On completion of the course, the doctoral student should:

- demonstrate understanding for a structured and systematic approach to the literature searching process
- demonstrate understanding for the peer review process of scholarly journals

- demonstrate ability to define an information need and to formulate an adequate search strategy for a chosen research question
- demonstrate skills to effectively search publications in chosen databases from a self-formulated search strategy

- demonstrate ability to make a relevant selection among retrieved publications based on established criteria
- demonstrate ability to select one or several journals for their own publication and motivate the choice on the basis of the selection criteria covered in the course and be able to evaluate them by using bibliometric indicators
- demonstrate skills to formulate an appropriate publication strategy for increasing dissemination with the help of databases covered in the course

The first part of the course aims to provide an increased awareness of a structured information searching process: how to plan, conduct and report searches for a literature review. The second part gives an overview of the development of scholarly communication with a focus on scholarly journals and peer review. The student will also gain knowledge to develop a publication strategy with emphasis on choice of journal, open access and bibliometrics.

The course includes the following contents:
- Literature review types
- The literature searching process
- Assessment
- Reporting
- Library databases
- Setting up publication alerts
- Development of scholarly communication
- Peer review
- Open access
- Copyright
- Bibliometrics
- Publication strategy

The teaching consists of lectures, workshops and exercises.

Undervisningen bedrivs på engelska.

To be admitted to the course, the applicant must meet the general entry requirements for doctoral programs, i.e. have been rewarded a degree at second-cycle level, or have achieved at least 240 credits, of which a minimum of 60 credits must have been achieved at second-cycle level.

English proficiency corresponding to English 6, or English course B in the Swedish upper secondary school system, is required.

Kursen bedöms med betygen Underkänd eller Godkänd.

The examination is based on written assignments and active participation during seminars.
More information about assessment of the specific goals and grading criteria will be provided to participants at the start of the course.

Examinationsmoment	Omfattning	Betyg
Active participation during seminars	0,5 hp	U/G
Assignment	2,5 hp	U/G

Booth, A., Sutton, A., & Papaioannou, D. Systematic approaches to a successful literature review (Second ed.). Los Angeles: Sage. (latest edition)
See course outline for additional literature.