Writing and reviewing in biomedical engineering, 1.5 or 3 credits
Att skriva och granska vetenskapliga artiklar inom medicinsk teknik
Course information
Language of instruction: English
Course period: All year with course starts in February and September 2025
Course structure: Online with possibility for on-site meetings
Recommended prerequisites
- The student has a research topic related to biomedical engineering, with an emphasis on either biology or engineering
- The student conducts experimental studies on either devices or instruments, or conducts in vitro or in vivo studies as a part of their PhD project
- The student has completed 2 years of their PhD studies
- The student is expecting to have a manuscript in preparation and ready for in-course reviewing within the next 6 months
These prerequisites are guiding when selecting students for the course.
Learning outcomes
After completing the course, the student should be able to:
- Describe the writing and reviewing process of scientific journals
- Demonstrate the ability to communicate a manuscript with an editor, including writing a cover letter
- Demonstrate the ability to write and reply to peer-review comments with high quality and professionalism
- Discuss and motivate publication strategies and ethical considerations related to scientific publishing
- Identify the common publication strategies in their own research field
Learning outcomes for doctoral degree
By providing an understanding of and training on scientific publishing, the following learning outcomes for a doctoral degree are targeted:
- Critical Thinking and Analysis: “scholarly analysis and synthesis as well as to review and assess new and complex phenomena, issues and situations autonomously and critically” (B1)
This will be trained through in-depth analysis of manuscripts and through critical feedback on manuscripts from peers as well as responding to such comments during the in-course peer-review process.
- Effective Communication: “the ability in both national and international contexts to present and discuss research and research findings authoritatively in speech and writing and in dialogue with the academic community and society in general” (B4)
In this course, the students will learn and practice how to write cover letters, respond to reviewer comments for various scientific journals in a a professional manner. Dialogues are set up between the in-course authors and reviewers.
- Lifelong Learning: “the ability to identify the need for further knowledge, identifying scientific gaps and responding to queries on such gaps” (B5)
As a part of the in-course reviewing process, the reviewer will be searching for potential scientific gaps in the reviewed manuscripts and, if any such gaps are identified, the author will learn to respond to such queries.
The course also aimed to train PhD students to understand their research field and support the learning of others through peer reviewing and discussions. As well as encouraging them to reflect on the ethical aspects of publishing and the purpose of publishing.
Course contents
This course gives the participants theoretical and practical training on the following aspects of writing and reviewing a manuscript: (i) general paper structure, (ii) journal submission process, (iii) peer review process, (iv) journal selection criteria, (v) cover letter writing, (vi) general structure of reviewers’ comments, and (vii) writing and replying to review comments with high scientific quality and professionalism.
Further aspects of publishing such as publication strategies and ethical considerations of scientific publishing are discussed as part of the course.
Instruction
Peer-reviewing will be practiced by letting the students submit their own manuscripts to the teacher, who is acting as the editor and recruits in-course reviewers. The teachers give feedback on the structure and professionalism of the cover letter, reviewer comments, and author's response. However, the scientific content is discussed between the author and the reviewer. An introduction session gives a general overview of article structure, interactions with journals, and peer-reviewing, as well as explains what is expected from the students in this course. During the seminars, the students come prepared and actively discuss questions related to publishing for a more in-depth understanding.
Assessment
1.5 hp course version:
- Participate in the introductory session
- Actively participate in at least 2 discussion sessions
- Complete 1 author task, i.e. submit 1 own manuscript and cover letter for review, and respond to review comments from in-course reviewing
- Complete 2 reviewer tasks, i.e. review 2 submitted manuscripts from the peer students
3 hp course version:
- Participate in the introductory session
- Actively participate in at least 3 discussion sessions
- Complete 2 authors' tasks, i.e. submit 2 own manuscripts and cover letters for review and respond to the reviewer’s comments from in-course reviewing
- Complete 4 reviewer tasks, i.e. review 4 submitted manuscripts from the peer students
Course examiner
Maria Tenje, maria.tenje@angstrom.uu.se and
Cecilia Persson, cecilia.persson@angstrom.uu.se
Department with main responsibility
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Contact persons
Sofia Johansson (sofia.m.johansson@angstrom.uu.se),
Hannah Pohlit (hannah.pohlit@farmaci.uu.se) and
Neeraj Katiyar (neeraj.katiyar@angstrom.uu.se)
Application
Submit the application for admission to: Sofia Johansson (sofia.m.johansson@angstrom.uu.se)
Submit the application not later than: 31st January for start in February 2025, 31st August for start in September 2025