Complete Guide to Applying for DOAJ Inclusion

Inclusion in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) represents a critical milestone for any academic journal looking to enhance its reputation and reach within the global research community. As a recognized directory of high-quality, peer-reviewed open access journals, DOAJ provides visibility, credibility, and increased discoverability to journals that meet its stringent standards. For publishers, editors, and researchers, applying for DOAJ inclusion is an opportunity to join a network of journals that uphold transparency, accessibility, and best practices in scholarly publishing.

This guide will walk you through the essential steps, criteria, and requirements for successfully applying for DOAJ inclusion, ensuring your journal meets all necessary standards before beginning the application process.

Preparing for the Application Process

Before you start the application process, it’s crucial to ensure that you have logged in or registered on the DOAJ platform. Registering allows you to save your progress, make any necessary edits to your application, and review your responses before final submission. For convenience, DOAJ also provides a downloadable PDF that contains all the application questions, enabling you to gather all required information and prepare your application in advance.

Basic Inclusion Criteria

Eligible Journal Types

DOAJ accepts open-access journals from a broad range of disciplines and languages. However, these journals must adhere to specific criteria to be eligible for inclusion. DOAJ aligns with the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, which ensure that all listed journals maintain high standards of quality, openness, and integrity. Meeting these principles is vital for inclusion.

Key Eligibility Requirements:

Active Publishing: Journals must actively publish scholarly research. This means that at least five peer-reviewed research articles must be published annually. This criterion ensures that the journal is consistently contributing to the academic conversation within its field and serving a significant research community.
Newly Launched Journals: Journals that are newly launched or have recently transitioned to an open-access model must demonstrate a publishing history of at least one year or have published a minimum of ten open-access research articles. This allows DOAJ to assess the journal’s stability and commitment to ongoing publication.

Open Access Definition

To qualify for inclusion, journals must adhere strictly to DOAJ’s definition of open access. Open access journals are defined as those where the copyright holder allows immediate free access to the content under an open license, typically a Creative Commons license. This means users should be able to read, download, copy, distribute, print, and use the content for any lawful purpose without restrictions.

Key Requirements for Open Access:

A clear and prominently displayed open access statement must be visible on the journal’s website.
All content must be freely accessible without any embargo periods, ensuring immediate availability of the research.
Users should not be required to register or log in to access the journal’s content.
While journals can charge for print versions, all online content must be accessible without any fees.

Journal Website Requirements

A well-organized and informative journal website is critical for DOAJ inclusion. The website must have its own dedicated URL and be accessible globally. It should provide all essential information about the journal’s operations, policies, editorial processes, and open access status. Transparency and clarity are key, as these elements ensure that users can easily navigate the site and access the necessary information.

Essential Website Requirements:

Full-Text Article Access: All articles must be accessible as unique full-text documents, either in HTML or PDF format. This ensures ease of access for readers and guarantees that the journal complies with DOAJ’s open access policy.
Advertising and Metrics: The journal should not include intrusive advertising, as this detracts from the user experience. Additionally, while journals can display recognized metrics like the Journal Impact Factor from Clarivate or metrics from Scopus, they should avoid using unverified or unofficial ranking metrics.
Consistency Across Languages: If the journal is available in multiple languages, the information provided in each version must be consistent. The journal’s aims, scope, policies, and editorial processes must be accurately represented in all language versions.

Key Information to Include on the Homepage:

Open Access Policy: A clear and accessible statement outlining the journal’s open access policy.
Aims and Scope: Detailed information about the journal’s subject matter and the types of research it publishes.
Editorial Board: A full list of editorial board members, including their institutional affiliations.
Author Instructions: Clear guidelines for authors on how to submit articles and adhere to the journal’s publication standards.
Peer Review Process: Information on how articles are peer-reviewed, including the type of peer review (e.g., single-blind, double-blind).
Licensing and Copyright Terms: Licensing terms must be clearly stated, and copyright terms must align with the journal’s open access policy.
Author Charges: If there are any charges, such as article processing charges (APCs), these must be clearly stated. If no charges apply, this should also be indicated. Information about any waiver options should be provided.

ISSN Requirements

Each journal applying for DOAJ inclusion must have an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) registered with issn.org. At least one ISSN must be displayed on the journal’s website. The name of the journal on the website must exactly match the name registered with the ISSN authority to avoid any discrepancies during the evaluation process.

Quality Control Process

DOAJ places a strong emphasis on the quality control processes that journals have in place. A transparent and rigorous editorial and peer review system is essential for ensuring the integrity and reliability of the content published. DOAJ requires journals to detail these processes on their website and meet the following criteria:

Editorial Board: The editorial board must consist of qualified editors, with a minimum of five members from different institutions. This diversity ensures that the journal benefits from a broad range of academic perspectives and expertise.
Peer Review: All articles must undergo a rigorous peer review process, ideally reviewed by at least two independent reviewers. The journal’s website should clearly describe the peer review process, ensuring transparency for authors and readers alike.
Plagiarism Detection: Although not mandatory, DOAJ recommends that journals use plagiarism detection tools to maintain the integrity of their content. This helps ensure that published research is original and free from plagiarism.

Additionally, to avoid conflicts of interest and maintain editorial independence, DOAJ discourages endogeny—the practice of publishing articles authored by editors, reviewers, or board members. No more than 25% of the articles in the journal’s last two issues should be authored by individuals who serve on the editorial team.

Special Issues Criteria

Journals that publish special issues or guest-edited content must meet additional criteria to ensure that all content is subject to the same editorial and peer review standards as regular issues.

Editorial Responsibility: The Editor-in-Chief must maintain full responsibility for all content published in the journal, including special issues.
Guest Editors: The credentials of guest editors must be verified, and guest editors should not account for more than 25% of the contributions within a special issue. Submissions by guest editors must also undergo an independent review process.

Licensing and Copyright Requirements

Licensing terms for all published content must be clearly stated on the journal’s website. DOAJ prefers the use of Creative Commons licenses, though other open access licenses are acceptable as long as they clearly outline the rights and permissions granted to users. Licensing information should be visible on the website, and where possible, embedded within full-text articles.

It is also essential that the journal’s copyright terms align with its open access policy. Phrases like “All rights reserved” are not compatible with open access and should be avoided. Instead, the journal should specify how its content can be used in accordance with the open license.

Conclusion

Applying for DOAJ inclusion is a valuable opportunity for academic journals to enhance their global visibility, credibility, and accessibility. Journals that meet DOAJ’s strict inclusion criteria demonstrate their commitment to transparency, quality, and openness in scholarly publishing. Before embarking on the application process, ensure that your journal meets all the requirements outlined in this guide, and use the downloadable application form to help you prepare.

By successfully navigating the DOAJ application process, your journal can join a prestigious directory that showcases high-quality, open-access publications, expanding its reach and impact in the global academic community.