Information for Editors

Overview

MDPI is an academic open access publisher based in Basel, Switzerland, and was initially founded in 1996 to collect and preserve rare chemical research samples. To support the samples project, MDPI started the journal Molecules the same year. Since 1996, MDPI has grown into a publishing house with over 390 journals and with offices in Beijing and Wuhan (China), Barcelona (Spain), Belgrade (Serbia), Cluj (Romania), Manchester (UK), Tokyo (Japan), Craców (Poland), Toronto (Canada) and Singapore. MDPI is backed by more than 295,000 academic experts who support our mission, values, and commitment to providing high-quality service for our authors.

Open Access

Open Access mean that readers can access published material for free, without paying a subscription charge. MDPI articles are freely available immediately after publication. This means that researchers, students, and interested lay people from anywhere in the world have rapid access to the latest research through MDPI journals. All MDPI content is distributed under a Creative Commons open access license.

We finance publication through article processing charges (APC), paid by authors and their institutions. APCs cover the cost of managing the peer review process, professional copy-editing, and promotion of published research MDPI has no other source of income.

For authors, open access means a potentially wider circle of readers for their research papers, with some research suggesting that open access papers are more highly cited.

At MDPI, we believe that open access offers value for money for researchers—our income per article is substantially lower than established subscription publishers. We offer a good deal for funding bodies—outcomes can be widely circulated and no barrier for reading offers transparency to those footing the bill. We also offer transparency to tax payers, who indirectly fund a great deal of research—through open access they have the opportunity to see the results of their contributions.

Journals Published by MDPI

More than 390 journal titles are currently published by MDPI and available online in open access format at www.mdpi.com. MDPI continuously launches new journals in response to academic developments, and to be able to serve additional research communities and their needs.

MDPI Editorial Offices

MDPI is headquartered in Basel, Switzerland. The in-house staff consists of Managing Editors, Assistant Editors, Production Editors, English Editors, Copyeditors, Data Specialists, Software Engineers and Administrative Specialists. Except for most English Editors, all are employed by MDPI and its subsidiaries and work at the MDPI offices. Our collaborating editors on our Editorial Boards are typically employed at academic institutions or corporate research facilities located all over the world. The contact with the in-house editorial staff is mainly by e-mail and telephone. The in-house editorial staff normally work for several journals related to their educational background. Assistant Editors process manuscripts through the peer-review and production procedures; Managing Editors have the editorial responsibility for the journals; Production Editors, English Editors, Copyeditors and Data Specialists are responsible for putting accepted content into a publishable format (full-text PDF, XML and HTML versions). Contact information can be found at www.mdpi.com/about/contact/.

Editorial Process, Peer-Review and Production

Articles submitted to MDPI journals are subject to strict peer-reviewing. In most journals, the process is single blind peer-review (the reviewers know the authors’ identities, but the authors do not know the reviewers’ identities). Some journals operate double blind peer-review (the reviewers do not know the authors’ identities until the paper has been published). The MDPI online submission system, Susy, incorporates online tools for manuscript submission, peer-reviewing and editorial decision making. Reviewers and external editors do not need to have an account with the MDPI submission system in order to finish the tasks assigned to them. Rather, the system will recognize the reviewers and external editors through one-time usable IDs found in the URLs. Editors-in-Chief and Guest Editors can view articles submitted to their journal or Special Issue via Susy at any time. Academic Editors must keep the manuscript, including the abstract and any supplementary information or data, confidential during the peer review and publication process. For more details please see our Ethical Guidelines for Reviewers and Editors.

The Instructions for Authors page on the website of each MDPI journal guides authors through preparing and submitting their manuscripts.

Once a manuscript is submitted, the submission is received by the in-house Managing Editor, who will subsequently coordinate the whole editorial process for the manuscript: peer-review, decision making, possible author revisions, manuscript acceptance, copyediting, English editing, proofreading and final publication. An in-house Assistant Editor will be assigned to the submitted article and will send review invitations.

