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Cover letters

A good cover letter can help to “sell” your manuscript to the journal editor. As well as introducing your work to the editor you can also take this opportunity to explain why the manuscript will be of interest to a journal's readers, something which is always as the forefront editors’ mind. As such it is worth spending time writing a coherent and persuasive cover letter.

The following is an example of a poor cover letter:

Dear Editor-in-Chief, I am sending you our manuscript entitled “Large Scale Analysis of Cell Cycle Regulators in bladder cancer” by Researcher et al. We would like to have the manuscript considered for publication in Pathobiology. Please let me know of your decision at your earliest convenience. With my best regards, Sincerely yours, A Researcher, PhD

Instead, check to see whether the journal’s Instructions for Authors have any cover letter requirements (e.g. disclosures, statements, potential reviewers). Then, write a letter that explains why the editor would want to publish your manuscript. The following structure covers all the necessary points that need to be included.

  • If known, address the editor who will be assessing your manuscript by their name. Include the date of submission and the journal you are submitting to.
  • First paragraph: include the title of your manuscript and the type of manuscript it is (e.g. review, research, case study). Then briefly explain the background to your study, the question you sought out to answer and why.
  • Second paragraph: you should concisely explain what was done, the main findings and why they are significant.
  • Third paragraph: here you should indicate why the readers of the journal would be interested in the work. Take your cues from the journal’s aims and scope. For example if the journal requires that all work published has broad implications explain how your study fulfils this. It is also a good idea to include a sentence on the importance of the results to the field.
  • To conclude state the corresponding author and any journal specific requirements that need to be complied with (e.g. ethical standards).

TIP: All cover letters should contain these sentences:

  • We confirm that this manuscript has not been published elsewhere and is not under consideration by another journal.
  • All authors have approved the manuscript and agree with its submission to [insert the name of the target journal].

Submission checklist

Before submitting your manuscript, thoroughly check its quality one more time. Evaluate it critically—could anything be done better?

Be sure that:

  • The manuscript follows the Instructions for Authors
  • All files are in the correct file format and of the appropriate resolution or size
  • The spelling and grammar are correct
  • You have contact information for all authors
  • You have written a persuasive cover letter

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Writing a Cover Letter for Journal Submission [Free Template]

  • Research Process
  • Peer Review

Journal cover letters are your chance to lobby on behalf of your manuscript. This AJE Journal Cover Letter Guide offers some useful tips for getting them right. It also includes a free journal cover letter template.

Updated on September 20, 2018

two researchers writing a cover letter for journal submissions

The cover letter accompanying your journal submission is your chance to lobby on behalf of your manuscript. The letter is far from just a formality and should be written with the same care as your manuscript's text (if not more). Ultimately, your cover letter is designed to influence the decision of the editor to send your manuscript out for peer review. The letter will argue that your manuscript is a good fit for the journal you are submitting it to and highlight your most important findings. Let us help you produce the most effective cover letter possible.

Getting ready to submit your manuscript? Download our comprehensive Free Journal Cover Letter Writing Guide with Template .

A cover letter should be written like a standard business letter :

Address the editor formally by name, if known. Include your contact information, as well. This information is probably available through the journal's online submission system, but it is proper to provide it in the cover letter, too.

Begin your cover letter with a paragraph that states the name of the manuscript and the names of the authors. You can also describe what type of manuscript your submission is (research article, review, case report, etc.). In this first paragraph and the next, describe the rationale behind your study and the major findings from your research. You can refer to prior work that you have published if it is directly related.

Next, write a short paragraph that explains why your manuscript would be a good fit for the journal. Do not simply state that your manuscript is “of interest to the field” or “novel.” Address specific aspects of the journal's Aims & Scope statement. If the journal expresses interest in research with a clinical application, be sure to highlight the importance of your work in terms of clinical implications. If the journal mentions that it focuses on nanostructured materials, explain how your work involved such materials. Even if your work is not a perfect fit for the journal, be sure to address some of the Aims & Scope statement, and explain why your manuscript would be of interest to the journal's readers.

Finally, close with a brief paragraph indicating the following:

  • The manuscript is original (i.e., you wrote it, not copied it)
  • No part of the manuscript has been published before, nor is any part of it under consideration for publication at another journal
  • There are no conflicts of interest to disclose
  • A list of potential reviewers (only if requested by the journal)
  • Any researchers who should NOT review your manuscript

Together, this information provides assurance to the editor that your manuscript merits consideration for publication in their journal and that you are interested specifically in their journal. Sometimes great science will be reviewed regardless of the cover letter, but a well written cover letter is useful for the vast majority of scientists who want to make their research stand out.

Best of luck with your research! If you have any questions about your cover letter, write us anytime.

Ben Mudrak, Senior Product Manager at American Chemical Society/ChemRxiv, PhD, Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University

Ben Mudrak, PhD

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Cover Letter for Journal Submission Templates

Download a Microsoft Word template for a standard journal cover letter (also available with instructions in Chinese , Japanese , Korean , Portuguese , and Spanish ).

Writing Center Home Page

OASIS: Writing Center

Writing for publication: cover letters.

A well-written, properly formatted cover letter is the first impression an editor of a journal has of the submitting author. Make sure that your cover letter is free of typographical errors, misspellings, casual language, and any other idiosyncrasies such as a nonstandard font. A good cover letter will ensure that the content of your article is given serious consideration by the journal's editors. Make sure your cover letter is brief and direct (usually no more than four paragraphs, maximum).

In addition to adhering to any journal-specific guidelines, make sure your cover letter follows the following guidelines.

Establish Credibility

Gump (2002) recommended that authors establish their credibility by using institutional letterhead if possible, as well as using a title or appointment to help establish qualifications (e.g., "Associate Professor," "Visiting Professor"). Gump also advised that those not currently affiliated with an academic institution use the letterhead of their company or organization. Of course, if you are submitting electronically, it may not be possible to make use of a letterhead.

Establishing your authority must also be done in the body of your cover letter. Be sure that your cover letter makes clear to the journal editors whether your research fills a research gap in your field. There is no need to tell the editors that your article is going to change the world; avoid hyperbole and state simply and briefly the contribution that your article contributes to your field.

Gump, S. E. (2004). Writing successful covering letters for unsolicited submissions to academic journals. Journal of Scholarly Publishing, 35 (2), 92–102. https://doi.org/10.1353/scp.2004.0007

Personalize the Letter

There are several ways you can personalize your letter to establish a connection with the editor and the journal. These ideas include making a specific reference to a previously published article in the journal that contains similarities to yours or demonstrating a familiarity with the interests of the journal's readership.

Simultaneous Submissions

Different journals have different rules about what types of submissions they will accept. A simultaneous submission is a submission that you have sent out to more than one journal at the same time. Many journals have stated policies that ask submitters to only submit to one journal at a time. Polices regarding simultaneous submission often vary by field. For example, most journals in the sciences require that papers under review not be submitted elsewhere, while some journals in the humanities have different policies. Be sure to check each journal's submission policies to determine whether they accept simultaneous submissions or not.

If you do submit to a journal with a no simultaneous submission policy, include a line in your cover letter informing the journal that your article is not under consideration elsewhere. Breaching this rule and submitting to multiple journals that explicitly request exclusive consideration is widely considered unethical in the scholarly community.

Other Important Information

Previously published material: Without exception, academic journals will not publish previously published material. Therefore, you will want to make it clear to the editors in one brief sentence that the article you are submitting for consideration has not been published elsewhere.

Funding: If you have received a grant or funding in order to conduct your research, be sure to mention the source of your funding in your cover letter.

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How to Write a Cover Letter for Journal Submission

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

If you’re looking for solid advice on how to write a strong journal submission cover letter that will convince journal editors to review your research paper, then look no further! We know that cover letters  can  impact an editor’s decision to consider your research paper further.

This guide aims to explain (1) why you should care about writing a powerful cover letter, (2) what you should include in it, and (3) how you should structure it. The last segment will include a free downloadable submission cover letter template with detailed how-to explanations and some useful phrases. Finally, be sure to get journal manuscript editing , cover letter editing , and other academic editing services by Wordvice’s professional editors to ensure that you convey an academic style and error-free text, along with including all of the most important content.

Why does a good cover letter matter?

While your research paper’s role is to prove the merits of your research, a strong introductory cover letter is your opportunity to highlight the significance of your research and “sell” its concept to journal editors.

While your research paper’s role is to prove the merits of your research, a strong introductory cover letter is your opportunity to highlight the significance of your research and “sell” its concept to journal editors.

Sadly, we must admit that part of the decision-making process of whether to accept a manuscript is based on a business model. Editors must select articles that will interest their readers. In other words, your paper, if published, must make money . When it’s not quite clear how your research paper might generate interest based on its title and content alone (for example, if your paper is too technical for most editors to appreciate), your cover letter is the one opportunity you will get to convince the editors that your work is worth further review.

