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How do you give constructive feedback to students on their writing?

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Manipal Institute of Technology · Posted
Quantum Computing

I want to start an honest conversation about something I have been thinking about for a while.

As a fourth-year PhD student, I have watched the academic publication ecosystem up close. The pressure to publish in high-impact journals has created perverse incentives:

  • Researchers cherry-pick results to show positive findings
  • Null results are systematically rejected
  • The same idea gets cut into multiple 'minimum publishable units' to inflate output
  • Citation rings inflate impact scores

What do you think? Is this a structural problem that needs policy-level intervention, or are there practical things individual researchers can do?

I am particularly interested in hearing from senior faculty who have seen this evolve over their careers.

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Rohan Desai Distinguished 950 pts · Accepted answer

I'd push back slightly on the idea that industry collaboration is universally beneficial for academic research. The incentive misalignment is real.

Industry partners want deliverables on a schedule. Academic research is often exploratory and unpredictable. When the two clash, it is usually the researcher who has to compromise.either by rushing results, constraining publication, or steering away from results that are inconvenient for the sponsor.

This doesn't mean industry collaboration is bad. But the terms matter enormously. IP rights, publication rights, and the ability to pursue negative results should be negotiated upfront and protected in writing.

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Ishaan Verma Growing 60 pts · Accepted answer

The Fulbright SoP is very different from a typical PhD SoP. It needs to focus on cultural exchange and diplomacy, not just research.