Keeping Up with Literature as a PhD Student (Without Burning Out)

If you’re doing a PhD, you’ve probably been told to “stay on top of the literature.” Sounds simple. But between experiments, writing, meetings, and teaching, reading papers often gets pushed to the bottom of the list.

The reality is, no one has time to read everything. The good news is, you don’t have to. With the right tools and a few simple habits, you can stay updated in your field without spending hours every day.

1. Set Up Alerts That Do the Work for You

Let papers come to you instead of constantly searching for them.

• Google Scholar Alerts
  Create alerts for keywords, authors, or specific topics. You’ll get emails when new papers are published that match your search.
• arXiv, PubMed, Scopus Alerts
  These platforms are widely used in many research areas and allow you to create alerts for new papers that match specific queries.
• Zotero Web Library Feeds
  Some researchers make their Zotero libraries public. Subscribing to these feeds can help you see what others are reading or saving in your field.

2. Use a Reference Manager Properly

Don’t just collect PDFs. Organise them.

• Zotero, Mendeley, and EndNote let you save, tag, and annotate papers.
• Create folders like “to read,” “important methods,” or “cite later.”
• Use browser extensions to save papers in one click while you’re browsing.

This makes it easier to find relevant papers later, especially when you’re writing.

3. Let Smart Tools Suggest What’s Worth Reading

If you’re not sure what to search for, recommendation tools can help.

• Semantic Scholar
  It learns from what you read and shows papers that are likely to be relevant. Their “Recommended” tab is particularly useful once you’ve built a reading history.
• Connected Papers / Research Rabbit
  These tools let you explore the network around a paper. Great if you’re starting a literature review or want to understand the context of a well-known result.
• ResearchDock’s Smart Suggestions
  If you’re already using ResearchDock to manage your research projects, the Smart Suggestions feature can take care of literature tracking in the background. It looks at your project description and saved papers to infer keywords, then recommends papers that match. You don’t need to manually search every day. This is especially helpful when you're deep in writing or lab work and can't spend hours browsing new papers.

4. Create a Light Reading Routine

Even 20 minutes a week can make a difference.

• Set aside a short block of time each week to go through new papers or suggestions.
• Keep a running document where you note down key insights, useful figures, or things to follow up on.
• You can also do “paper swaps” with a lab mate: each person reads one paper and shares a quick summary.

This habit pays off when you’re writing your literature review or preparing for a confirmation milestone.

5. Don’t Try to Read Everything

It’s okay to skim. No one reads every paper in full.

Start with the abstract, figures, and conclusion. If it’s directly useful to your work, dig deeper. If not, move on.

Final Thoughts

PhD life is already packed. But staying current with the literature doesn’t have to be overwhelming. A few well-set alerts, the right tools, and a realistic reading habit can keep you in the loop without burning out.

If you’re managing your research with ResearchDock, features like Smart Suggestions can quietly keep your project’s literature up to date while you focus on writing, coding, or running experiments. You can come back to it when you have time and still stay in touch with what's new.