintance?) It does not seem too strange to imagine he just isn't getting your emails.

Other than that I guess I agree with Puget, re: (1) try to set up a protocol/agreement when somebody starts as your student (e.g., establish that you will publish the results if they are unable to unwilling to) and, since this is obviously not possible in the present case, (2) try to contact them again and make it clear that you are planning to publish this.

A question: what happens if the former student has already submitted the results for publication somewhere else without telling you? I realize this would be a breach of protocol, but it seems that ship has sailed.

[Puget]

Para, with respect this is one of those cases where you really can't apply rules from the humanities to the sciences:

In the sciences, even if work is part of a student's dissertation it is not only there work-- there is generally a whole lab team involved, and always the PI, who got the funding and plays a big role in every stage of the research. You absolutely can't leave it up to the student whether to publish or not, especially for grant funded research-- you have to show that the grant has yielded products, or it will seriously hurt your ability to get more grants, not to mention failing to publish the work amounts to wasting taxpayer dollars.

Sure, I can accept that the conventions are different, as I noted at the beginning of my reply. Especially if it was clear to the student that they were working towards having this published, rather than just being a dissertation chunk (that was not clear to me from the original post).

I think that's another difference between fields-- the in the sciences dissertation work is always intended to also be journal articles (when anything publishable comes of the work of course), often at least some published before the student defends, and some that generally need to be finished up afterward. Publishing the dissertation as book is just not a thing in the sciences, nor is single-author papers (with rare exceptions). So a student would certainly not have the expectation that they would take their dissertation work with them and publish it without their advisor. In fact, the data are not theirs to take according to most university IP policies. 

I still vote for getting on the phone, though, rather than just emailing--though it seems Vid has done that, which is good. That helps to allay my worries some.

It seems Vid has already tried multiple forms of contact, and it is clear the student does not want any further involvement with Vid:

Thank you, Para and Puget.

I contacted him on social media as well but realized that he did unfollow me on social media. I do not have his work phone number but I have his cell phone and I contacted him. It seems he changed his mobile number!!!

My students typically publish 3 papers and then merge the papers as their dissertation research and defend. this student's case was different as he caused issues in my lab and I had to let him defend his dissertation and leave. 

Even when they leave on good terms, students who go into industry really just don't have much incentive in many cases to see dissertation work across the publication finish line.

For example, my former grad student who went into a data analyst position just isn't interested in doing any more work to publish the final paper from her dissertation (the others were published before she defended). That's fine-- we talked about before she left, and she left me a very organized repository with everything I need to get the paper submitted (except time!) and the agreement that I'll still list her as first author but she won't really have further involvement in the process.

[Vid]

Thank you, jerseyjay.

I have such as protocol in my lab. However, I had to let him defend his dissertation and leave soon since he verbally abused and bullied other students in my lab.

I do not think he will publish the results without involving me--he has no interest in academic research anymore... he planned to establish an LLC besides his industry job! I have only his Gmail address and tried different channels to connect with him, but he does not respond to my messages/emails/calls.

It has been around 1 year since I sent him my edits.



Curious to hear about other folks' experiences.

[Hibush]

Students who leave under such circumstances usually have little interest in helping with a publication from their doctoral research. On the other hand, if their work was funded by a granting agency with the professor as principal investigator on the grant, the PI is really obligated to publish anything that is valid.

I suggest keeping the communication going out to the former student as best you can, saying what you are doing and that they should let you know if they have concerns.. Don't depend on them to contribute anything though. Any involvement will be a bonus, or at least help guide how and where the paper is published.

The tricky part comes when the paper is to be published and each author has to vouch for the integrity of the paper (specifics depend on the journal). The ex student may not want to do even that much. Plan out that step in advance, assuming various levels of student enthusiasm.

[Kron3007]

As Hibush says, the real issue here is that when you submit a paper you usually sign off that all authors have read and approved of the final draft.  If the student is not in contact, this contractual agreement is not actually true.  This may be a minor issue in some ways, but seems to be the major issue to me.

As suggested, the first step is to try all avenues to contact them.  If this fails, I would send them a message telling them that you intend to publish the work and need them to sign off in order to include them as an author.  If they do not respond by X date, tell them you will infer they are not interested in authorship and you will publish without them.  If they do not respond by date X, publish the work and include them in the acknowledgements with a brief description of their input.

I feel this is an honest and transparent approach that still gives them credit for the work that was done.

[jerseyjay]

I have such as protocol in my lab. However, I had to let him defend his dissertation and leave soon since he verbally abused and bullied other students in my lab.

What is the protocol? My suggestion would be have people who work in your lab/students sign a form that says something like, "I agree that a condition for working in the lab/being funded by this grant/etc is that publishing the results of the research is necessary. While the director/PI/supervisor shall endeavor to involve the researcher in publication, he reserves the right to publish any results, with appropriate authorship or acknowledge, if such cooperation is not feasible." I don't know about the language exactly, but something that makes clear that you are going to do what you are thinking of doing.

If the student has an industry job or has formed an LLC, then it would seem not that difficult to get an address. I would suggest sending a certified letter to the latest address you/the department/the university has.

