Getting Your Research Paper Published for the First Time: A Guide

Getting a research paper published can be a long and frustrating process. It can get even more frustrating if you are doing it for the first time. You might struggle to find the right journal and deal with several rejections before your paper is finally accepted. To help you out, we have prepared a handy guide you can use to get your research paper published more easily.

Choose The Right Journal

One of the most important things you need to consider when getting your research paper published is deciding which journal you should choose for submitting your scientific manuscript. Here’s a checklist that you can use for this purpose:

 

  • Does it offer a peer-review service? Peer reviews are indicative that you are submitting to a journal with a strong reputation within the research community.
  • Is the scope of the journal relevant to your field of study?
  • Does the journal have a good reputation in your field of study? Do your peers publish in this journal?
  • How long does the journal take to publish an article?
  • Does the journal charge for publishing a research paper? If so, who will be covering this cost? Are there any extra charges for supplementary data or color figures?
  • Will other researchers in your field cite the journal?
  • Is the journal indexed in online databases like Scopus or Web of Science?

 

If a journal meets all of the above requirements, you can go ahead and consider it for your research paper. It also helps to at least shortlist three journals that meet your criteria. This way, if you get rejected by your first choice, you will have a backup.

2.    Format Your Paper

 

Once you have selected a journal, you need to review its formatting guidelines. These guidelines carry information regarding the following:

 

  • The length of the paper
  • The font size and type
  • The arrangement of the paper
  • The format of the title page
  • The margins and the page size
  • The citation styles
  • Indentation and double-line spacing

 

Most journals also provide a template that you can use to format your paper as per the journal’s requirements. You can simply fit your paper within this template and make sure it is properly formatted.

3.    Review Your Paper

We suggest you review some of the research papers the journal has published to see if your paper needs to be improved in terms of quality. You can also check how the other research papers are structured. Once you have an idea about the quality of writing and research the journal accepts, you can look at your manuscript and make changes to bring it up to par. A few things you can consider here:

 

  • Make sure your paper is written as per the conventions of academic writing
  • Emphasize the importance of your work at the beginning of the paper. This is very important if you are publishing a research paper for the first time.
  • Consider adding your supervisor as the co-author of the paper. Since your supervisor will have an established reputation within the scientific community, this can increase your chances of getting published.
  • Make sure you have an impactful and concise introduction that presents the background of your research, its scope, and the research questions you will be answering in a logical manner. You should also have a clear hypothesis.
  • Double-check your methodology, results, and discussion to ensure your research is presented in a clear manner.
  • Based on the nature of your research, you can also add a section indicating you got the necessary approvals from the ethics committee and any human subjects consented to participate in your research.
  • Check to make sure everything has been referenced properly, and you have used one consistent citation style that aligns with the journal’s requirements.

 

Once you have made sure everything is in order, you can reach out to the journal and submit your manuscript for review. Most journals will provide you with their feedback in a few weeks or more.

4.    Be Prepared to Make Revisions

Once the peer review process is complete, the reviewers and editors will provide you with feedback on your research paper. You might be required to make revisions such as clarifying your methodology, organizing your paper in a better way, presenting the results in more detail, etc.

It’s important to be patient here and carefully address all the revisions and comments. The journal will also provide you with a timeframe for making corrections. Once you have made the necessary changes, you can resubmit.

Wrapping It Up

You might get a few more revisions before your paper is finally accepted for publication. We also suggest seeking help from a professional proofreader and editor with experience in academic writing. Edit911 can assist you here. We provide scientific manuscript editing services and can help you prepare your research paper as per the requirements of international journals. Talk to us today to learn more!

 

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