How Much Are PhD Students Publishing before Graduation?: An Examination of Four Social Science Disciplines

Demonstrating research activity and a productive publishing record is crucial for landing a tenure-track position after graduation. What does it mean, however, to be productive in publishing? How many manuscripts have PhD students who landed tenure-track positions published in recent years? The purpose of this study is to explore publishing productivity of PhD students in the United States in four social science disciplines: political science, psychology, social work/family science, and sociology. Data were collected from the curriculum vitae of 500 scholars currently employed at 108 research institutions in the United States and who finished their doctorate degrees within the last five years (2010–14). We found that PhD students in our sample averaged 4.3 peer-reviewed journal or book chapter publications before graduation. Analysis of the independent disciplines of interest is also presented.