In addition to economic factors, many editors use the cover letter to screen whether authors can follow basic instructions . For example, if a journal’s guide for authors states that you must include disclosures, potential reviewers, and statements regarding ethical practices, failure to include these items might lead to the automatic rejection of your article, even if your research is the most progressive project on the planet! By failing to follow directions, you raise a red flag that you may be careless, and if you’re not attentive to the details of a cover letter, editors might wonder about the quality and thoroughness of your research. This is not the impression you want to give editors!

What to Include in a Cover Letter for a Journal Submission

We can’t stress this enough: Follow your target journal’s instructions for authors ! No matter what other advice you read in the vast webosphere, make sure you prioritize the information requested by the editors of the journal you are submitting to. As we explained above, failure to include required statements will lead to an automatic “ desk rejection ”.

With that said, below is a list of the most common elements you must include in your cover letter and what information you should NOT include:

Essential information:

  • Editor’s name (when known)
  • Name of the journal to which you are submitting
  • Your manuscript’s title
  • Article type (review, research, case study, etc.)
  • Submission date
  • Brief background of your study and the research question you sought to answer
  • Brief overview of methodology used
  • Principle findings and significance to scientific community (how your research advances our understanding of a concept)
  • Corresponding author contact information
  • Statement that your paper has not been previously published and is not currently under consideration by another journal and that all authors have approved of and have agreed to submit the manuscript to this journal

Other commonly requested information:

  • Short list of similar articles previously published by the target journal
  • List of relevant works by you or your co-authors that have been previously published or are under consideration by other journals. You can include copies of those works.
  • Mention of any prior discussions with editor(s) (for example, if you discussed the topic with an editor at a conference)
  • Technical specialties required to evaluate your paper
  • Potential reviewers and their contact information
  • If needed, reviewers to exclude (this information is most likely also requested elsewhere in online submissions forms)

Other disclosures/statements required by the journal (e.g., compliance with ethical standards, conflicts of interest , agreement to terms of submission, copyright sign-over, etc.)

What you should NOT do:

  • Don’t use too much jargon or include too many acronyms.
  • Don’t over-embellish your findings or their significance. Avoid words such as “novel,” “first ever,” and “paradigm-changing.” These types of statements show bias and will make the editor question your ability to assess your work’s merits objectively.
  • Don’t name-drop. Listing people who might endorse your paper and discussing authors’ reputations do not interest editors. They want to know if your content fits their criteria, so focus solely on addressing that point.
  • Don’t write a novel. While you want to adequately explain your work and sell its concept to editors, keep your cover letter to a maximum of one page. The letter is only meant to be an introduction and brief overview.
  • Avoid humor . As much as we want to grab the editors’ attention, there are too many ways in which humor can go wrong!

How to Structure a Cover Letter

You should use formal language in your cover letter. Since most submissions are delivered electronically, the template below is in a modified e-mail format. However, if you send your cover letter on letterhead (PDF or hard copy by mail), move your contact information to the upper-left corner of the page unless you use pre-printed letterhead, in which case your contact information should be centered at the top of the letter.

ANNOTATED TEMPLATE Journal Submissions Cover Letter

[Journal Editor’s First and Last Name][, Graduate Degree (if any)] TIP: It’s customary to include any graduate degrees in the addressee’s name. e.g.,  John Smith, MD or Carolyn Daniels, MPH [Title] e.g.,  Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor, Co-Editors-in-Chief [Journal Name] [Journal Address] [Submission Date: Month Day, Year]

Dear Dr./Mr./Ms. [Editor’s last name]:

TIP: Where the editor’s name is not known, use the relevant title employed by the journal, such as “Dear Managing Editor:” or “Dear Editor-in-Chief:”. Using a person’s name is best, however.

TIP: Use “Ms.” and never “Mrs.” or “Miss” in formal business letters.

TIP:  Never   use “Dear Sirs:” or any similar expression. Many editors will find this insulting, especially given that many of them are female!

[Para.1: 2–3 sentences]  I am writing to submit our manuscript entitled, [“Title”] for consideration as a [Journal Name][Article Type]. [One to two sentence “pitch” that summarizes the study design, where applicable, your research question, your major findings, and the conclusion.]

e.g.,  I am writing to submit our manuscript entitled, “X Marks the Spot” for consideration as an  Awesome Science Journal  research article. We examined the efficacy of using X factors as indicators for depression in Y subjects in Z regions through a 12-month prospective cohort study and can confirm that monitoring the levels of X is critical to identifying the onset of depression, regardless of geographical influences.

TIP: Useful phrases to discuss your findings and conclusion include:

  • Our findings confirm that…
  • We have determined that…
  • Our results suggest…
  • We found that…
  • We illustrate…
  • Our findings reveal…
  • Our study clarifies…
  • Our research corroborates…
  • Our results establish…
  • Our work substantiates…

[Para. 2: 2–5 sentences]  Given that [context that prompted your research], we believe that the findings presented in our paper will appeal to the [Reader Profile] who subscribe to [Journal Name]. Our findings will allow your readers to [identify the aspects of the journal’s  Aim and Scope  that align with your paper].

TIP: Identify the journal’s typical audience and how those people can utilize your research to expand their understanding of a topic. For example, if many of your target journal’s readers are interested in the public policy implications of various research studies, you may wish to discuss how your conclusions can help your peers to develop stronger policies that more effectively address public concerns.

TIP: Include context about why this research question had to be addressed.

e.g.,  “Given the struggle policymakers have had to define proper criteria to diagnose the onset of depression in teenagers, we felt compelled to identify a cost-effective and universal methodology that local school administrators can use to screen students.”

TIP: If your paper was prompted by prior research, state this. For example, “After initially researching X, Y approached us to conduct a follow-up study that examined Z. While pursuing this project, we discovered [some new understanding that made you decide the information needed to be shared with your peers via publication.]”

e.g.,  Given the alarming increase in depression rates among teenagers and the lack of any uniform practical tests for screening students, we believe that the findings presented in our paper will appeal to education policymakers who subscribe to  The Journal of Education . Although prior research has identified a few methods that could be used in depression screening, such as X and Y, the applications developed from those findings have been cost-prohibitive and difficult to administer on a national level. Thus, our findings will allow your readers to understand the factors involved in identifying the onset of depression in teenagers better and develop more cost-effective screening procedures that can be employed nationally. In so doing, we hope that our research advances the toolset needed to combat the concerns preoccupying the minds of many school administrators.

[Para 3: Similar works]  “This manuscript expands on the prior research conducted and published by [Authors] in [Journal Name]” or “This paper [examines a different aspect of]/ [takes a different approach to] the issues explored in the following papers also published by [Journal Name].”

TIP: You should mention similar studies recently published by your target journal, if any, but list no more than five. If you only want to mention one article, replace the preceding sentence with “This paper [examines a different aspect of]/ [takes a different approach to] the issues explored by [Authors] in [Article Title], also published by [Journal Name] on [DATE].”

[Para. 4: Additional statements often required]  Each of the authors confirms that this manuscript has not been previously published and is not currently under consideration by any other journal. Additionally, all of the authors have approved the contents of this paper and have agreed to the [Journal Name]’s submission policies.

TIP: If you have previously publicly shared some form or part of your research elsewhere, state so. For example, you can say, “We have presented a subset of our findings [at Event]/ [as a Type of Publication Medium] in [Location] in [Year].”

e.g.,  We have since expanded the scope of our research to contemplate international feasibility and acquired additional data that has helped us to develop a new understanding of geographical influences.

[Para. 5: Potential Reviewers]  Should you select our manuscript for peer review, we would like to suggest the following potential reviewers/referees because they would have the requisite background to evaluate our findings and interpretation objectively.

  • [Name, institution, email, expertise]

To the best of our knowledge, none of the above-suggested persons have any conflict of interest, financial or otherwise.

TIP: Include 3–5 reviewers since it is likely that the journal will use at least one of your suggestions.

TIP: Use whichever term (“reviewer” or “referee”) your target journal uses. Paying close attention to a journal’s terminology is a sign that you have properly researched the journal and have prepared!

[Para. 6: Frequently requested additional information]  Each named author has substantially contributed to conducting the underlying research and drafting this manuscript. Additionally, to the best of our knowledge, the named authors have no conflict of interest, financial or otherwise.

