Scholarly Publishing

Tips for how to choose a journal to publish in, open access journals, pitfalls to avoid

Which journal?

When deciding which journal to submit your article to, there are a number of factors that may be considered:

  • Quality - What is the impact factor of the journal? What is the journal's ranking? Is the journal peer reviewed?
  • Relevance - Does your research paper match the scope of this publication? Is the journal read by your target audience?
  • Discoverability - Where is the journal indexed? How easy is it for others to locate articles in the journal?
  • Accessibility/Open Access -"Gold OA" means a fee is charged to publish in the journal or, in the case of learned bodies, the journal is freely available. What costs to publish? How widely read is this journal?

The Think Check Submit opens in a new window campaign, endorsed by the Australian Publishers Association opens in a new window, brings together peak standards bodies and publishers. It provides a checklist researchers may use to assess the credentials of a journal or publisher.

Journal quality

Is the journal well regarded in that field of research?

Use the following resources to compare and measure journal rankings:

Take a look at the Find journal rankings page of our Finding yourself: Research Metrics guide for related information.

 

Is the journal peer-reviewed?

Check the journal's webpage or the Ulrichsweb opens in a new window database.

While a journal may be displayed as peer-reviewed, it does not evaluate quality. Use Ulrichsweb in conjunction with the other checks for quality e.g. a journals quartile or where a journal is indexed.

 

Check the Journals website for information such as:

  • Editorial board
  • acceptance and rejection rates for articles
  • Peer review process

 

Is it listed within a discipline based list?

For example:

Subjects: How do I..?, Research