Publishing a scientific article in Scopus or Web of Science journals needs a lot of effort and time. At the same time, it is necessary to have information about the peculiarities of working with publications that are indexed in these databases. It is not easy to pick up a Scopus or Web of Science journal, since these platforms host the materials of tens of thousands of scientific publications. The “Scientific Publications” Company offers you to consider all the details of the process of selecting a publication for placing a scientific article.
1. Scientific purpose of the author (co-authors)
First, it is necessary to determine for which scientific purposes the scientific article publication is necessary. Thus, it is possible to carry out primary analysis with the help of regulatory documents, where the main requirements are prescribed or based on the researcher’s own expectations.
For example, the legal requirements for obtaining a scientific degree indicate the need to publish in journals with an impact factor. This somewhat narrows the publication list. If a researcher needs to place his work to increase the authority, he himself can assess what level of importance a scientific journals should have.
2. Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed/Medline
Before focusing on specific publications, you should decide to which database you need to pay attention to. Again, sometimes a list of regulatory requirements can help you with this issue. However, if the researcher has the space to make decisions on this issue, it is necessary to investigate the main functional capabilities and specifics of each of the platforms, and then make a well-considered decision.
There are also publications that are indexed in several databases. If you are focused on placing a publication in such journals, you should take care of the scientific article quality, because as a rule, only the highest-rated publications have multiple indexing.
3. Indexing check
At the first stages of checking the scientific journal quality, you should pay attention to its indexing within the database that is interesting to the researcher. After that, you can perform more in-depth analysis.
4. Scientometric indicators
Pay attention to what scientometric indicators the publication has, how their dynamics change. The main metrics are quartile and percentile, you should also pay attention to:
- SNIP, SJR, CiteScore (in Scopus)
- JIF, JCI (in Web of Science)
- Self-citation percentage
- Scientific articles acceptance rate
5. Publication website
Certain conclusions about the journal can be made by finding its website. You should evaluate whether there are main sections with information for authors, requirements, material selection process, possible payment options, etc.
It is also necessary to assess how truthful the information on the site is, because it is often one of the main indicators of dishonest/honest activity.
6. Journal integrity
There is a large number of journals that conduct dishonest publishing activities, so-called “predatory journals”, “clone journals”. In order not to make a mistake when choosing a publication and not suffer reputational losses, pay attention to:
- Review terms
- Self-citation percentage
- Publication specialization
- Issue formation methodology and geographical diversity of authors
- Scientific indicators and indexing
- Journal business model
7. Publication specialization
First of all, pay attention to the field of research and the subject area of the journal. Then, evaluate the content of several of its issues. Often, the publication focuses on highly specialized topics or a separate list of topics. Therefore, the category of “subject area” or “discipline” may be too broad.
8. Main requirements for scientific articles
Carefully read the information about the main article requirements and evaluate your work for compliance with it. If your article has improper execution, do a final proofreading and delete the identified shortcomings in accordance with the journal’s requirements.
9. Journal business model
Also, pay attention to the section where the amounts of publication fees and possible payment options are indicated. Taking this into consideration, the researcher can evaluate whether the publication is affordable for him or from which sources he can raise funds for publication.
10. “Alternative” journals
Apart from the main journal version for publication, you always should identify 2-3 alternative versions. It is possible to submit a work to these publications if the main one rejected your work. The selection of alternative options is not always connected with rejection. Sometimes the review process can be too long and the scientist makes a decision to withdraw the article and submit it to another publication.
In no case do not submit an article to several journals at once. This is a gross violation of publication ethics!
Selection of a journal for publication is one of the most important stages of work on a scientific article, on which the publication success depends directly. It is because of that the specialists of the “Scientific Publications” Company pay special attention to this process. We conduct an in-depth analysis of about 200 possible scientific journals and choose the most suitable one for realization of the scientist’s scientific purpose and for unleashing his research potential. If you have additional questions about “Publication in Scopus” or “Publication in Web of Science”, please contact our specialists and get an expert advice today!
We will remind you that the material “The main scientometric indicators of Scopus and Web of Science” was recently released