[Your Name]

Corresponding Author Institution Title Institution/Affiliation Name [Institution Address] [Your e-mail address] [Tel: (include relevant country/area code)] [Fax: (include relevant country/area code)]

Additional Contact [should the corresponding author not be available] Institution Title Institution/Affiliation Name [Institution Address] [Your e-mail address] [Tel: (include relevant country/area code)] [Fax: (include relevant country/area code)]

Quick Cover Letter Checklist Before Submission

  • Set the font to Arial or Times New Roman, size 12 point.
  • Single-space all text.
  • Use one line space between body paragraphs.
  • Do not indent paragraphs.
  • Keep all text left justified.
  • Use spelling and grammar check software. If needed, use a proofreading service or cover letter editing service  such as Wordvice to review your letter for clarity and concision.
  • Double-check the editor’s name. Call the journal to confirm if necessary.
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Journal Selection and Identification: Cover Letters for Journal Submission

  • Workflow for Journal Identification and Selection
  • Using JANE to Generate a List of Publication Targets
  • Using PubsHub for Journal Selection
  • Other Journal Selection/Manuscript Matcher Resources
  • Journal Impact Factors For the Top Journals in Your Field

Tips on Writing Cover Letters

checklist with a small pencil

A cover letter intended to be submitted with your article manuscript is not a formality. Care should be taken when writing such a letter. When writing a cover letter, keep these tips in mind:

  • Include a statement that your research has not been published elsewhere or is not under consideration for publication elsewhere
  • Keep it concise - at maximum, a page long
  • Do not copy and paste your abstract; write a clear paragraph explaining why your research is important and why that journal's readers would find it interesting
  • Make sure you are including all the information that the Instructions for Authors page on the journal's website asks you to
  • Publishers sometimes have their own templates - use those as a guide
  • Proofread, proofread, proofread! Make sure you letter is free of typos and is addressed to the correct editor and journal

Information above was taken from the sources below.

Image by  Mehmed_Nurrohmad  on Pixabay .

  • Key Information to Include in Your Cover Letter A template of information that should be included in a cover letter. From Taylor & Francis.
  • Cover Letters Information that should be included in a cover letter, with an example of a poor cover letter. From Springer.
  • Writing a Journal Cover Letter A short guide to a good cover letter, along with a template. From American Journal Experts (AJE).
  • How to Write a Cover Letter A cover letter template from Wiley.
  • Submitting Your Manuscript: Write the Right Cover Letter A short guide to what should be included in a cover letter. From Cell Press.
  • Cover Letter and Submission Form Preparation A chapter from "Getting Published in the Life Sciences" (2011) that includes guidance on how to prepare a cover letter as well as a sample template.
  • << Previous: Journal Impact Factors For the Top Journals in Your Field
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  • v.13(Suppl 1); 2019 Apr

How to choose a journal and write a cover letter

Duncan nicholas.

DN Journal Publishing Services, Brighton, East Sussex, BN1 8UA, UK

Selecting a suitable journal for submitting a manuscript can be a complex and confusing task, and end in disappointment when a paper is rejected quickly for reasons that may not be clear to the author. There have been several articles written offering advice on journal selection, but this article is the most thorough of its kind, using recent evidence to inform the strategies presented. This article provides details on the factors involved in optimal journal selection, giving insights into how to identify suitable journals, why particular criteria are important and ideal methods to approach this task. The article also includes a spreadsheet tool for tracking information about potential titles of interest and submission details, and finally, provides notes on supporting your submission with an effective cover letter.

Why Publish in Journals

Publishing in scholarly journals is just one form of output from a research project, and one of the most significant pressures on modern academics is to produce papers and find suitable journals which will accept them.[ 1 , 2 , 3 ] This process is not always easy, particularly for Early Career Researchers, as the number of options and determining factors is increasingly complex. This paper provides detailed information on the journal selection process, but before considering this, I will first consider why journal publication remains such an important aspect of the research cycle.

Journals are the principal means researchers use to facilitate communication between other groups of researchers, between specialist fields, and to the public.[ 4 ] In addition to this, they play a key role in institutional assessment of individual researchers and groups.[ 5 ] Journals help to set intellectual, methodological, operational, technical, best practice, and many other forms of standards within their communities;[ 6 ] and through the peer review process, research is validated through the element of scientific publishing, which distinguishes it from all other communication mediums, certifying the authenticity and veracity of the research. The Publons Global Peer Review Survey[ 7 ] of over 14,300 researchers included the question “How important do you consider peer review for ensuring the general quality and integrity of scholarly communication?” Overall, 12,394 respondents answered this question, with 98% stating this was “important” or “extremely important.”

Does Choice of Journal Matter?

A report by the International Association of Scientific, Technical and Medical Publishers[ 8 ] estimates the number of active journals at around 33,100 English-language, plus a further 9,400 non-English-language journals (a total of 42,500), publishing over 3 million articles a year. Though the numbers diminish rapidly when considering one specific field these figures still indicate the scale of the journal selection task, as well as the competitive nature of article submission, and the question remains: does journal choice matter?

To answer this question, this article will discuss several aspects of research publishing which may help guide or influence the decision on which journals are suitable for any particular paper. Some choices may be guided by external pressures such as funder or institutional requirements; other factors relate to the topic of the research in hand, matching aims, and scope or instructions of a journal and other factors will be personal preference.

Create a Journal Information Spreadsheet

The first step in identifying suitable journals for a paper is to create a means of capturing, comparing, and contrasting the information about each of the journals which might be deemed suitable. Creating a personalized information sheet about journals in your field will be a resource that can be returned to, updated, and expanded over time. An Excel spreadsheet template is included as supplementary material, with 29 fields of information covering everything that will be discussed in this paper. Table 1 shows an excerpt from the supplementary table .

Excerpt of the first 12 column details from the supplementary journal selection information spreadsheet

How to Identify a Journal

The following sections offer a process for identifying journals, three key methods for creating a list of potential journal names, and strategies to investigate the details of each.

Your Reference List

The first place to begin identifying suitable journals to submit is through the references which inform your own work. The journals which publish the articles you have cited are likely to be relevant choices for your own work; particularly, those which inform the most fundamental aspects of your paper such as the background research through which you developed your research questions; on which your methodology is drawn; and any work which your findings either corroborate or contradict.

Indexing Databases

You may wish to identify journals not referenced in your paper. Indexing databases such as Google Scholar, Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, or any of the many field-specific databases offer search and filtering options to identify articles and journals of interest.

Use the “advanced search” functions in these websites with keywords or short phrases of significant details and limit the publication years to the current and previous year (e.g., 2017–2018). The search results will show a list of recently published works that tell you these journals are currently active and interested in those topics.

The results from these platforms may include book titles, conference proceedings publications, or other formats which you are not interested in. Filter the results list for the most appropriate matches, adding relevant journal titles to your list. You can also use these databases to retrieve a certain amount of useful information to add to your journal information spreadsheet.

Depending on your personal preference or mandates from funders or institutions, you may be required to publish your work as open access (OA). If you wish to identify only open access journals, use the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)[ 9 ] and Science Open[ 10 ] as your search databases. Science Open indexes articles available as open access through which you may identify journals, even if they are not full OA titles. DOAJ, as the name suggests, is a comprehensive database of 12,205 open access journals, and almost 3.5 million articles (at time of writing). DOAJ has thorough criteria for assessing journals for inclusion in its database, aiming to include only journals which publish and perform peer review to a high standard; therefore, it serves as a useful resource for helping identify potentially “predatory” journals (a concept which will be discussed in detail later in this article).

Additionally, the Journal/Author Name Estimator (JANE)[ 11 ] is a useful independent platform created by academics to help authors identify suitable journals based on the abstract or keywords of a paper.

Publisher Websites

To identify journals within a specific publisher you may use their own platforms to search for keywords and topics. Most well-established publishers provide some searching and filtering functionality in their websites, but some, such as Elsevier's “Journal Finder”[ 12 ] and Springer's “Journal Suggester”[ 13 ] offer more sophisticated text-matching. Like the JANE journal locator, these platforms allow you to use your article title or abstract to produce a list of results with a similarity match score that helps you filter the most relevant options.

Aims and Scope

Once you have a list of journal titles you will need to investigate further to determine how suitable these journals really are for your manuscript. It is very important to understand the types of research a journal publishes as failure to fit this criteria is the main reason for immediate rejection of articles; “About 20-30% of the manuscripts can very quickly be categorized as unsuitable or beyond the scope of the journal.”[ 14 ]

To achieve this you will need to visit the homepages of each journal and thoroughly read around the site as well as recent articles. This may be time-consuming, but the information you obtain through this process can be referred to when you submit future papers.

The aims and scope, “about” section or other such mission-statement related page is where the journal should make clear the specifics of the subject in which it specializes. Is it a broad scope multi-disciplinary journal such as PLoS,[ 15 ] Nature,[ 16 ] or RIO[ 17 ]? Is it a large-scale multidisciplinary journal within a single field, such as eLife,[ 18 ] The Lancet[ 19 ] or New England Journal of Medicine[ 20 ]? Or does it have a very narrow focus for a specific field, such as The Lancet Oncology,[ 21 ] Clinical Infectious Diseases,[ 22 ] or Blood[ 23 ]?

If the journal mentions a national or geographical area in the title, this could mean different things which should be explained in the aims and scope. If the journal is named as regional, does it publish work which focuses on a country or geographical area, or is it simply based in that region (e.g., European Scientific Journal[ 24 ])? It may consider work from outside the region that compares populations or other findings from the area, giving the work relevance to the journal community, such as this publication, the Saudi Journal of Anesthesia, which states that it aims to “stimulate associated scientific research and communication between hospitals and universities in Saudi Arabia, the Arab countries and the rest of the World.”[ 25 ]

International journals may not simply accept papers from anywhere in the world. It could be that they accept only those papers which are created through an international authorship, involve an international range of participants or subjects, or provide evidence that is collected or relevant on a global scale (e.g., International Journal of Psychology[ 26 ]).

