RTI Press uses Scholastica,* a web-based system used by many peer-reviewed journals, to handle and administer all steps of the submission and peer-review process. RTI editors and designers lead the effort to prepare accepted manuscripts for production.
Criteria for RTI Press Publications
The basic criteria for final acceptance of publications are as follows:
- Scholarly value, with respect to the fields and audiences for which the publication is intended.
- Acceptable presentation, with respect to the quality of writing, adequacy of tables and figures, and similar requirements
- Appropriate authorship and/or acknowledgments
Authors, Associate Editors, and reviewers are asked to address the following questions:
- Does the paper make an important, useful contribution to the literature in this field?
- Is the paper understandable and useful either to a broader audience or to specialists? If not, how should it be revised?
- Is the paper technically sound? Are the conclusions sound and justified?
- Is the presentation of the information timely and accurate?
- Is there a review of the literature? If yes, is it complete? If no, should there be one?
- Are the structure and exposition adequate?
- Are the tables and figures useful for the readers?
- Are the references complete and up to date
Assessment and Approval by the RTI Press
RTI Press permits a maximum of two rounds of revision and resubmission. If revisions are needed—based on peer reviewers' recommendations and the Associate Editor's assessment—the Associate Editor explains in writing the revisions needed and specifies a deadline for revisions. The messages to the author are sent through Scholastica.
Authors asked to revise manuscripts should upload revised files following the process they used to submit the original submission. On review of a first or second revision, the Associate Editor makes a decision and informs the author and the assigned Executive Editor.
Accepted manuscripts move directly to the Managing Editor for production. For rejected manuscripts, the Associate Editor provides the corresponding author with a written explanation. The authors can resubmit a manuscript, but it will be treated as a completely new submission.
Publishing an RTI Press Manuscript
After a manuscript is accepted, the Managing Editor assumes responsibility for its publication. An RTI Press copy editor will review the manuscript for clarity, consistency, and adherence to RTI Press style, contacting the author if anything is unclear. At this point, no substantive revisions are allowed without approval of a member of the Editorial Board or the Managing Editor. The editor will submit any edits to the author for review.
After the necessary revisions, formatting, and design are completed, the author will be asked to review and approve the pre-publication PDF. Errors will be corrected. Any substantive revisions will need the approval of a member of the Executive Committee.
With the Executive Editor's approval, the manuscript will be published on the RTI Press website and a DOI assigned.
* Please note that you must use a Chrome, Firefox, or Safari browser for Scholastica, as the system does not support Internet Explorer.
Basic Editorial and Peer-Review Process
