Writing a Scientific Manuscript

This course will walk you through the steps necessary to draft, finalize, and submit a Scientific Manuscript for publication. Prior to starting this course students should have collected and analyzed their data as well as completed working tables. Please note that the content of this course is best suited for quantitative studies to be published in biomedical journals.

We recommend you complete the course in the order listed below.

1. Tables and Figures
   The purpose of Tables and figures is to present data that cannot be adequately captured in text in a comprehensive and organized manner. In this lesson, we'll address the basic types of tables and figures and learn how to use them in a scientific manuscript.
2. Results
   The purpose of the Results section is to objectively describe the main findings of the study. In this lesson, we'll describe how to write your Results section. We will also explore representative examples of the Results section from the literature to help you identify and apply the basic parts of an organized and comprehensive Results section.
3. Methods
   The purpose of the Methods section is to describe how you did the study including a description of the study design, sampling, measurements, and data analysis to allow the reader to critically evaluate a study's overall validity and reliability. In this lesson we'll describe how to write your Methods section. We will describe the organization of the subsections, and what information needs to be included in each part. We will also explore representative examples of the Methods section from the literature to help you identify and apply the basic parts of an organized and comprehensive Methods section.
4. Introduction
   The purpose of the Introduction section is to set the stage for the paper, provide the justification for the study and describe its primary aim, or aims. In this lesson, we'll describe the purpose of the Introduction and guide you through the basic structure of the Introduction section. We will also explore representative examples of the Introduction section from the literature to help you identify and apply the basic parts of an organized and comprehensive Introduction section.
5. Discussion
   The purpose of the Discussion section is to identify and interpret the significance of your most important findings and to put it into context based on previous research. In this lesson, we'll describe how to write your Discussion. We will also explore representative examples of the Discussion section from the literature to help you identify and apply the basic parts of an organized and comprehensive Discussion section.
6. Additional components and journal submission
   The purpose of these additional components is to meet all criteria required by a Journal for finalizing and submitting your manuscript for publication. In this lesson, we will focus on how to structure the remaining parts of your manuscript and how to select and order authors. We'll also address how to choose and correspond with a journal throughout the submission, revision, and resubmission process.