Make notes of whether the geographic scope will be relevant to want you need to achieve with your own work.

If the aims are not clear, look at the titles of several issues worth of papers to give you a clearer sense of what papers the journal publishes. You should get a good idea of the topics and geography of articles, as well as what the journal has been interested in over the previous year. Does your paper fit with their publication trends? Will it help to continue this trend, or will it add something new and relevant? Or does it seem unsuitable?

The aims and scope may also state the community of the journal. Is the journal intended for primary researchers, society members, people working in applied settings, industry, or the public? Does it appear that your paper is relevant to that audience?

Instructions for Authors

It is important to check this section thoroughly and to ensure your paper is formatted according to all requirements. This is one of an author's least favorite aspects of journal submission, with different journals having different instructions that create significant time reformatting should you need to submit to subsequent journals after your first. However, as inconvenient as these formatting requirements may be some journals can be very strict on enforcing them and along with the aims and scope, failure to conform to formatting instructions is A common reason for immediate rejection of papers.[ 27 , 28 ]

The types of research articles a journal accepts may be in the aims and scope or instructions for authors, but usually the latter. Look for lists of article types and details of formatting requirements for each, such as original empirical research, single studies, multivariate analysis, review articles (narrative reviews summarizing recent developments in a field, or systematic/meta-analysis, which provide statistical analysis of data over a wider timeframe). Some journals are review only some do not accept review articles at all. Case reports particularly in practical journals and applied specialities such as nursing or occupational health, and other shorter form papers, such as letters to editor, discussion or response to articles, book reviews may also be detailed.

This list is by no means exhaustive. There are many types of articles and different terminology used for each type, but be sure the journal accepts the type of paper you are writing.

Word limits are another of the more important aspects and these may differ between article types. Word counts can often apply to titles, abstracts, main text, and figure captions, so be sure to make a note of what the word count includes. There may also be limits to the number of keywords, figures, tables, and references.

Is there a preferred manuscript structure? Does the journal allow or disallow headings and are there formatting conventions? Should the abstract be structured (e.g., with headings for Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion), or is a single paragraph of text allowed?

Is there a standardized referencing or formatting style given, such as Harvard, APA, or Chicago, or does the journal describe its own formatting in detail? Is there a set template for formatting manuscripts provided in the website, or can you use a LaTeX editing template though Overleaf,[ 29 ] Authorea,[ 30 ] or other service?

Accessibility and Discoverability

Does the journal describe any social media presence, marketing activity, and the indexing databases in which it is listed? This aspect of journal selection will inform you of where your article may be found, the likelihood of your paper being promoted by the journal and discovered by readers. If the journal claims to be indexed in particular databases, can you verify this is the case by searching and finding them?

Speed of Peer Review and Publication

Journals are becoming increasingly transparent about their peer review processes and many may even provide statistics on the average peer review times or time from first submission to publication. For example, the Elsevier “Journal Finder” tool provides such peer review and production timeframes for the journals it returns in the search results. This information can be helpful for adjusting your own expectations of how long the process should take. The website SciRev provides subject-area level data on several measures of peer review timeframes, based on research in 2017 by Huisman and Smits,[ 31 ] with which you can benchmark journal processes; for example, the average time for a first decision on a fully reviewed paper in the Medicine category is 8 weeks, and from first submission to acceptance is 12 weeks.[ 32 ]

Publication Models

Is the journal closed-access subscription-based, fully open access, or a hybrid of the two? What are the fees for open access? Does it offer waivers for residents of certain countries (e.g., adopting the Research4Life program). In addition to OA fees, are there additional charges for color figures or any pages over a certain number? It is important to look for this information first in case you are met with an invoice for payments during the production stages.

The licensing and copyright options of the journal should also be made clear. If the journal is a subscription model, can you see the terms of passing copyright to the publisher before you submit? Can you obtain them to determine whether you are happy with the conditions? If the journal is open access, does it mention the Creative Commons licenses under which open access articles can be published? Does it offer a choice of options?

The publication model may affect whether the journal complies with any funding body or institutional mandates that determine where you must publish your article.

Archiving Policies

Does the journal allow you to post articles to preprint servers during the peer review stage? Will it consider papers that are already available as a preprint. Will you be allowed to post a preprint on your website after acceptance?

Both the publication models and policies around preprints can have implications for the readership and sharing potential for your work both during review and postpublication, and the rights you retain as the author of your work.

Ethics Statements and Adherence to Guidelines

Does the journal provide any ethics statements about its editorial processes, expectations of its editors, reviewers, and authors, and give information about other ethical or legal requirements it expects authors to adhere to or comply with on submitting articles.

Journal ethics may fall into two categories, both of which will be important for you to take note of Editorial/publishing ethics and research ethics. Research ethics are likely to be requirements you will need to state when submitting your article, such as evidence of institutional review board acceptance of methodologies or patient consent. Publication ethics refers to expectations regarding plagiarism, simultaneous submission to multiple journals, agreement from all authors to submit and several other measures.

The Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)[ 33 ] is the definitive body on publishing ethics. Many journals are members of this organization and will display badges or statements from COPE on their websites. This should reassure you that the journal intends to conduct itself to a high standard and give you recourse should you feel anything unethical occurs in the handling of your paper. COPE provides many resources for authors which you should familiarize yourself with if you are new to the submission process or have not visited their website before.

Journal Metrics

Does the journal have a Clarivate Web of Science Impact Factor (IF) or Elsevier Scopus Journal rank score (SJR) or CiteScore, or Google Scholar H-Index? Are you required to submit to a journal with one of these metrics?

The recent Author Perspectives on Academic Publishing report by Editage,[ 34 ] based on a survey of 6,903 researchers found the highest rated factor which influenced authors' choice of journal was Impact Factor. However, the survey also reported that “one reason why authors find journal selection so difficult is that they struggle to find a journal that both has the required Impact Factor and is likely to accept their manuscript.” This finding illustrated that although Impact Factor is desired criteria for various reasons, it is not an efficient or effective means by which most authors can, or should, use to determine which journal to select. Of the 42,500 journals worldwide mentioned at the start of this paper, just 11,655 across 234 disciplines[ 35 ] have an Impact Factor. This alone illustrates how restrictive the options to authors can be when limiting the criteria to these metrics.

This paper acknowledges that the requirement to publish in Web of Science or Scopus indexed journals exists, and authors often need to select a journal based purely on metrics such as the Impact Factor or SJR, but also cautions against using this as an isolated search criteria where possible, and supports the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA),[ 36 ] which was established to “ensure that hiring, promotion, and funding decisions focus on the qualities of research that are most desirable – insight, impact, reliability and re-usability – rather than on questionable proxies” (statement from DORA Roadmap, June 27, 2018).

In addition to the Impact Factor, a journal may provide additional alternative article-level metrics on its webpages. These may be in the form of usage, pdf download, or other readership statistics, or Altmetrics[ 37 ] or Plum Analytics[ 38 ] information. These latter platforms are at the forefront of the alternative metrics movement and may give you insights into how articles from a journal are used, the communities which discuss the papers and other forms of impact, attention, and presence which are not based on citation metrics. Alternative metrics capture mentions on social media platforms, news media, blogs and websites, the use of articles in policy or other official documents, discussions on postpublication peer review sites, additions to bibliography platforms such as Mendeley, and many other sources. All this activity gives insight into the presence of the journal, what topics have been of particular interest, and the reaction with which your paper may be met.

Taken alone, the validity and integrity of using all metrics discussed in this section for assessment purposes and journal selection is questionable and inadvisable; however, these metrics do offer some function when using the database sources of these metrics as search tools in combination with other factors discussed in this paper.

Editorial Board

Look at the editorial board of the journal. Do you recognize any of the names? Are any of the board members cited in your paper? If so, it is likely that your paper is within the scope of the journal. If you do not recognize any of the board and no information is provided about their field, or even institution, you could search for some of the key members online to see if they are specialists in the area of your article.

If you are unable to find any of the members online, or their details do not match what is provided on the journal site, then you should leave this journal off your list, a situation which brings us to the final part of the journal selection section of this article: predatory publishing.

Predatory Publishing

No article discussing journal selection and open access would be complete without mention of “predatory publishing.” This term refers to publishers or journals that take advantage of the open access publishing model to be money-making operations with no regard for the scientific endeavour. This is a simplified definition of a more complex socioeconomic phenomenon that this paper will not analyze in great detail but is important enough to mention, as there is some evidence that these journals are damaging the reputation of open access as a legitimate publishing option,[ 34 ] which is a perception that needs countering.