At least two reports per manuscript are collected for each manuscript—three if the first two differ substantially. Reviewers must hold a PhD, cannot have published with the authors in the past three years, and must have recent publications in the field of the submitted manuscript.

The Editor-in-Chief, Guest Editor, or a suitable Editorial Board member can make the final acceptance or rejection decision for a manuscript, usually after the author’s revisions. We typically allow no more than two rounds of major revisions.

After the acceptance of an article for publication, the in-house editorial staff organize the production of the paper, which entails copyediting, English editing and final production in preparation for publication on the journal website. All journals are structured in yearly volumes and either monthly or quarterly issues. Nevertheless, articles are published online immediately after their acceptance and production.

In many MDPI journals, Academic Editors who have made the acceptance decision for a manuscript, after full peer-review, have the option to include their name and role as the Academic Editor on the published manuscript. This is at the Academic Editor’s discretion. Guest Editors of Special Issues are required to have their name(s) included on manuscripts they have accepted for publication.

Editorial Board Responsibilities

For society-owned journals, please visit their respective websites as roles and responsibilities may differ.

Editor-in-Chief

The Editor-in-Chief is a champion of the journal and their discipline. They supervise journal activities, with the aim to ensure success of the journal within the scientific community. The Editor-in-Chief is responsible for the scientific quality and development of the journal. The Editor-in-Chief is expected to maintain connection to the Editorial Board and assist the Editorial Office in the management of the journal. The initial term is for 2 years, which entails:

  • Acting as ambassador for the journal, MDPI and Open Access publishing;
  • Scientific decisions about the journal's scope;
  • Inviting distinguished scientists to join the Editorial Board;
  • Suggesting topics for Special Issues;
  • Providing support and guidance to Section Editors-in-Chief, Editorial Board Members and Editorial Staff where required;
  • Maintaining oversight of the editorial process for individual manuscripts (mainly by making the final decision regarding whether or not a paper can be published after peer-review and revisions);
  • Understanding, leading and upholding MDPI’s peer review guidelines and ethics guidelines;
  • Chairing the annual Editorial Board Meeting.

Section Editor-in-Chief

The Section Editor-in-Chief is a leader in their particular field, and is responsible for the scientific quality of a particular section of a journal. The Section Editor-in-Chief is expected to oversee the growth and development of the journal Sections and its board members. The initial term is for 2 years, which entails:

  • Acting as ambassador for the journal, MDPI and Open Access publishing;
  • Scientific decisions about the scope of their section;
  • Inviting distinguished scientists to join the Editorial Board;
  • Suggesting topics for Special Issues;
  • Providing support and guidance to Editorial Board Members and Editorial Staff where required;
  • Maintaining oversight of the editorial process for individual manuscripts in their section (mainly by making the final decision regarding whether or not a paper can be published after peer-review and revisions);
  • Understanding, leading and upholding MDPI’s peer review guidelines and ethics guidelines.

Co-Section Editor-in-Chief

The Co-Section Editor-in-Chief is an expert in the field of a particular section of a journal, and is responsible for the scientific quality of the section together with the Section Editor-in-Chief. The Co-Section Editor-in-Chief is expected to oversee the growth and development of the journal Section and oversee its Special Issues and Collections. The initial term is for 2 years, which entails:

  • Advise Section Editor-in-Chiefs on the strategic development of the section and alert Section Editor-in-Chiefs in case of any issues encountered;
  • Advise Section Editor-in-Chief on the aims and scope of the sections;
  • Maintaining oversight of the editorial process for individual manuscripts assigned to them and make pre-check editorial decisions with a focus on scope relevance;
  • Supervision of Special issues (by making decisions on the feasibility report on the new titles, the Guest Editors' qualifications, and final approval before launching);
  • Ensuring Special Issues are within the scope of the journal and of interest to the scientific community;
  • Propose Editorial Board member candidates to Section Editor-in-Chiefs for approval;
  • Attend regular meetings with Section Editor-in-Chiefs and provide feedback and support;
  • Act as an ambassador for the journal, MDPI and open access publishing.

