Information to Authors
General Instruction for Authors
Thank you for submitting your manuscript to the American Journal of Student Research (AJSR). Please carefully review the author instructions and follow the guidelines as closely as possible to ensure timely and efficient processing of your submission.
AJSR primarily accepts the following manuscript types authored by undergraduate or high school students:
Original Research – Reports original findings obtained through experiments, surveys, or other systematic research methodologies and is typically organized according to the IMRADC format (Introduction, Methods and Materials, Results, Discussion, and Conclusion).
Narrative Review – Summarizes and synthesizes existing literature to provide an overview of a specific topic. Such manuscripts do not follow the IMRADC format but are organized around logical themes or conceptual frameworks.
Systematic Review – A literature review that uses transparent and reproducible methods to identify, appraise and synthesize evidence addressing a clearly defined research question and is typically structured according to the IMRADC format (Introduction, Methods and Materials, Results, Discussion, and Conclusion).
Meta-Analysis –A research article that uses quantitative methods to synthesize and statistically analyze data from multiple independent studies, enhancing the precision and reliability of effect size estimates and overall conclusions. It is typically structured according to the IMRADC format (Introduction, Methods and Materials, Results, Discussion, and Conclusion).
Opinion/Perspective – Opinion / Perspective – Provides interpretation or commentary on an issue without presenting new data. Such manuscripts do not follow the IMRADC format but are instead organized around logical themes or conceptual frameworks.
Authors are prohibited from submitting the same manuscript to multiple journals simultaneously or from resubmitting previously published work to the American Journal of Student Research.
Manuscript Preparation
File format: Manuscript files can be in the following formats: DOC or DOCX. Microsoft Word documents should not be locked or protected.
Headings: The manuscript should be formatted using three levels of headings: Level 1 – bold and all capital letters, Level 2 – bold with standard capitalization, and Level 3 – normal text with underlining.
Length: The typical manuscript length is 3,000–5,500 words (excluding references and supplementary materials), with no more than eight figures or tables.
Fonts: Use a standard Times New Roman font size with size 14 for title and 11 for text.
Tables and Figures: Tables and Figures as well as their detailed legends should be incorporated in the manuscript word file. The figure images shall be in high-quality PNG or JPEG format.
References: the Journal of Young Researchers uses uses numbered “Vancouver” style.
For Journal-based references:
1. Zhang X, et al. Development of anticancer agents targeting Hedgehog signaling. Cell Mol Life
Sci. 2017;74(15):2773–2782.
For Book-based references: ISBN is required (if no ISBNs, they should be treated as Website-based references)
2. Sheng, CC, Hao, J. and Hong, CC. “Chemically Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (CiPSCs): A
Potential Chemical Biological Breakthrough in Reprogramming?” John Wiley & Sons Inc.,
2014. ISBN: 978-1-118-34959-5, 154-167.
For Website-based references: accessed dates are required.
3. A Phase 1 Study of IPI-926 in Patients with Advanced and/or Metastatic Solid Tumor Malignancies. Available from: https://classic.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00761696 (accessed on 2024-3-22)
We highly encourage all students to follow the guideline to draft their manuscripts. The following manuscript templates must be used for your submission:
Download and use the AJSR Original Research Article Template
to help structure your paper for “original research article” submissions.
Download and use the AJSR Narrative Review Article Template
to help structure your paper for “Narrative review article” submissions.
Download and use the AJSR Systematic Review or Meta-Analysis Article Template
to help structure your paper for “Systematic Review article” or”Meta-analysis articel” submissions.
Download and use the AJSR Opinion/Perspective Article Template
to help structure your paper for “Opinion/Perspective article” submissions.
How to submit?
Once your manuscript is ready to submit (manuscripts correctly placed in correct template and with proper citations), please submit it as a single “word” file (.doc) online via the journal’s submission portal. Any tables and images (including figures, formulas) used in the manuscript should be included in the single manuscript file.
Authors are encouraged to recommend two qualified reviewers who specialize in the same discipline as the submitted research. However, if no suitable reviewers come to mind, it is acceptable to submit your manuscript without suggested reviewers. Recommended reviewers must meet the following criteria:
- Be fluent in English.
- Have not collaborated with the author’s work.
- Not affiliated with the author’s institution.
- Should have PhD in the research area or more than five years of experience in the field.
Important: A confirmation email will be sent to you upon successful submission. Please note that the email may be directed to your spam or junk folder, so be sure to check there if you do not see it in your inbox.
Manuscript Processing and Publication Workflow
- Initial Check:
- Upon submission, each manuscript undergoes an initial editorial screening to verify compliance with the journal’s formatting, style, plagiarism, and citation requirements. Submissions that fail to meet these standards may be returned for correction or declined. Strict adherence to the article template is required at this stage.
- Following the initial check, the Editor evaluates the manuscript for scope, relevance, and overall scientific quality. If the submission is deemed suitable, it proceeds to the next stage of review.
2. Decision and Revision
Based on the evaluation, a manuscript may be rejected or returned to the authors for revision to address required comments or improvements. Revised manuscripts must be returned to the journal within the specified timeframe before a final publication decision is made.
3. Acceptance, Payment and Publication:
- Once a manuscript is accepted for publication, authors will be notified and asked to complete the article processing charge (APC). Payment instructions and a secure payment link will be sent by email. The APC supports essential publication-related expenses, including DOI registration, editorial management, staff support, website maintenance, and other operational costs necessary to sustain the journal.
- After payment is received, the manuscript will be transferred to the production stage for formatting and typesetting. Authors will receive a galley proof for final review and correction, along with the License to Publish Agreement for signature prior to publication.