The most commonly used term for these journals appears to be “predatory publishers” or “predatory journals.” They are also known as “fake journals,” “scam journals,” “trash journals,” “illegitimate journals,” among other terms. I prefer the term “shell journals,” as this accurately describes the lack of rigorous scholarly service, particularly peer review, and technical infrastructure required to ensure the integrity and permanence of scientific research. The term “deceptive journals” is also particularly appropriate, as often these journals make claims of integrity, peer review processes, indexing database status, or metrics to convince inexperienced authors that the journal is a more viable platform than it actually is. The core problem of these journals is perhaps in identifying what they lack, rather than how they act.

There is an increasing body of research and gray literature that aim to provide rubric for identifying problematic journals, most famously the controversial, and now closed, Beall's List, and more recently a scoping review by Cobey et al .,[ 39 ] yet none have been able to provide decisive, noncontradictory statements around any single measure or process for assessing such journals. Identification of these journals often requires a combination of problems to be apparent, and the ability to recognize the details which signify these problems. The methods and details discussed in this paper will help to identify suitable journals with confidence and ensure that by meeting all criteria required for your paper, journals with poor practices that do not offer what you need will be weeded out, regardless of who the publisher of that journal is.

Writing a Cover Letter

Cover letters are something of a controversial topic, with some journal editors ignoring them, but others paying close attention to all they receive. The number of submissions each editor must deal with may play a role in preference for reading cover letters or not but that does not mean you should ignore this step.

A good cover letter need only includes a few key features to effectively support your submission.

First, address the editor by name, but be sure you have the right name and the correct name of journal, especially if you are submitting to a second or subsequent choice journal. Author addressing the wrong editor and journal is a situation which occurs more often than you would expect and does not make a good impression.

If there are several coeditors, you could address the person you feel is the specialist on the topics of your paper. If you do not know this information, mention all by name, or simply address your letter to “Dear Editors.”

Next, the important pitch to the editor about the value of your article: Briefly describe the main theme of your paper, the relevance it has to the journal, and the contribution your paper makes to existing knowledge.

To support the description of your paper, you could check to see whether the journal has published papers on similar topics in the previous year (which you are likely to have done when researching your list). Does your paper fit with their publication trends? Will it help to continue this trend, or will it add something new that remains relevant? Make these statements in your letter and mention specific papers. It is a nice touch to imply that you are familiar with the content of the journal and helps to reinforce your claims that your paper is relevant and should be reviewed.

You may also include suggestion of three to six reviewers for process. These suggestions may not be used, but any work you can do to make the job of the editor handling the review process easier will be appreciated. These could be names of authors cited in your references, editorial board members, or other scholars you are aware of in the field. You should not suggest any colleagues, collaborators, close acquaintances, or other individuals who would have a conflict of interest in reviewing your paper.

You may also name individuals who should not review your paper. These could be close collaborators, competitors, or others you feel would not be able to give your paper a bias-free review.

Finally, formal declarations should be provided, stating your work is original, has not been simultaneously submitted to another journal, that all named authors give permission for the paper to be submitted, that you have no conflicts of interest in the findings and conclusions presented in the paper, and name any funding bodies which supported the work. You may also name any individuals who provide feedback or presubmission comments on your paper. If you have uploaded your paper to a preprint server, you should provide the reference.

This information should be no more than half a page but will efficiently convey to the editor why your paper is suitable for the journal and how it will be of interest to its readers.

Financial support and sponsorship

Conflicts of interest.

There are no conflicts of interest.

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writing a cover letter to an academic journal

Writing a Successful Journal Cover Letter (Free Templates)

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

Even great manuscripts often stand out based on the title or its contents alone. They need great cover letters.

Cover letters for journal submission are an underrated part of the submission process. Don’t overlook them. They’re a valuable step to getting your research noticed, published, and all the good things that come after that.

The truth is, most journal editors just don’t have the time to thoroughly read every submitted article in full to decide if it’s suitable for their journal. They use cover letters to help them filter out the most interesting and appropriate submissions first.

Cover letters also help identify articles completely out of the journal’s scope and that would be better off getting a quick letter of rejection.

If your manuscript doesn’t have a cover letter and the 12 other articles on the editor’s desk do, it’s likely that your paper will be looked at last. Putting in that extra effort, just like on a job application, lets you sell your research, avoid quick rejections, and more likely make it to peer review.

We also have some journal cover letter templates and examples for you, so you don’t have to start from zero. Read on.

What do you put in a journal cover letter?

Your cover letter needs certain basic elements. Generally they are:

  • Editor and target journal
  • Salutation (Dear Dr. …)
  • Indication you’re submitting your manuscript, along with its title, and the category of manuscript you’re submitting (Original Report, Review , Case Study, etc.) based on what the journal accepts
  • Background information regarding your work – what is already known about the subject matter?
  • What your study was
  • Why you performed the study (rationale)
  • Briefly, what methods you used and what your key findings were
  • Why your manuscript is a great fit for this journal
  • (optional, depending on the journal and on if you want to do this) Recommended reviewers
  • (optional, depending on the journal) Funding information
  • Closing line (Sincerely, etc.) and the name and contact details for the manuscript’s corresponding author

Those are the key elements. It’s how you express them and the quality of your message that mean the different between a dry overview and an attractive promotion of your work.

Many journals don’t have a prescribed format for the cover letter. On the other end of the spectrum are PLOS ONE’s guidelines , which give specifics on what to include, including selecting Academic Editors from its directory.

Always check the guidelines first to be sure you give the journal what it wants. Those are basics. With a grasp of those, there are many ways to polish your cover letter into a valuable sales tool for your work.

What to do and what to avoid in your journal cover letter

Most “problems with journal cover letters relate to simply not spending enough time and care on it. Or even not doing it at all. These are easily fixed if you’re a skilled English writer. If not, they’re still easily fixed with a little help.

All of the following are critical. Make sure you DO:

  • Check the name of your target journal.
  • Address the cover letter to the relevant person. It is not enough to simply say “Dear Editor” or “To whom it may concern.” Include the name, title and position of the editor you are addressing.
  • Avoid superlatives – about the journal, yourself and your own work. It’s pretty unlikely your work is “groundbreaking” or “trailblazing,” though it may by the “first time ever” that a certain approach was taken with a certain population.
  • Check the formatting. This varies by journal. It includes US vs. UK vs. Oxford English spelling, correct page numbering, use of templates, and much more.
  • Get a colleague to read your cover letter before you send it.

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

“ A typical cover letter just repeats the abstract. That’s a huge missed opportunity. You need to think of what the journal wants. Try to tailor your manuscript’s novel and interesting points specifically to the your target journal’s aims and scope. It may mean an extra half-hour of work for you, but if it helps get you published, isn’t it worth that small investment of time? “ — Geraldine Echue , PhD, CMPP Edanz Managing Editor

But don’t do this…

The following may not be critical, but they’re common areas that authors mess up. Sometimes they don’t know they’re doing it or they’re just trying their best. So be aware

Make sure you DON’T :

  • Take shortcuts. Your cover letter is very important for getting your manuscript to peer review; give it time and attention.
  • Cut and paste your abstract, or sections of it, into the cover letter. That’s low-effort and low-readability. Reword it to make it pop.
  • Over-praise the editor or target journal – it’s not necessary to use such phrases as “your esteemed journal.” A manuscript will be sent for peer review based on the quality of the cover letter and study, not because you say nice things about the journal.
  • Forget to use the Word (or other software’s) spellcheck and, ideally, use a tool like Grammarly and/or Hemingway to help grammar and readability. These are no substitute for a professional edit, though.
  • Be overly proud about your English skills. Just like you go to the dentist to get your teeth fixed, you can hire a professional editor and subject matter expert to get your English fixed.

Not that a lot of these also reply to resubmission letters and responses to peer review . The underlying themes are care, courtesy, and excellent English suitable for your audience.

And two more big DOs

  • DO get a professional edit or proofread if you’re not a native speaker of English or just not that great at writing.

DO have a professional write your cover letter for you if you want to save some time and make sure you got everything just as the journal wants it. The Edanz Cover Letter Development service can handle this for you.

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

Set phrases and common expressions

The journal letter maintains a formal tone, so there are certain stock phrases you can use and in some cases must use. As a result, there are a number of phrases which are common to cover letters.

These include:

  • To our knowledge, this is the first report showing…
  • We believe our findings will appeal to the readership of [target journal name].
  • Please address all correspondence to:
  • We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

“I’ve found about 60% of authors don’t submit a cover letter at all. It seems they just expect something magical to happen with their manuscript. Journal editors struggle with this: they’re not necessarily subject-area specialists. They wonder, ‘Why is the paper important?'” — Gareth Dyke , PhD Edanz Author Education Manager

Commonly required statements

Many journals and publishers require that all cover letters should contain the following sentences:

  • We confirm that this manuscript has not been published elsewhere and is not under consideration by another journal.
  • All authors have read and approved the final manuscript and agree with its submission to [target journal name].

Competing interests

If all authors have no competing interests, you should include a statement indicating as such:

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

If an author does have competing interests, it’s a good idea to include details of these in your cover letter. You might also include funding information:

This study was supported by a grant from the [funding body].