Associate Editors

The Associate Editor is expected to maintain regular communication with the Managing Editor and Publishing Manager of the journal, and to other MDPI staff as needed, and be responsive when support is requested. The Associate Editor should support Editor-in-Chief and Section Editor-in-Chief of the journal to:

  • Advise on the strategic development of the journal;
  • Advise Editor-in-Chief and Section Editor-in-Chief on the Aims and Scope of the journal or section;
  • Provide support and guidance to Editorial Board Members and Editorial Staff when required;
  • Maintaining oversight of the editorial process for individual manuscripts in their section (mainly by making the final decision regarding whether or not a paper can be published after peer-review and revisions);
  • Suggest themes for Special Issues and assist in inviting/proposing Guest Editors to lead them;
  • Invite distinguished scientists to join the Editorial Board;
  • Act as ambassador for the journal, MDPI and Open Access publishing.

Advisory Board Members

The Advisory Board Members will provide guidance to the Editor-in-Chief regarding journal development strategies and policies. The initial term is for 2 years, which entails:

  • Pre-screen and take decisions on new submissions, especially in cases of conflict of interest;
  • Suggest topics for Special Issues and launch new Sections for the journal;
  • Provide input or feedback regarding journal policies;
  • Help to promote the journal among their peers or at conferences;
  • Attend Board Meetings to suggest journal development strategies;
  • Provide assistance in solving appeal cases or ethical disputes.

Statistical Editor

The primary role of Statistical Editors is to help ensure that manuscripts adhere to high-quality statistical standards that promote the reproducibility, rigor, interpretability, and transparency of the reported scientific data. The initial term is for 2 years, which entails:

  • Reviewing and evaluating manuscripts for the accuracy of the statistical methodology used, and the rigor and presentation of the data.
  • Providing input and advice for the statistical guidelines of the journal.
  • Identifying and upholding principles of research ethics and academic conduct for the journal.
  • Attending Board Meetings to suggest journal development strategies.

Statistical Editors may be assigned to one or two journals depending on their availability, and will be included within the Editorial Board of their respective journals.

Editorial Board Members

The Editorial Board Members will be responsible for final decisions on manuscripts in their field of expertise, will edit Special Issues and they may be invited to review manuscripts. The initial term is for 2 years, which entails:

  • Pre-screen and take decisions on new submissions related to their research interests;
  • Set up at least 1 Special Issue during their term on a topic related to their research interests (or supervising Special Issues related to your research field);
  • Help to attract suitable expert authors and invite young scholars to join the topical advisory panel;
  • Provide input or feedback regarding journal policies;
  • Help to promote the journal among their peers or at conferences;
  • Attend Board Meetings to suggest journal development strategies;
  • Review manuscripts.

Section Board Members

The Section Board Members comply with the same terms and conditions as Editorial Board Members. According to their expertise they are assigned to a specific journal section for which they will be mostly committed. The initial term is for 2 years, which entails:

  • Pre-screen and take decisions on new submissions related to their journal Section;
  • Help to edit a Special Issue on a topic related to their Section (or supervising Special Issues related to your research field);
  • Provide input or feedback regarding journal policies;
  • Help to promote the journal among their peers or at conferences;
  • Attend Board Meetings to suggest journal development strategies:
  • Review manuscripts.

Supporting Editor Responsibilities

Guest Editors

The Guest Editors will edit Special Issues and are encouraged to invite colleagues from the same research field to contribute to the Special Issue. Special Issues enable collaboration with scholars all over the world. The main responsibilities of Guest Editors are:

  • Preparing the Special Issue title, aim & scope, summary and keywords;
  • Providing a list of potential contributors;
  • Pre-screen, supervise the whole peer-review process and take decisions on new submissions in their Special Issue;
  • Promotion of the Special Issue at conferences, on social media and other relevant platforms.

Subject Editors

Subject Editors are assigned, based on their research expertise, to a specific category. They work alongside the Editorial Boards of all the journals in MDPI’s portfolio to develop the category and to promote Topics.

