JDS Submission Checklist

Q&A from webinar

Due to the volume of questions in the chat box and Q&A function, we were not able to respond to all questions during the webinar. However, we have gathered those unanswered questions and responses here for attendees to review. Thank you for participating, and we look forward to seeing you on the next webinar on February 11.

• Question: What training is offered to the reviewers?
  Answer: The Journal of Dairy Science does not offer any formal training; however, our publisher Elsevier freely offers the Certified Peer Reviewer Course. More information on this course can be found here: https://researcheracademy.elsevier.com/navigating-peer-review/certified-peer-reviewer-course
• Question: How we can share our paper without violating copyright?
  Answer: The corresponding author receives a “ShareLink” email from Elsevier when their article is published in an issue of the journal. A link contained in that email allows free access to the article for a few weeks after publication. The link can be posted to social media and shared with others to ensure broad distribution of your published article.
  
  JDS also has a summary document about sharing articles here: https://els-jbs-prod-cdn.jbs.elsevierhealth.com/pb/assets/raw/Health%20Advance/journals/jods/I%20want%20to%20share%20my%20JDS%20article.pdf
• Question: Do reviewers follow a checklist for reviewing?
  Answer: Reviewers rate manuscript quality (excellent to poor) for originality, clarity of presentation, completeness of data, soundness of interpretation, and importance to the field. They also provide confidential comments to the overseeing editor as well as comments to the author to help improve the manuscript and strengthen the message.
• Question: In general, don’t you believe that the rejection of insignificant manuscripts (a study with no significant difference between means) may make a bias in the science and the output of the meta-analysis paper? I think this is a big concern in all high-impact journals
  Answer: Good point. A number of authors have written about the potential for publication bias, and it is believed that a major reason for this is a stronger tendency to submit and publish statistical differences. This may have an array of implications, and I agree that one is that it may affect observations and conclusions of a meta-analysis.
• Question: Is it possible to submit an interview study about heifer dairy farming?
  Answer: JDS does review on a broad range of topics. A qualitative study can be published in the journal if there is good experimental design and replication such that the results are not of limited geographical interest. Perhaps unrelated to the question, but also it should be noted that JDS does not publish case studies.
• Question: Do you consider when the trail was done and when the paper was written for publication? Is it an aspect to consider for rejection? Is it necessary to include the year the trail was done?
  Answer: Authors must be transparent with their data, including when the experiment was done and data were collected. The journal does not have a specific policy on age of data, but that could be a concern raised by reviewers in some instances.
• Question: Why is the review not double-blinded? Why do split decisions vary so much?
  Answer: The long history of the journal has been to use single-blinded peer review. If an author has a concern about conflicts of interest with certain reviewers, at the time of submission they can request to exclude those reviewers from evaluating their paper. This is not a guarantee, but the editors do their best to avoid conflicts of interest.
  
  Split decisions are quite common in peer review, as reviewers may differ in what they perceive to be acceptable for publication.
• Question: Can I publish studies on/in human milk here?
  Answer: Although JDS might occasionally have a paper on this topic, many of these papers are more suited to a human physiology or nutrition journal.
• Question: “No more than 3 ref per concept”—what about when you have to cite previous (recent) literature that supports one’s findings? If I do not cite the most recent one related to it (that might be over 3), do you or the reviewers consider or think, “Why has this author chosen these articles over some other articles?” for example?
  Answer: The suggestion of citing no more than three references is a general one, and there are often exceptions to this. The author is often the one who is in the best position to identify and cite the most appropriate reference; I would only suggest they need not be excessively duplicative.
• Question: What are the primary reasons for manuscript rejection?
  Answer: This is a really good question; unfortunately, we have no data to answer it comprehensively. Speaking from experience with rejections, some reasons that come to mind include the topic being out of scope for the journal, use of incorrect methods, flawed design of an experiment (or underpowered statistically), or an incorrect or flawed analysis. Papers may also be rejected for technical reasons.
• Question: Is there is a reduced page charges or Open Access fee for scientists in developing countries?
  Answer: The journal offers reduced rates for ADSA professional members for Open Access and for page charges. We consider this to be a primary benefit to our members.
• Question: Can I repeat the trail in another country? For example, can I repeat a cross-sectional study trail and do a similar study in another country?
  Answer: To drive interest and scientific impact, it may be worth considering designing a study that has some unique feature or new idea included. Companion studies may be better published in the same manuscript. Please feel free to reach out to the senior editor of the section you would like to submit your manuscript to and discuss the topic’s fit for the journal.
• Question: Can JDS/ADSA provide a blank manuscript or sample manuscript as a template to meet the requirements like line spacing, font size? Thank you.
  Answer: The journal uses a modified Harvard reference style and double-spaced text with continuous line numbers. The article should follow our style and form (see https://www.journalofdairyscience.org/content/inst-auth). If you have specific questions about manuscript prep, send an email to journals@assochq.org. One of our technical editors would be happy to visit with you.