Other required statements

Some other potentially required information:

  • Clinical trial registration database and number
  • Has this manuscript been published in another language? If so, has that journal editor given permission for this submission?
  • What other publications related to the same study have been published? (especially for clinical trial related manuscripts)
  • Has the data in your study been presented or been published in any other format? For studies involving human subjects, was informed consent obtained? Was permission obtained from an ethics committee? Was the study carried in accordance with Declaration of Helsinki guidelines?
  • Was permission obtained for the reproduction or modification of previously published figures and tables (especially for review articles).

The journal’s guidelines will typically give specific directions on which of these to include, if any. And if you have any questions, get in touch with them directly.

Journal submission tips and hacks from the experts

Most of these are plain common sense, but if you’re in a hurry, you might overlook them. Some are less commonly known.

Be personal, use the editor’s name

Do your homework. Look up the name of the Editor-in-Chief or the specific Section Editor for the journal you’re submitting to and address the letter to them directly.

Use Dear Dr. (or Professor) + their Last name . If you’re not sure of their title, Google them to see if they have a LinkedIn page, ResearchGate page, or works published in the last couple of years. If you still can’t confirm their title, use Dear Full name as shown on the journal’s webpage .

It’s like a cover letter for a job; you need to personalize your cover letter to demonstrate your interest in that particular journal, and not make it look like you’d just be happy to get your paper accepted anywhere.

You should also explain why your study will be of specific interest to the readers of the journal.

Check the Aims & Scope on the journal website to see who their target audience is and tailor your reasoning to them.

Edanz Learning Lab – cover letters

Tell them what you want to publish

This may seem obvious, but sometimes authors submit cover letters without including the title of their manuscript and what type of article it is.

This should appear in the very first paragraph of your letter and will help the editor see immediately if the topic is of interest and judge whether they have space for the article type you’re submitting for the current issue.

Even more, it will show that you thoroughly read the guidelines. If you say you’re submitting “Original Research” when the journal calls it “Research Articles”, you’re not making a very good first impression.

Summarize the highlights of your work

It’s not enough to simply include the title of your manuscript in the cover letter and hope that alone will attract the editor.

Try to keep the cover letter to one page, but always include a brief summary of your study outlining the reasons why you conducted the work, your aims, and the major results you observed. If that makes you go a bit longer, it’s not a big deal.

Don’t include statistics or a lot of data; a compelling summary of the study is sufficient. If the editor is interested, they’ll look into your manuscript more deeply for further details.

Sell yourself

Cover letters are your chance to talk directly with the journal editor and convince them that your paper is more interesting than the next one sitting on their desk. Talk about any real-world implications of your findings or the significance of your results for the field. Don’t be too speculative or over-exaggerate your findings, but do take this important opportunity to feature the importance of your work.

Don’t forget your “must have” statements

Editors want to know that your manuscript has not been submitted elsewhere or is under consideration at another journal.

They want to know any relevant conflict of interest information and any roles the funding body played in the study.

The author instructions may or may not have explicit information on what they want you to write, but it’s good practice to state this information upfront. This way, the editor doesn’t have to dig through the manuscript to know if you’ve met the basic ethical requirements for publication.

See it in action: Edanz video on writing cover letters

We laid out the basics of a cover letter in this video.

And if you don’t want to start with a blank document…

Get a cover letter template

It’s all easier said than done, right?

Download a template to plug-and-play your text.

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

Download the above short-form or long-form cover letter from the Edanz Learning Lab template collection .

“When I became a journal editor, I really learned how important cover letters are. We need them to learn more about submissions and to make more informed decisions on whether to send manuscripts out for peer review. As a journal editor, I greatly appreciate a carefully written cover letter; it saves me time and it shows me the authors really care. It also helps with reviewer selections … something I rarely have time to do.” — Gareth Dyke , PhD Editor-in-Chief of Taylor & Francis journal ‘Historical Biology’

By the way, not all cover letters are the same, though most are. PLOS ONE cover letters are a notable exception and have certain requirements for what you need to tell them, such as which of their Academic Editors you want to review your submission. See their guidelines here .

So, all set to do your cover letter? Now go find a forever home for your manuscript and tell them why they’re the perfect fit for you.

Want to dig deeper into the publication process, soup to nuts, ideas to publication? Take simple, expert-designed courses to walk you through it all, at the Edanz My Learning Lab .

  • Tel: +81-3-5541-4400 (Monday–Friday, 09:30–18:00)

ThinkSCIENCE

Writing effective cover letters for journal submissions: Tips and a Word template

Writing a cover letter

When you need to submit a cover letter with your manuscript, you'll probably write it just before submission. Like many other authors, you may find yourself wondering what to write and taking longer than you expected, causing last-minute delays and stress.

To help you write effective cover letters—and to write them quickly and easily—in this article we offer some tips on layout and appropriate wording. Also, you can download our template cover letter (Word file) to help you save time writing and help you remember to include standard author statements and other information commonly required by journals.

If you are submitting a revised paper to the same journal, note that the response letter to the reviewers is different from the cover letter used at initial submission. You can find tips and a template on writing effective response letters to the reviewers in our previous article .

Many journals require a cover letter and state this in their guidelines for authors (alternatively known as author guidelines, information for authors, guide for authors, guidelines for papers, submission guide, etc.). For some journals, a cover letter is optional or may not be not required, but it's probably a good idea to include one.

Why do some journals ask for cover letters?

Cover letters can be helpful to journal staff in the following ways.

1. Cover letters that include standard statements required by the journal allow the journal staff to quickly confirm that the authors have (or say they have) followed certain ethical research and publishing practices.

These statements assert that the authors followed standard practices, which may include (i) adhering to ethical guidelines for research involving humans ( Declaration of Helsinki ), involving animals ( ARRIVE guidelines ), or falling under institutional guidelines; (ii) obtaining ethics approval from institutional review boards or ethics committees; (iii) obtaining informed consent or assent from participants; (iv) complying with authorship criteria (e.g., ICMJE criteria ); (v) confirming no duplicate submissions have been made; and (vi) recommending reviewers for your paper, which may include specifying peers that you prefer not be contacted.

2. Cover letters can summarize your manuscript quickly for the journal editor, highlighting your most important findings and their implications to show why your manuscript would be of interest.

Some journals, such as Nature, state that while a cover letter is optional, it provides "an excellent opportunity to briefly discuss the importance of the submitted work and why it is appropriate for the journal." Some publishers, such as Springer , recommend that you write a cover letter to help "sell" your manuscript to the journal editor.

3. Cover letters that contain all of the information required by the journal (as stated in the guideline for authors) can indicate that you have spent time carefully formatting the manuscript to fit the journal's style. This creates a good first impression. Addressing the letter to a named editor at the journal also shows that you took the time to write your letter (and by extension, your manuscript) with care and considered the fit with the journal beyond just impact factor.

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What makes an effective cover letter?

Cover letters should be short—preferably no more than 1 page—and they often use single line spacing. The content can be broadly divided into six sections:

  • Addressee's information and date of submission
  • Opening salutation
  • Purpose statement and administrative information
  • Summary of main research findings and implications
  • Statements or information required by the journal
  • Closing salutation and your contact information

Let's look at some tips for each section. And don't forget to download the template , which shows these tips already in place.

1. Addressee's information and date of submission

  • Check the journal's website for the name of the editor who handles submissions; this could be the Managing Editor or an editor assigned to your geographical region. If no handling editor is named, address your cover letter to the Editor-in-Chief. Some journals ask that you identify a specific editor for your specialty.
  • Write the name of the addressee in the top left corner of the page.
  • Write the date beneath. To minimize the number of line breaks used in your cover letter (and help keep it to one page of text), you can put the date to the right if you wish.
  • Note that dates written as numerals only can be confusing: 02/03/2017 can be read "2 March 2017" in British and "3 February 2017" in American English. Using the format "3 February 2017" or "February 3, 2017" is clear.

2. Opening salutation

  • Write the title and last name of the addressee (exclude the first name); for example, "Professor Brown" or "Dr. Baker" (British English: "Dr Baker").
  • If you can't find a named editor on the journal website, then you can use the opening salutation "Dear Editor".
  • At the end of the opening salutation, you can use a comma or a colon; that is, "Dear Dr. Baker," or "Dear Dr. Baker:" (British English uses the comma; American English uses either, but the colon is considered more formal).

3. Purpose statement and administrative information

  • Clearly state the purpose of your letter (that you are submitting a manuscript) and then state your manuscript title, author names (or first author "Brown et al."), and article type (e.g., original paper).
  • Be sure to use the journal's own terminology to refer to the article type; for example, some journals use the term "Regular Articles" for a full research paper, whereas others use "Original Submissions", "Full Papers", "Original Articles", among others.
  • See the downloadable Word template for an example sentence that presents this information clearly and concisely.
  • If your submission consists of many files, consider summarizing them in one short sentence so that the journal editor is sure all of the files have been received; for example, "There are 8 files in all: 1 main manuscript file, 1 highlights file, 3 figure files, 1 table file, 1 supplementary data file, and 1 supplementary figures file".

