Ten Steps to Honors Publication: How Students Can Prepare Their Honors Work for Publication

The gold standard for scholarly accomplishment in any professional discipline is publication in a national peer-reviewed journal. Many journals accept small studies such as those done as part of a senior honors project or thesis. Disciplines vary as to what they will consider, but listed herein are ten suggested steps that faculty can recommend to students who want to have their honors work submitted, reviewed, and possibly accepted for publication in such a journal. Just going through the steps will give the honors student valuable experience. Even more importantly, the review process often provides the student with excellent comments by reviewers who have an experienced perspective on the discipline and who view the finished product without being aware of its development. Reviewers’ comments may provide validation for the worth of the work and/or feedback on specific elements that are unclear to a knowledgeable reader. These comments are invaluable to the author’s objectivity and writing skill