Previously, The “Scientific Publications” Company considered in detail the specifics of working with publications which are indexed in the Scopus database. Today we will talk about another large-scale database, Web of Science. Publication in journals included in this database is also considered to be a serious scientific achievement for researchers. Some experts note that publishing an article in Web of Science is more difficult than in Scopus. But is it true? Let’s consider the features of the Web of Science database and the possible difficulties that arise in the publication process.
To publish an article in Web of Science: where to start?
The first thing we always advise our clients is to determine for what scientific purposes the publication is needed. The answer to such a seemingly simple and clear question to a large extent determines the next steps in the material preparation.
An article in Web of Science is required for:
- Students and postgraduate students for approval of works and dissertations, and in the future for obtaining titles and degrees.
- Scientists to receive funding, grants, as well as drawing up a report on their mastering.
- The teaching staff of a scientific organization and universities to improve the rating of an institution.
- Researchers to increase their image, influence, to get more opportunities for international cooperation and career progression.
Each scientific purpose implies certain requirements for journal indicators for publication. Also, special attention should be paid to the features of the material preparation.
Publication in Web of Science: how to prepare the material?
Web of Science (WoS) journals make very serious demands on the materials that they publish. A scientific article goes through several stages of review at the publication level. Reviewers and editors are responsible for their duties, therefore, with the slightest inconsistency, the author risks that his work will be rejected. First of all, experts take care about their image and the reputation of the journal. Therefore, before sending the material to the publication, you should pay attention to the following points:
- Exact correspondence of a scientific article to the field of study, subject area, discipline, and sometimes even a narrow list of topics in which the journal specializes.
- The international work significance: if the article won’t be interesting to the global scientific community, it will be less cited, which will be deleterious to the performance of the journal and the researcher. None of the parties is interested in such a publication.
- A high level of relevance and novelty is one of the main characteristics that people pay attention to even before reviewing.
- Compliance with the journal requirements in terms of design (structure, bibliography, citation, metadata).
- High-quality professional translation.
- Correctness of documentation filling
WoS journal: how to choose?
The Web of Science database has a very complex internal structure. It indexes such a significant number of publications that sometimes other databases are distinguished inside of it, for example, the Chinese Science Citation Database or the SciELO Citation Index. In fact, this is about collections and citation indexes.
The most significant collection is the Web of Science Core Collection, which includes 7 citation indices. The most significant are
- Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) – an extended index
- Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) – for the social sciences
- Art and Humanities Citation Index (AHCI) –for the humanities and arts
Also, for the implementation of certain scientific purposes, publications of the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI) are distinguished, for new sources, which are also characterized by the material high quality, but do not yet have high authority in the database, since they were included in it not long ago.
Besides, sometimes at the regulatory level, in the requirements for publishing in Web of Science, the impact factor and quartile indicators are spelled out. These metrics are interconnected, they are calculated only for Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) and Social Science Citation Index (SSCI)
The impact factor (IF) and quartile(Q) indicate the publication influence.
Is it really more difficult to publish an article in Web of Science than in Scopus?
There is no simple answer to this question. Each database has its own characteristics that should be considered in the work. Also, the subject area and the journal to which the publication is submitted play an integral role, because the requirements for research material are formed precisely at the publication level. There are many other nuances. For example, where would it be easier to publish, in Scopus with a 99 percentile or in Web of Science with Q4? And how to determine this if the publication is indexed in both databases? Therefore, each publication project should be considered individually, focusing on scientific purposes and the material quality.
Publication in Web of Science. What are the possible difficulties for the scientist?
As we could see earlier, in order to publish an article in Web of Science, it should be understood the specifics of working with this database and the journals that are indexed there. Researchers may face a number of difficulties:
- Commitment to English, which makes the material preparation process more difficult.
- Strict editorial policy.
- More complex interface and navigation system within the database that makes the platform more difficult to understand.
- The need to strictly comply with citation requirements and use predominantly English resources.
- Commitment to more retrospective analysis, which comes from the specifics of the database.
If you are facing with these or other difficulties in the process of preparing a scientific article for publication in journals that are indexed in WoS, use the service of the “Scientific Publications” Company “Publishing in Web of Science”. Our specialists will provide you with full support at all stages of the publication process, conduct a free article audit, determine the level of necessary improvements, take care of structuring and high-quality translation of the material, pay attention to the choice of a journal for publication and communication with the editors of publications.
You are guaranteed to get your scientific article indexed in quality journals from the Web of Science database!