4. Summary of main research findings and implications

  • In a new paragraph, summarize the purpose of your research (the research gap or problem it addresses), the main findings, and finally the implications of these findings. This is your main chance to highlight the value of your work to the journal editor, so keep this short and focused. (Journal editors may receive thousands of submissions annually, and many fulfill editing duties on top of their own research and teaching schedule, so you should strive to make their jobs easier by providing as concise a summary as possible.)
  • Be sure to tailor your statements so that they're in line with the readership of the journal. For example, if you are submitting to a more general journal that has a diverse readership, underscore the possible impact your findings could have in multiple fields. Conversely, if you are submitting to a publication with narrow scope, you can write about your findings in highly focused terms.
  • Avoid simply reproducing sentences verbatim from the abstract—which the journal editor will likely read next. Instead, if you take sentences from your abstract as a base to work from, then try to craft a much shorter summary that clearly fits the journal's focus and that highlights the implications of your work for the journal's readers. In fact, Nature guidelines state specifically to "avoid repeating information that is already present in the abstract and introduction."
  • When stating that you think your work is a good fit for the journal, be sure not to use exaggerated flattery. Avoid using words like "esteemed" and "prestigious" to describe the journal: "We believe that these findings will be of interest to the readers of your esteemed/prestigious journal."
  • It's helpful to the journal editor to state if your work directly relates to a paper published by another author in the same journal. Also, mention if your study closely relates to or extends your previously published work, so it is clear why your submitted manuscript is novel or important enough to publish.

Common phrases in this paragraph:

Summarizing the purpose of your research

  • This study presents/summarizes/examines…
  • X remains a problem for (engineers/software developers/local government). In this study, we (examined/investigated/developed and tested)…

Presenting your main results

  • Our main findings/results were that…
  • The most interesting/important findings were that…
  • Most importantly, our findings can improve/reduce/help…

Highlighting the relevance of your findings

  • These findings should enable (engineers/doctors/local government) to…
  • We believe that these findings will be of interest to the readers of your journal.

5. Statements or information required by the journal

  • In this new paragraph, provide any statements that the journal requires be included in your cover letter. Be sure to review the journal's guidelines to know what information you should provide.
  • Some journals or publishers have very specific requirements. For example, PLOS requires that authors describe any prior interactions with the journal in the cover letter, as well as suggest appropriate Academic Editors from the journal's editorial board to handle the submission.
  • Some journals require that sentences are provided verbatim in the cover letter. The guidelines will tell you to copy and paste the sentence provided in quotation marks into the cover letter. For example, Springer states that cover letters should contain two specific sentences: "We confirm that this manuscript has not been published elsewhere and is not under consideration by another journal" and "All authors have approved the manuscript and agree with its submission to [insert the name of the target journal]."
  • Several statements pertaining to research and publication ethics are commonly required by journals across a broad range of fields. These are given in our downloadable Word template . When using the template, you can retain the statements in full, revise them slightly as appropriate to your circumstances, replace them with any similar wording required by the journal, or delete them if they do not fit your specific situation.

Previous contact with the journal

  • We state that we have had no previous contact with the journal regarding this submission.
  • We previously contacted the journal to inquire about/to check whether…

Conflict of interests and financial disclosures

  • The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
  • X.Y. advises Company A and has received lecture fees from Company B.
  • This study was supported by a grant from Z.
  • No financial support was received for this study/work.
  • A.B. conceived the study, analyzed the data, and drafted the manuscript; C.D. analyzed the data…
  • All authors have approved the manuscript and agree with its submission to the journal.
  • All authors approved the final version of the manuscript and agree to be accountable for all aspects of this work.

Suggested reviewers

  • Potential reviewers for our manuscript are:
  • We believe that the following individual(s) would be well suited to reviewing our manuscript.

Request to exclude reviewers

  • We request that the following individual(s) not be approached to review our manuscript (because…).

Concurrent/duplicate submissions

  • We declare that this manuscript has not been published before, in whole or in part, and is not currently being considered for publication elsewhere.
  • This study was presented in part at…
  • This study was previously published in Japanese (citation) and…

6. Closing salutation and your contact information

  • Briefly thank the journal editor for considering the manuscript and follow this with the full contact information of the corresponding author (name, academic degrees or professional qualifications; affiliation and postal address; telephone (and fax); email).
  • Be sure to maintain a collegial tone to leave the journal editor with the best impression as he or she finishes reading your cover letter and moves on to evaluate your manuscript.
  • Avoid statements that could be construed as presuming to give instructions to the editor. For example, "we look forward to your review of our manuscript" implicitly directs the editor to review your paper. Also, we look forward to hearing from you "at your earliest convenience/as soon as possible" implicitly directs the editor to communicate with you quickly; instead, simply use a neutral but polite phrase such as "we look forward to hearing from you" or "we look forward to hearing from you in due course".
  • A suitable closing salutation is "Sincerely," or "Yours sincerely,"

Although the cover letter is not, strictly speaking, a part of your manuscript, it can affect how your submission is perceived by the journal editor. A cover letter that is tailored to the journal, introduces your work persuasively, and is free from spelling and grammatical errors can help prime the editor to view your submission positively before he or she even looks over your manuscript.

We hope our tips and Word template can help you create professional, complete cover letters in a time-effective way. Our specialist editors, translators, and writers are available to help create or revise the content to be error-free and, as part of our additional comprehensive Guidelines for Authors service , we can ensure the cover letter includes all of the statements required by the journal.

Lastly, just as a reminder for members of ThinkSCIENCE's free annual rewards program , remember to claim your reward of free editing or translation of one cover letter alongside editing or translation of a full paper before the end of the March!

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How to Write a Cover Letter for Journal Submission

How to write a cover letter for journal submission - Paperpal

A cover letter to the editor for a manuscript submission is the author’s “pitch” as to why the research paper deserves publishing in a particular journal. If you think it is yet another document in the journal submission process for filling in author details and a mere description of the communicated research, think twice. If written succinctly, a cover letter can be a tipping point for your manuscript, leading to an outbound peer review or an outright desk rejection.

More often, the journal editors are burdened with the task of scrutinizing a huge number of manuscript submissions to select novel and high-quality research that align with the scope of the journal and the demographics of its readership. Through a well written cover letter, an editor can get a chance to know the value of the communicated research prior to reading it in full and can be convinced to proceed with the further review process. Thus, it is important to use this tool effectively to move past the editorial screening stage.

Here are the key elements “ TO DO ” when you write the cover letter for your next manuscript submission:

  • Manuscript title and category

Begin the cover letter with the manuscript title and the journal name for article submission. Mention clearly the category of the article type (letter, article, brief, review) pertaining to the particular journal.

  • Background and context

Briefly, in a couple of sentences, describe the background of the research to bring context to your work. Mention what has been missing or lacking in understanding of a research problem that has not been addressed so far in the published reports.

  • Focus and novelty

Describe how your work, communicated through the submitted manuscript, aims to bridge the existing gap in understanding the research problem. Highlight the novelty of your work by mentioning the major results or findings of your work which provide insightful conclusions that have not been published so far.

  • Relevance to the journal and readership

Explain how this new research work is an advancement over previously published works and relevant to the journal’s aim and scope. Mention if there are potential future applications of your current research and why the findings of your work might be of broad interest to the readership of the journal.  

  • Originality and conflict of interest

Confirm that the research presented in the study is original and that the manuscript is not currently being reviewed by another journal. The manuscript has been approved by all authors, who also consent unanimously to its submission to the journal.

  • Identify preferred/opposed reviewers

As per the editorial policy, the information provided by the authors in the cover letter is treated as confidential and is accessible only by the editors and not open to referees. You can suggest the names of potential reviewers if you believe they can be the best reviewers for your manuscript being stalwarts in the same research field. Likewise, you can also request the editor to exclude certain individuals as referees who you believe may not do justice to reviewing your manuscript owing to potential conflict of interest.

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

  • Competing work  

You can alert the editors in the cover letter if you are aware of another group competing with similar work and seek an expedited review process. This can help the editors in determining editorial workflow accordingly.

While writing a cover letter is liberating and gives you the freedom to describe what is exciting about your research work rather than writing within the constraints of a particular journal’s format, you should still adhere to a few “ DON’Ts ” to err on the side of caution.

  • Rehash the abstract

While writing the body of the cover letter, do not rehash the abstract of your manuscript that the editor will likely read next. In fact, the abstract of the article can be re-written according to the journal format more easily once you have done the cover letter.

  • Too many details, jargons, tall claims

Keep your cover letter to a maximum of one page. Use the limited space wisely and write concisely. Restrict usage of technical details, jargons and boastful claims that can only make the editor wary of your presented work. Also steer clear of expressing any kind of exaggeration/flattery for the journal even if that is the best place to publish your work.

Remind yourself always to follow the ethics of working in a scientific community and strictly avoid any kind of plagiarism.

