Navigating the world of academic publishing for the first time can be complex. Two of the most common questions on the minds of graduate students are: "What do I need to do to be the first author on a paper?" and "Does my supervisor have to be the corresponding author?"

Understanding these roles is crucial for your academic career, as authorship is the primary currency of research. This guide breaks down the requirements for being a first author and clarifies the conventional role of the corresponding author.

What It Takes to Be the First Author

In academia, the first author is recognized as the person who has made the most significant intellectual contribution to the research. It is a position earned through work and leadership, not status. For a student to be the first author, they must have been the primary driving force behind the study.

While specific criteria can vary slightly between disciplines, the generally accepted requirements for a first author include leading the majority of the following tasks:

• Conceptualization and Design: You played a primary role in developing the initial research idea, forming the hypothesis, and designing the study or experiments.

• Data Collection and Execution: You performed the bulk of the practical work, whether it was conducting experiments in a lab, running simulations, carrying out surveys, or gathering historical data.

• Data Analysis and Interpretation: You were the lead in analyzing the collected data and interpreting the results to draw meaningful conclusions.

• Drafting the Manuscript: You wrote the first draft of the paper. According to international standards like the ICMJE (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) guidelines, substantially contributing to the manuscript draft is a key requirement for authorship.

In short, if you did most of the work, you should be the first author. A healthy and ethical student-supervisor relationship ensures that the student who leads a project is credited with the first-author position. This is a critical milestone for a PhD student's CV and future career prospects.

The Corresponding Author: Must It Be Your Supervisor?

The short answer is: No, it is not a mandatory rule, but it is the most common and logical academic convention.

Understanding the role of the corresponding author clarifies why the supervisor usually takes this position. The corresponding author is more than just a contact person; they are the guarantor of the research.

The key responsibilities include:

• Managing Submissions and Revisions: The corresponding author handles all communication with the journal, including the initial submission, responding to reviewer comments, and managing revisions.

• Long-Term Responsibility: After publication, they are the point of contact for any questions, critiques, or data requests from the scientific community, sometimes for many years. They are ultimately responsible for the integrity of the work.

• Administrative Oversight: They ensure all authors meet authorship criteria, have approved the final manuscript, and manage any conflicts of interest.

Why the Supervisor Usually Takes This Role:

1. Continuity and Stability: A supervisor has a permanent position at the university, whereas a student may graduate, change their email address, or leave academia. Journals and the research community need a stable, long-term contact for the paper.

2. Experience: Supervisors typically have far more experience navigating the peer-review process and communicating effectively with journal editors.

3. Accountability: As the Principal Investigator (PI), the supervisor is ultimately accountable for the research conducted with their funding and under their supervision. Being the corresponding author reflects this responsibility.

While it's most common for the supervisor to be the corresponding author, there can be exceptions. In some cases, a student who is managing all aspects of the project may take on the role, but this should be decided through a clear and open discussion with the supervisor before submission.

Conclusion: Communication is Key

The most common and healthy arrangement for a student-led project is the student as the first author and the supervisor as the corresponding author. This model properly acknowledges the student's hands-on contribution while respecting the supervisor's role as the guarantor of the research. All authorship decisions should be discussed transparently and agreed upon by the entire research team early in the writing process.