The responsibilities of the Subject Editor include:

  • Developing Topics strategy, supplying new ideas for promoting Topics, and collaborating with institutes to set up Topics;
  • Inviting other distinguished scientists to join the Subject Editor or to lead Topics as Topic Editors;
  • Inviting recognized scholars in the field to contribute relevant submissions;
  • Suggesting themes, subjects, and potential journals to set up Topics;
  • Promoting Topics at conferences and using related social media channels;
  • Joining the Topics Award Committee to evaluate MDPI Topics.

Topic Editors

The Topic Editors will edit Topics and are encouraged to invite colleagues from the same research field to contribute to the Topic. Topics offer the opportunity to collaborate across disciplines around the world. The main responsibilities of Topic Editors are:

  • Preparing the Topics title, aim & scope, summary and keywords;
  • Providing a list of potential contributors;
  • Pre-screen, supervise the whole peer-review process and take decisions on new submissions in their Topics;
  • Promotion of the Topics at conferences, on social media and other relevant platforms.

Collection Editors

The Collection Editors will edit permanent Topical Collections and are encouraged to invite colleagues from the same research field to contribute to the Topical Collection. The main responsibilities of Collection Editors are:

  • Preparing the Topical Collection title, aim & scope, summary and keywords
  • Providing a list of potential contributors, a couple of times per year
  • Pre-screen, supervise the whole peer-review process and take decisions on new submissions in their Collection
  • Promotion of the Collection at conferences, on social media and other relevant platforms.

Topical Advisory Panel

The Topical Advisory Panel is composed of established researchers eager to participate in the development of high-quality Special Issues or Topics. The Topical Advisory Panel will work closely with Guest Editors, Topic Editors and Section Board Members to provide support and help them run successful Special Issues. Each year, the member’s performance is evaluated, and outstanding members will be promoted to the Editorial Board by the Editor-in-Chief.

The main responsibilities include the following:

  • Providing regular reviews of manuscripts.
  • Setting up at least one Special Issue (SI) within two years of appointment. Collaborations on SIs with other established researchers are encouraged. The topic of the proposal should be within the scope of the journal. The scope of the SI should be broad enough to attract a reasonable number of submissions but narrow enough to provide a cohesive collection of articles. The SI should cover a small part of the scope of the journal, but not the whole scope.
  • Providing a detailed strategy plan for the SI, including assisting in preparing the SI’s/Topic’s title, aim and scope, summary, and keywords, in addition to soliciting papers and promoting the SI.
  • Providing support for SI/Topics related to your expertise when the Guest Editor(s) is not available. This includes SI promotion via social media and giving advice on some scientific cases.
  • Promotion of the journal at conferences (adding 1–2 slides into your presentation, distributing flyers, recommending the journal to your colleagues, etc.), on social media, and on other relevant platforms.
  • Participate in working with Editorial Board Members or the Editorial Office to promote high-quality/featured papers (for example, writing a summary or highlights for an Editor's selected papers).

Early Career Editorial Board Members

Early Career Editorial Board Members should be young scholars early in their careers who have sufficient academic experience and will, therefore, be able to contribute toward the long-term development of the journal. They are recruited and selected by the Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board Members. They will add vital new perspectives, energy, and intellectual diversity to the board, which will help us look towards the future.

The main responsibilities include the following:

  • Publicize and promote the journal at academic conferences and among peers;
  • Select high-quality articles and prepare bilingual media content for promotion;
  • Review at least four manuscripts per year;
  • Provide input on any new initiatives for journal development;
  • Invite submissions from local and overseas world-leading scientists in respective research fields.

Launching New Open Access Journals with MDPI

For publishing proposals, including the transfer of existing journals, the launch of new titles or the conversion of subscription journals to open access, please contact the New Journal Committee.

Comments and Questions

Please use the Contact Form for general or support inquiries with MDPI. If you wish to contact a journal's Editorial Office, please visit the journal pages to see the Editorial Office contact information. For a list of MDPI offices, addresses and phone numbers, please see www.mdpi.com/about/contact/.

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