Tips for Choosing the Right Journal for your Manuscript
Selecting a journal requires consideration of factors that affect your impact, reach, and timeline. Read on for tips on how to balance your priorities and select the best journal for your work.
1. Scope and focus. There are many different types of journals and thousands within each category. To begin, you should consider the type of research you are reporting.
a. Preclinical science – covers a large range of fields and aims to publish mechanisms that underlie biological processes. Examples: Nature, Science, Cell
b. Specialty – focuses on a specific field or subfield. Examples: Journal of Neuroscience, Journal of Physical Chemistry
c. Clinical – typically aims to publish articles that improve patient care. Examples: JAMA, The Lancet
2. Journal quality. How do you determine the quality of the journal? Journals that require peer review and garner more citations from researchers tend to be more highly regarded and have greater impact.
a. Impact factor – a measure of how useful published manuscripts are to other scientists based on the number of citations per article. Eigenfactor and Article Influence Scores will provide similar information.
b. Peer review – typically double-blinded; however, journals are increasingly using open review, allowing authors to view the names of the reviewers and to respond directly to them.
c. Altmetric Attention Score – considers journal influence beyond citations including social media, downloads, and media coverage.
3. Audience. Think about whom you would like to read your manuscript. Different journals target a variety of different audiences. Who is your target audience?
a. Researchers in your field of study
b. Researchers in related fields of study
c. Clinicians
d. Policy makers
e. Note: The public are becoming a key component of your readership. If allowed by the journal, consider submitting a lay abstract to make your work more accessible. You can also post this on your personal website.
4. Publication timeline. What is your timeline for publishing your work? Consider researching the average time it takes to advance a manuscript from submission to print.
a. Time from submission to print – many journals include the submission, revision, and acceptance dates on the first page of their publications.
b. Time for review – check the journal’s website for information about the review process or contact the editorial office; review times can range from weeks to months.
c. Acceptance rate – journal websites sometimes include this information or you can check an external site like Journal Citation Reports.
5. Open access. Open-access journals make their published articles freely available to everyone. Many journals are adopting this model. What are the considerations when choosing an open-access journal?
a. Cost – often higher than subscription-based journals, article processing fee waivers may be available.
b. Accessibility – allows everyone to access your published article regardless of their ability to pay.
c. Research funding – some funding agencies require that work be published in an open access journal; be sure to check the requirements of your funder(s).
d. Author rights – like other types of journals, carefully review the copyright policy of the journal you choose.
To learn more:
List of Different Types of Journal with Impact Factor
Are you looking for a team to help guide or own your medical publications processes? Learn more about our services here.
Pam Harvey, Director of Medical and Scientific Publications
