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Continuing undergrad dissertation at postgrad?

Hello,

I've just completed a psychology undergrad degree and achieved a first in my dissertation. The results were unexpected and I believe one day it could be publishable (the writing isn't up to that standard but the results were very interesting). I've found it very interesting and would like to carry on with the research.

I had heard that you can continue your undergrad dissertation on a postgrad course (e.g. getting it to a publishable standard) but I havn't found anything on the internet suggesting that this is a done thing.

So what i'm asking is does anybody know if that is possible and how if it is, how I would go about it?

Cheers,
tiotom92

Reply 1

Jantaculum

I have just begun to look into this (some interesting ideas from my Masters' dissertation would be worth exploring further when I start a doctorate in October) but I think there's a problem if you change university because of the question of rights - who owns the rights to the results, you or the uni where you did the research? Any expert advice very welcome!

Reply 2

threeportdrift

Careers Forum Helper

Original post by tiotom92

I had heard that you can continue your undergrad dissertation on a postgrad course (e.g. getting it to a publishable standard) but I havn't found anything on the internet suggesting that this is a done thing.

Generally (by which I mean probably universally, but I only know the 6 institutions I've been involved with) you cannot submit work for one degree that has already been used to gain another degree. So you couldn't get a higher degree by simply bringing an undergrad dissertation up to publishable standard.

However, many people build on undergrad or Masters work for Masters or PhDs (respectively). So for example, if you had done a Masters dissertation on the effectiveness of UN intervention in Darfur, you could look at the effectiveness of UN intervention policies for your PhD. You would be drawing on a lot of your reading, notes, conferences etc, but you are developing a new piece of work.

Reply 3

returnmigrant

You can't 'continue' with only research at Postgrad unless you do an MRes. Very few Depts would let you progress straight to a PhD in Psychology without a Masters - either by research or taught.

You won't be encouraged to just make your undergrad diss. 'bigger' or to take up a Masters place praparing a manuscript of an existing project 'for publication' - you do that in your own time. The whole point of doing research at postgrad is to work at great depth on something smaller or different, so as above, you need to pull something out of this existing work and make a realistic (but different) research proposal out of it. If you have ambitions of a PhD and an academic career you need to have several research interests not just one, so you need to widen your general areas of study - which is why most people who do progress to postgrad start with a taught Masters degree.

Be aware that postgrad funding is not a right or automatic. There is no SF at postgrad level and Masters funding outside obvious STEM subjects is almost non-existent - can you afford £25k a year out of your own pocket? There is precious little funding around at PhD level even - and what there is will be usually formulated around a specific project/research group - ie. not necessarily what you are interested in.

Btw, no serious academic publisher would publish something by a graduate straight out of a first degree. The best way to start would be to write up the crux of your argument/findings as a short journal article (ask your ex-tutors for advice on a relevant journal) or to present it as a paper at a Conference. This is how you build your credibility - and make getting Masters and/or PhD funding more likely.

(edited 9 years ago)

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