Quick tips: review time

Deciding your journal’s Review Time

There has been a big push over the last 10 years to get academic work published as quickly as possible. As time to publication becomes more and more critical, there is a trend to make review times shorter now than before. How short is advisable and do short review times yield results?

Our advice to you

1. Set a realistic review time

Some journals allow more time, some allow less. A 14 day margin is fairly common, and also allows for a few days of leeway where necessary.  Our advise: set the review time to a reasonable 14 to 21 days, but expect some reviewers to take slightly longer.

2. Automate your reminders

When choosing an online editorial system, know that it is a true advantage to have automatic reminders option. Set your reminders at regular intervals to keep the “pressure on” reviewers to submit their evaluations. This is very important especially as editors will not be constantly monitoring the review progress. If you are not online, it could be worth it to set up reminders manually. Much valuable time can be lost while waiting for a review.