Publications

Choosing a journal well

The ecosystem of scientific journals is so vast that it is hard to find your way around. Not all journals are of equal quality, and they all operate in different ways. So how do you make the best choice when it comes to publishing your article? What makes a good journal? How do you know how open a journal is?

Without being exhaustive, here are a few criteria to help you make your choice:

Scientific criteria
  • A good fit between your article or work and the topics covered by the journal
  • A good fit for the methodologies favoured by the journal
Target audience
  • Language of publication (national or international target audience)
  • Suitability of your target readership
The journal's reputation and recognition by peers
  • Methods and duration of evaluation
  • Composition of the group of peer reviewers
  • Presence in reference lists (JournalBase, CNU and HCERES criteria, WoS, DOAJ for open access journals)
Open science criteria
  • Type of dissemination
  • Policy related to author's rights
  • Compliance with funders' requirements (in the case of publications linked to a funded project)

Be aware, some journals and publishers abuse the ‘Gold Open Access’ system: don't let yourself be trapped by "predatory publishers".

Find out more about predatory publishers