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I am applying for a PhD as a mature student - I took a 20 year gap between my undergraduate degree and studying for an MSc. My undergraduate dissertation was published as a paper (with me as second author). It has some relevance to the PhD although not the same topic, and obviously a little dated. Should I bother listing it on my CV or is it too long ago and will just look like I am trying to fill space? I am hoping that my MSc dissertation will also lead to a paper but that is not complete yet, and I have no other publications. Thanks

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    I personally would list it. My resume' (usually for non-academic purposes) is WAY longer than people say it should be (I'm old, this happens as one ages), but it has served me well in getting several jobs (and making it even longer LOL.). Just my opinion.
    – JosephDoggie
    Commented Jan 12 at 19:03
  • I would definitely list it, I've just completed a PhD myself as a mature student. In Australia you normally cannot get directly accepted into a PhD program, usually you need to do an MPhil/MRes first as preparation. The exception is having completed a masters with a substantial research component. Having done a Masters by Thesis 20 years early with a couple of published papers certainly helped my application (despite being in a different field to my PhD).
    – David Waterworth
    Commented Jan 15 at 3:15

4 Answers 4

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Yes, you should list the publication since it is relevant experience for your application. However, I recommend you to be prepared to answer questions about your role in the paper and its content. It is usual to discuss previous publications when you are interviewed for academic jobs.

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Of course, this is part of your profile as a researcher!

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If you were the second author of a published paper as an undergraduate, that is a significant achievement, even if it was twenty years ago.

Yes, list it.

(I say this with experience to back it up: I had a similar gap between undergrad and PhD, and I listed a publication from very early in my career in industry, quite irrelevant to what I later wanted to pursue during my candidacy.)

Folks like us are not common, but neither are we so rare that the people reading it will be confused.

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Yes, absolutely. Listing your prior publication will increase trust in that you will be able to the same during your PhD studies. Writing and publishing is a skill that you will definitely need during this journey, and while it's possible that after 20 years you are out of practice, you still have the background that you can tap into. This, to me, is important.

A lot of students initially struggle with this, so providing evidence that you possess this skill and have experience will likely be a plus in the evaluation. In addition, you are likely competing with a lot of other applicants without this experience so this will potentially set you apart.

I agree with previous answers that you should be prepared to discuss your role in the

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