- Once the authors approve the final version and sign the License to Publish Agreement, the article will be scheduled for publication, typically within 3–5 business days.
4. Timeline: The review process typically takes 3–6 weeks for most submitted manuscripts. If your manuscript is accepted with revisions, the timeline for publication will depend on the number of revisions required and how quickly the revised version is submitted. Most manuscripts are published within one week after FINAL acceptance. In the case of rejection, a decision is usually communicated within 3–4 weeks.
Ethics in publishing:
By submitting a manuscript to the American Journal of Student Research (AJSR), the corresponding author affirms that the work is original, has not been previously published, and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. Submission further confirms that all co-authors (if applicable) and the appropriate institutional authorities have approved the manuscript. All data presented must be accurate, complete, and collected in accordance with relevant ethical standards and institutional guidelines. For research involving human or animal subjects, all necessary approvals and informed consents must have been obtained prior to submission. The manuscript must not contain any unlawful, defamatory, libelous, or confidential material, and must not infringe upon any intellectual property rights or the rights of third parties. Any third-party material (such as figures, tables, images, or datasets) must be properly credited and used with written permission authorizing both print and digital reproduction. Documentation of such permissions must be provided upon request. AJSR assumes no legal responsibility for any claims arising from compensation disputes or the unauthorized use of third-party content.
Preprint Policy
Authors may post their manuscripts to preprint servers before or at the time of submission to our journal, provided the following conditions are met:
- Authors may post on non-commercial, discipline-specific, or institutional preprint platforms such as arXiv, bioRxiv, medRxiv, PsyArXiv, SocArXiv, OSF Preprints, Preprints.org, EarthArXiv, or similar.
- Authors must disclose any preprint at the time of submission by including the title, DOI or URL, the name of the preprint server, and a brief statement in the cover page of their manuscript acknowledging the preprint and confirming that all authors approved its posting. The preprint must not be under formal peer review elsewhere unless it has been officially withdrawn.
- Preprints must be posted under a non-exclusive and openly accessible license, such as a Creative Commons license (e.g., CC BY), which permits free reuse with appropriate attribution. Authors retain full copyright over the preprint and the right to publish a peer-reviewed version in a journal. The peer-reviewed version will receive a separate DOI and be published under the journal’s copyright and licensing terms.
- Manuscripts that have already undergone peer review and been published elsewhere, including as preprints, will be considered as duplicate submissions and may constitute research misconduct.
- Preprints that include confidential patient data, data without appropriate IRB approval, or proprietary content that violates legal or institutional agreements are not acceptable.
Copyright Requirements for Reusing Figures, Tables, and Images from Published Articles and Online Sources
Generally, written permission from the copyright holder (e.g., the original journal publisher or image creator) is required at the time of manuscript submission, unless the image meets one of the following exceptions:
- It is clearly labeled with a permissive license, such as Creative Commons BY, CC0, or a similar license that allows free reuse with appropriate attribution;
- It originates from an article published under an open-access license (e.g., CC BY, CC BY-NC), which typically permits reuse with proper attribution;
- It was created by a U.S. federal government agency (e.g., CDC, NIH, NASA), in which case it is generally considered to be in the public domain.
Author(s) must provide documentation of such permissions upon request by AJSR. AJSR assumes no liability for unauthorized use of third-party content.
Questions
If you have any questions or encounter any difficulties with manuscript submission, please feel free to contact us at [email protected].
Style and Format
File format
Manuscript files can be in the following formats: DOC or DOCX. Microsoft Word documents should not be locked or protected.
Length
Though We don’t limit manuscript length, number of figures and amount of supporting information, we do encourage you to present and discuss your findings concisely.
Margin:
0.75 inch all around Add line numbers
Headings
Times New Roman, bold 12, align left
Content
Times New Roman, regular 11
Line spacing
double
Table
Tables should be placed after the reference section and the title of each table should be directly above the table. Use Arabic numbers such as Table 1, Table 2, etc.
Figure
High-quality figures should be placed at the end of manuscript and right after Tables. The title and legend of each figure should be directly above the figure. Use Arabic numbers such as Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.
Articles in a Journal
Examples: 1. Richard, P., Charron, P., Carrier, L., Ledeuil, C., Cheav, T., Pichereau, C., ... & Gueffet, J. P. (2003). Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Circulation, 107(17), 2227-2232. 2. Kelly, M., & Semsarian, C. (2009). Multiple mutations in genetic cardiovascular disease. Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics, 2(2), 182-190.
Article in a Magazine/Newspaper
Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work, pages Examples: 3. Peterzell, J. (1990).Better late than never. Time, 135(17), 20–21. 4. Schultz, S. (2005, December). Calls made to strengthen state energy policies. The Country Today, 1A, 2A.
Books
Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work. Publisher Name. Examples: Stoneman, R. (2008). Alexander the Great: A life in legend. Yale University Press.
Report by a Government or Organization
Organization Name. (Year). Title of report. URL (access date) Examples: United States Government Accountability Office. (2019). Performance and accountability report: Fiscal year 2019. Click on the below button(accessed on July 12, 2021)
Web Page
Name or organization (Year, Month Date). Title of page. Site name. URL (access date) Examples: 5. Price, D. (2018, March 23). Laziness does not exist. Medium. Click here button below (accessed on january 12, 2021)
Alliance on Mental Illness. (n.d.). Mental health conditions. Click here button (accessed on January 23, 2021)
Manuscript Organization
Original research manuscripts shall be organized as follows: