How much does it cost to register and submit to this journal?

The Undergraduate Journal of Service Learning and Community-Based Research is free for both making an account and submitting manuscripts.

What is the benefit of publishing in the Undergraduate Journal of Service Learning and Community-Based Research?

There are many benefits to publishing with our journal. First, our journal is open access. This means that anyone, anywhere can read your work without having to pay for it. This gives you the opportunity to have your work read by more people. Additionally, our journal specifically works only with undergraduate students, something that many other journals do not do. Due to this focus on undergraduate publications, we strive to provide quality feedback on manuscripts submitted for publication to help you make your work the best it can be. Our journal is also flexible with our categories, allowing authors to submit reflections, research, community-partnership projects, among others. 

How many volumes are published in a year?

Currently, we publish 2 volumes a year. One volume is published in the April-May timeframe and the other is published around November-December. The date of publication varies depending on the number of submissions we receive for that volume. However, we make a conscious effort to keep our authors informed through the publication process and up to date on when a volume will be published. 

How do I make an account with the Undergraduate Journal of Service Learning and Community-Based Research?

Making an account with us is very easy. Simply go to our homepage and in the top right corner you should see the option to make an account. You will need to provide your name, a valid email address and create a secure password. 

What is a peer-review? 

A peer-review is when someone who has never read your manuscript before reads over it to provide feedback and determine if the submission is in line with our journal and its publication standards. This person is assigned to you after your work has been reviewed by the editors and determined to be a potential publication. Reviewers are professionals in the field that have expertise on topics concerning service learning and community-based research. We do our best to assign you a peer reviewer that aligns with your subject area but we cannot always promise your reviewer will be in the same subject area as you. 

Once the reviewer has read your work they will make a decision on if the submission is a good fit for the journal in terms of topic and quality. They will pick one of three recommendations: the paper be accepted with no revisions, which is fairly rare, revise and resubmit in which you will have to make some changes to improve your work in order to get a potential acceptance or to reject the submission. 

How long will it take for me to hear back about my submission?

This will depend on the number of submissions we have at the time of your submission. Generally, we can read and assign a peer reviewer to a submission within about two weeks of it being submitted but sometimes it may take longer. Often, we give reviewers about a month to read the manuscript, provide their decision and if appropriate give feedback to the author. At that point you will be notifed of the decision regarding your manuscript. 

What do I need to submit in order to potentially be published in this journal?

Submitting with us is very easy and we only require 3 major things. First, you will need to have a faculty advisor email us at ujslcbr@uncw.edu to verify that the work you are submitting is original and completely your own. You will then need to submit two items to our website under the account you created. One will be the manuscript. Before submitting please make sure you read the author guidelines on our website to make sure you are submitting the file in the proper format. Along with the manuscript, please submit a letter to the editor detailing generally what your paper is about and why it is a good fit for our journal. 

What is a letter to the editor?

A letter to the editor is a letter that authors often write to the editors of journals. This letter should go over what you are submitting, what the manuscript is about, why you believe it is suited for the journal and any other important information the editors might need to know about your submission. Please be sure that your letter to the editor includes your name, the title of your submission and an email address we can reach you at. 

Do I only need to write a letter to the editor once?

That will depend on the decision made for your submission. For those that are accepted with no revisions, no other letter to the editor is required. However, those that are asked to make revisions must write another letter to the editor sharing what changes you made to the manuscript or why you opted to not make specific changes that your reviewer recommended to you. 

Who should I contact if I have technical issues or other questions?

Please send us an email at ujslcbr@uncw.edu. We are happy to help!