Again, keeping in mind that I am not a scientist (and you can therefore disregard anything I write if appropriate), I might also suggest reaching out to your department head/dean/director of graduate studies/grant officer or some administrator outlining the situation, including the fact that you need to publish the research in order to fulfill the requirements of the grant. I assume this is not the first time this has happened.

I would be wary of Kron's approach since if the student's research warrants first authorship, not giving them any authorship would seem to not give them all appropriate credit. Having a footnote that "Joe Smith carried out the research in this article but has refused to participate in publication" would seem to raise more questions than it answers. (Such as, is there something wrong with the data/experiment/etc that even the research does not want to be associated?)

But again, I am not a scientist so I would advise consulting somebody in your field/institution.

[Ruralguy]

Since nothing of much consequence really depends on this, go through the motions of contacting this person. try a couple of methods. if he doesn't reply, submit anyway, and if there needs to be a sign off, write the journal, explaining the situation. Then if it is held up forever, it is. Just don't violate journal protocol or anything from your field or your school that would be an ethical breech or worse.

[Kron3007]

I have such as protocol in my lab. However, I had to let him defend his dissertation and leave soon since he verbally abused and bullied other students in my lab.

What is the protocol? My suggestion would be have people who work in your lab/students sign a form that says something like, "I agree that a condition for working in the lab/being funded by this grant/etc is that publishing the results of the research is necessary. While the director/PI/supervisor shall endeavor to involve the researcher in publication, he reserves the right to publish any results, with appropriate authorship or acknowledge, if such cooperation is not feasible." I don't know about the language exactly, but something that makes clear that you are going to do what you are thinking of doing.

If the student has an industry job or has formed an LLC, then it would seem not that difficult to get an address. I would suggest sending a certified letter to the latest address you/the department/the university has.

Again, keeping in mind that I am not a scientist (and you can therefore disregard anything I write if appropriate), I might also suggest reaching out to your department head/dean/director of graduate studies/grant officer or some administrator outlining the situation, including the fact that you need to publish the research in order to fulfill the requirements of the grant. I assume this is not the first time this has happened.

I would be wary of Kron's approach since if the student's research warrants first authorship, not giving them any authorship would seem to not give them all appropriate credit. Having a footnote that "Joe Smith carried out the research in this article but has refused to participate in publication" would seem to raise more questions than it answers. (Such as, is there something wrong with the data/experiment/etc that even the research does not want to be associated?)

But again, I am not a scientist so I would advise consulting somebody in your field/institution.

Having a contract at the beginning could make sense, but it's obviously too late for that.  However, I would think this should be done at the department level.  I don't think having individual faculty develop and sign contracts with students is appropriate, or would be permitted where I am.

Regarding publication obligation with grants, mg experience is that this is this is pretty grey.  I don't know that you are obligated to publish everything, but it is the spirit of public funds regardless and you should. As such, the chair/school may not be overly helpful.

As for publishing without them and including acknowledgements, I don't think it would look weird, but would depend how it was worded.  I would be more inclined to say the paper is based on Xxxx' thesis (with a reference), and thank them for their contributions.  No need to say they refused contact.  No one really reads this section anyway, but it is there for transparency.

[Langue_doc]

I have such as protocol in my lab. However, I had to let him defend his dissertation and leave soon since he verbally abused and bullied other students in my lab.

If the student has an industry job or has formed an LLC, then it would seem not that difficult to get an address. I would suggest sending a certified letter to the latest address you/the department/the university has.

Again, keeping in mind that I am not a scientist (and you can therefore disregard anything I write if appropriate), I might also suggest reaching out to your department head/dean/director of graduate studies/grant officer or some administrator outlining the situation, including the fact that you need to publish the research in order to fulfill the requirements of the grant. I assume this is not the first time this has happened.

But again, I am not a scientist so I would advise consulting somebody in your field/institution.

This seems to be the best approach. I would suggest talking to your chair/dean/grants office first and then sending the certified letter to the address on file. If the student was on the payroll this year, HR would have the contact information for sending the W-2.

[bio-nonymous]

"Please see the attached revised version of the manuscript {insert title here}. We intend to submit the final version on {insert date here}, in order to include your edits and suggestions, please submit your comments to us by {insert date here}. If we do not hear from you by that date, we will assume that you are fine with this version as is. Thank you for your support and hard work throughout this process. Sincerely, Dr. Whoever"

A message like above sent out to all of the authors is appropriate. You will have done your due diligence and if they choose not to be involved in the manuscript process that is on them. You will need a valid email for them for the journal and for the author listing though.

One issue is where you need to list author contributions, so just make sure that the authors on the paper all have appropriate intellectual contribution to the paper and you are fine. Who cares if the student didn't materially contribute to the writing process if they contributed intellectually to experiment design, ran experiments, and collected/analyzed data--all of which they did if they already submitted their thesis. Also, the thesis work could be considered the rough draft, thus they did help with writing (produced figures, etc.?)--even if you did the lion's share. Where you might get into trouble is if they refuse to respond to licensing agreements by a journal that requires EVERYONE sign, rather than the corresponding author signing for all--and in that case you may be required to remove them from the paper--but that would be their own fault.

You could also write is as "first and corresponding" author with the student listed as a middle author for doing what they did do...