Writing and Publishing

Publishing your work is an important part of your research journey. It helps you build your scientific voice, share your contributions, and move your career forward.

- I expect students to aim for about one first-author paper every 1 to 1.5 years, depending on the type of project. Some papers take longer, and that’s okay.
- I don’t like to see any good work go to waste. If you’ve done something meaningful, I’ll support you in turning it into a publication. It might not always be a big paper, but it deserves to be reported.
- Projects can vary a lot. Personally, I had my first first-author paper published in the third year of my PhD—but by the time I finished, I had 11 publications, including some that came out after I graduated. So I understand that timing looks different for different projects.
- I will usually try to make sure you’re working on one main, challenging project and also have a few smaller or collaborative projects alongside it. That way, even if your main work takes time to reach publication, you’re still gaining experience, writing papers, and getting your name out there.
- I encourage students to help one another, especially by supporting and mentoring newer lab members. In many cases, this kind of support is acknowledged with co-authorship. I believe in giving credit where it's due, and I want to reward a collaborative, non-toxic lab culture where we lift each other up.
- We often begin writing parts of a paper while the research is still in progress. This helps clarify your thinking and saves time later. Don’t worry if writing feels tough at first—that’s normal, and I’ll help guide you through it.
- For collaborative papers, we’ll have clear conversations about authorship and contributions. I use the CRediT taxonomy to make sure everyone’s work is recognized fairly, and we’ll revisit authorship before submission.