The journal editorial process strictly follows a systematic editorial process embedding a quality control mechanism. The journal will not accept or publish manuscripts without a prior peer review process. All manuscripts will be peer reviewed by two or more external reviewers from the same field as the author/s, and then an unbiased editorial decision by an Associate editor from the journal will be taken.

All Advisory/Academic editors and reviewers work independently from the editorial office when making their decisions on the submitted manuscripts. The editorial office respects and relies on their expertise for maintaining the high-quality publications in the Journal of Contemporary Dental Science.

 

Editorial Policy:

The manuscript is accepted for publication on the understanding that:

• The work is not previously published or under consideration for publication elsewhere
• It is read and approved by all involved authors
• The Editors reserve the right to make any necessary editorial and literary corrections
• Any opinions expressed or policies advocated do not necessarily reflect the opinions and policies of the journal’s Editors.

Each manuscript submitted to the journal undergoes the following editorial workflow during the course of the peer-review process:

 

Pre-Check

Once a manuscript is submitted for publication, the manuscript is subjected to the initial reviewing and will be checked by the journal’s editorial office (the Editor-in-Chief and the Executive editor) to ensure the following:

• Manuscript meets the selection standers of the journal and is of interest to the journal’s readership
• Compliance with the journal guidelines and prerequisites
• The study fits the scope of the journal
• Files are complete and that the relevant metadata are in order
• Plagiarism

If the manuscript is not deemed suitable at this stage it can be rejected at this stage. If the manuscript is approved, it is then sent to the Asscoiate Editor (Subject expertise).

The Associate Editor performs a final manuscript assessment before inviting a number of potential reviewers to provide a peer-review report. The Associate Editor can reject a manuscript (if not deemed suitable) or ask for Authors' modification/s prior to sending the manuscript for peer review.

 

Peer Review

Two to three external peer reviewers, who are experts on the subject matter of the study, will be invited to provide a peer-review report of the manuscript.

All the identifying information about the author/s will be removed from the submission by the managing editorial board.

 

Editorial Decision

The final editorial decision is made by discussion between the Associate Editor and the Executive Editor and has to be approved by the Editor-in-Chief.

On basis of the submitted reports one of the following recommendations is reached:

• Reject (Manuscript is flawed or not sufficiently novel)
• Consider after Major Changes
• Consider after Minor Changes
• Publish Unaltered

If the recommendation is “Reject,” the author/s are sent any review reports that have been received and are notified that their manuscript will no longer be considered for publication in the journal.

If the recommendation is “Consider after Major Changes,” the author/s are notified to prepare and submit an updated version of their manuscript with the necessary changes suggested by the reviewers. This might require new data to be collected or substantial revision of the text. The manuscript is then reassessed by one or more of the original reviewers before a new recommendation is made.

If the recommendation is “Consider after Minor Changes,” the author/s are notified to prepare and submit a final copy of their manuscript with the required minor changes suggested by the reviewers. Once the Editor is satisfied with the final manuscript, optionally having sought further advice from one or more of the original reviewers, it could be then recommended to “Publish Unaltered”.

If the recommendation is “Publish Unaltered,” the manuscript will undergo a final check by the journal’s editorial office in order to ensure that the manuscript and its review process adhere to the journal’s guidelines and policies. Once done, the authors will be notified of the manuscript’s acceptance.

In case manuscript changes is requested the authors will be informed with the due time of the re-submission and a reminder will be sent to the corresponding author one week before the end of the due time.

 

Production, proofreading, and publication

After the manuscript is finally accepted for publication, the manuscript will go through the production process that includes:

• Copy and layout editing
• Language editing
• Conversion to other formats, e.g., XML
• Proofreading
• Indexing

Language editing is carried out by professional native English-speaking editors or a company providing such service.

An additional fee might be charged if the manuscript needs extensive language editing service, or the authors will be asked to seek for academic language editing service and provide proof of payment.

Before conversion to XML, authors have a last chance to proofread the final version, as after this stage only minor changes are allowed.

 

Author Appeal

If the authors need to object to a decision of rejection after revision they will have an opportunity to submit an appeal with detailed and solid point-to-point arguments.

Another editor will be requested to review the manuscript and author's representation before sending their decision to the executive editor and the Editor- in-chief for final decision.

 

After Publication 

As we currently publish under the open access model, the full article will be opened to everyone where views and downloads are also allowed.

The feedbacks in terms of comments or letters to editor are welcomed

If there is any suspicion that a paper may contain misconduct in its research or publication, the editorial board will immediately investigate. If it is proven, the appropriate action will be taken by the whole editorial board and approved by editor-in-chief.

 

Correction 

The decision of correction after publication is taken, when the errors do not fully invalidate the study where the correction will be separately published.

The correction could be denied if they are minor and do not substantially influence the understanding of the study.

Before the final publication of the paper is made, the author/s will be encouraged to carefully proofread the final version to avoid the necessity for such correction after their paper is published.

No author/s names are to be modified after publication.

The authors might be charged for such revisions.

If there are errors that significantly affect the conclusions or there is evidence of misconduct, this may require retraction or an expression of concern following the COPE Retraction Guidelines

 

Retraction

Upon the authors request, retraction of the paper after it is accepted and before publication could be made after the approval of the editorial board (in case if any charges no refunds will be made to author/s).

Retraction of the paper after its publication will be made if the scientific integrity of the study is substantially undermined or any misconduct is proven.

Before retractions are made, the editorial board will investigate the paper in question on a case by case basis, and the board will contact the authors, reviewers, the academic editor, and even the authors' institutions where deemed necessary.