That’s actually not an easy question to answer. There is no clear definition of the Thesis by Publication (TBP) across countries and fields (and in some cases even across institutions!). The approach in its various forms may also be given a range of names, including:
Article-based thesis
Compilation thesis
Cumulative thesis
Hybrid thesis
Manuscript-based thesis
Manuscript dissertation
Paper-based thesis
PhD by publication
Prospective PhD by publication
Publication-based thesis
Thesis as a series of papers
Thesis by articles
Thesis by publication
Thesis with papers
Thesis with publications
Three-article dissertation
Three-paper thesis
With a lack of consistency, it is important for aspiring and current doctoral researchers to investigate the norms in their own geographic and disciplinary contexts. To guide our own research, we define the TBP as
any approach to doctoral education that sees doctoral researchers “publishing their work throughout their candidature and including their research outputs within their final thesis submission”
(Mason & Merga, 2018, p. 1454).
Thus, we distinguish the TBP from models that allow for the inclusion of outputs developed before the doctoral candidature period (sometimes known as a ‘thesis by prior publication’, a ‘retrospective thesis by publication,’ or confusingly, a ‘thesis by publication’). We also conceptualise the TBP as more than just a collection of published works.
This book published in 2022 includes a range of chapters from different authors about the prospective and retrospective models of PhD by Publication
Landscapes and Narratives of PhD by Publication
Demystifying students’ and supervisors’ perspectives
Chong & Johnson | 2022 | Springer
(See the book launch with discussions with the contributors)
This paper published in 2022 provides a good overview of the current research on Thesis by Publication:
The doctorate in pieces: a scoping review of research on the PhD thesis by publication
Solli & Nygaard | 2022 | Higher Education Research & Development
The resources on this page may help you to form an understanding of what a TBP might look like in your particular context.
Journal articles
著作彙編之學位論文: 定義, 規範與相關議題 [Thesis by Publication: Definition, Regulations and Issues for Consideration] (in Chinese, with English summary)
Chou | 2022 | Journal of Educational Media & Library Sciences
Bringing the doctoral thesis by published papers to the Social Sciences and the Humanities
Rigby & Jones | 2020 | Scientometrics
Typical scope of time commitment and research outputs of Thesis by Publication in Australia
Mason et al. | 2020 | Higher Education Research & Development
A current view of the thesis by publication in the humanities and social sciences
Mason & Merga | 2018 | International Journal of Doctoral Studies
Completing a PhD by publication: a review of Australian policy and implications for practice
Jackson | 2013 | Higher Education Research & Development
Deconstructing doctoral dissertations: how many papers does it take to make a PhD?
Hagen | 2010 | Scientometrics
Book chapters
The thesis by publication as an emerging genre
Nygaard & Solli | 2021 | Strategies for Writing a Thesis by Publication in the Social Sciences and Humanities
Videos
What is a Thesis by Publication?
Mason | 2020 | TBP YouTube Q&A series
Thesis By Publication 