Finally, writing a cover letter for a journal submission is your best chance of enabling a manuscript to go through the editorial process, getting peer reviewed and published in a coveted journal of your choice. Do your best to grab and use this opportunity to the fullest!

Additional reading:

Nature Immunology 9 , 107 (2008) “Editorial: Prelude to a good story” Available at https://doi.org/10.1038/ni0208-107

Related Reads:

  • How to Write a Grant Proposal for Research

How to Write Effective brief Communications

  • How to Write a Personal Statement for a PhD Program

How Long Should a Chapter Be?

Do you overlook these key elements when writing a research manuscript, 6 simple steps to convert a phd thesis into a journal article, you may also like, how to cite social media sources in academic writing , how to paraphrase research papers effectively, 7 ways to improve your academic writing process, how to write a personal statement for a..., characteristics of academic writing, how to ask a journal editor about manuscript..., 4 key writing styles and examples of academic..., manuscript withdrawal: reasons, consequences, and how to withdraw....

How to write effective cover letters for a paper submission

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Some journals require a letter to the editor, also called a cover letter, as part of the submission process. This can come as a surprise to PhD and master’s students who are (relatively) new to manuscript submissions. Learn about the letter to the editor, what it entails, and how to structure it.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase using the links below at no additional cost to you . I only recommend products or services that I truly believe can benefit my audience. As always, my opinions are my own.

Cover letters for journal submissions

The purpose of a ‘letter to the editor’, who to address in a letter to the journal editor, how to structure a cover letter to the journal editor, length and effort needed for a cover letter to the journal editor.

You might be familiar with the following situation: After weeks and months of work, your paper is finally ready for submission. You are thrilled, on cloud nine.

You fought your way through Manuscript Central. You cannot wait to press SUBMIT. Almost there. Wait…whaaaaaat? Do you have to include a letter to the editor?!

Not all journals are asking for a letter to the editor. And many supervisors simply forget to mention this stage of the submission process. The result: many early career researchers are taken by surprise and are often unaware of the expectations when it comes to writing letters to the editor.

A letter to the editor (or editors) is essentially a cover letter that accompanies your paper submission to an academic journal. Uploading such a letter is often one of the last steps to conclude before hitting the ‘submit’ button that sends off your manuscript.

Some journals have specific criteria for this letter, so make sure to check the journal website thoroughly. Most, however, do not specify what the letter should entail. There are general expectations though:

  • Summarising your research: The letter to the editor/s should summarise what you did, and what your main findings are. This does not mean that you can simply copy-paste your abstract! While it is okay to copy-paste half a sentence or so, put some effort into writing a few sentences summarising your paper in simple language.
  • Highlighting your original contribution: Make sure to highlight your key arguments and the originality of your research. Don’t be overly arrogant (e.g. “My cutting-edge research has made the groundbreaking discovery of…” ) but also don’t be overly humble. Think of sentences such as “ I believe that my findings make a valuable contribution to … by challenging the assumption that…”, or “My research sheds light on …, an aspect that has been under-researched so far but warrants attention because…”.
  • Justifying why your paper fits the journal of your choice: Lastly, you should use the cover letter to explain why you selected the specific journal, and why you think the journal’s readers will be interested in your paper.

When receiving your paper, the editor might first screen the letter in combination with your abstract. Therefore, a clear and concise letter is very important! It can make a difference between receiving a desk rejection, or the editor starting the peer review process .

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

If you are looking to elevate your writing and editing skills, I highly recommend enrolling in the course “ Good with Words: Writing and Editing Specialization “, which is a 4 course series offered by the University of Michigan. This comprehensive program is conveniently available as an online course on Coursera, allowing you to learn at your own pace. Plus, upon successful completion, you’ll have the opportunity to earn a valuable certificate to showcase your newfound expertise!

Now, coming to the nitty-gritty. Who to address in your letter? Some journals make it easy for you: They ask you to select an editor from the journal’s editorial board. In many cases, however, it is not obvious who to address.

To be on the safe side, follow these steps:

  • Step 1: Go to the journal’s website and look for information on the editorial board. Usually, you will find the name or names of the editor/s in chief, as well as the editorial board members.
  • Step 2: Check whether you were assigned to, or could select, an editor of your choice from the provided list of editors. If yes, address your cover letter to that person. If no, continue to step 3.
  • Step 3: Try to find out if all manuscripts will first be inspected by the editor/s-in-chief. If so, address your letter to the editor/s-in-chief. There is a high chance that you won’t find this information at all. Nonetheless, it is worth checking.
  • Step 4: Still unsure who is going to read your paper first? Then go for a generic: “ Dear editors of …(journal name)”.

Now that you know who to address, or decided to go for a generic greeting, it is time to start writing. First of all, be formal. If you know who to address, include a proper salutation, such as “ Dear Professor Dr. … “.

Now continue with something positive. For instance, that you are pleased to submit your manuscript to the journal.(Write down the journal name in full. The more specific your letter, the less it will seem like a generic copy-paste exercise). State the name of your paper, and if applicable, list all co-authors.

Then, in a nutshell, describe the content of your paper. Next up, highlight the unique contribution and originality of your paper.

And last but not least, explain how and why your paper fits the journal, and why you selected it. Some compliments never hurt. To enhance your point, you can also mention one or several papers that were recently published in the journal and that is heavily featured in your paper.

Finally, thank the editor/s for their time to review your paper. And end formally, with “ sincerely ” or “ with kind regards “.

No editor wants to read a cover letter that is half a paper on its own. Instead, keep it brief and to the point! If you follow the structure above, write three short paragraphs. Or, another guideline would be approximately half a page. 300 – 600 words.

As stated above, the cover letter is an important element of paper submission. However, while taking it seriously, do not stress too much about it. Don’t let perfectionism become your enemy. Don’t waste, for example, half a day just worrying about the formulation of each sentence.

Put yourself a limit, for instance to 1 hour to write the letter, if it is the first time you write one.

Once you become more experienced and confident, you will write letters to the editor/s even faster. To this day, every time I have to write one, I open the last cover letter that I submitted. When you have a structure that works for you, a new letter can be written quite fast and effectively.

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Three Cover Letter Templates to Journal Editors

Posted by Rene Tetzner | Aug 26, 2021 | How To Get Published | 0 |

Three Cover Letter Templates to Journal Editors

Three Cover Letter Templates to Journal Editors Each cover letter is unique, and those addressed to journal editors by scientists and academics when they submit their writing for publication are no exception. As an opportunity to present original research in the best possible light, a cover letter is indispensible for persuading a busy editor that a manuscript is worthy of peer review. A letter can only achieve this goal, however, if it is well written, contains everything the particular journal’s author instructions request for cover letters and offers specific and detailed information about why the research reported and the paper itself are perfect for the journal and of special interest to its readers. The originality that should characterise an excellent cover letter therefore prevents the wholesale use of a universal template without significant alterations, but the three sample letters that appear below may prove helpful for scholars who are planning, formatting and drafting a professional cover letter to a journal editor.

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

The content of the three sample letters is entirely fictional, with the dates, names, titles and situations invented. The specifics pertinent to your own research, your manuscript and the journal you are targeting will give you the raw material to emulate these templates. The format of a traditional business letter has been observed, so contact information for the authors and editors has been provided as complete mailing addresses. This formality may not be strictly necessary when communicating with a journal editor via email, where such details are often truncated, but the complete forms are always acceptable, and proper names and titles are a necessity. If possible, the official letterhead of the university, department or other research body with which you are affiliated should be used along with your name, phone number and professional email address.

Descriptions of the research and manuscript in each of the three examples have been kept simple so that the meaning will be clear to readers of all specialisations, but there are certainly successful cover letters that delve into a good deal more detail. Letter 2 below, for instance, might productively say more about the specific lights used and tomato plants grown and provide numbers and percentages as well. Do keep in mind, however, that the clarity and accessibility offered by a short and simple approach is also valuable, particularly when writing to an editor who may not share your precise specialisation.

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

Letter 1 adopts the perspective of a doctoral candidate who has rewritten the literature review chapter of his thesis as a bibliographical study and is seeking publication for the first time. Letter 2 introduces a research paper written by several authors and demonstrates how to act as the corresponding author when submitting a multi-author manuscript. Letter 3 posits that the author met the journal editor at a recent conference where an earlier version of the paper now being submitted for a theme issue of the journal was presented.

Download –> Letter 1: A Doctoral Candidate Seeking His First Publication

Joe Student Department of English University of the Western Shore San Francisco, CA, USA 98765 777-999-8888 [email protected]

Dr. Brian Editing Editor-in-Chief Journal of Analytical Middle English Bibliography New York, NY, USA 12345 [email protected]

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

November 8, 2017

Dear Dr. Editing,

I am writing to submit my article entitled ‘A Bibliography of Hoccleve Studies from the Fifteenth Century to 2017: Patterns of Readership and Response’ for publication in the   Journal of Analytical Middle English Bibliography . This manuscript is based on a chapter of my doctoral thesis, supervised by Dr Hoccleve Specialist, and has not been published or submitted elsewhere for consideration.

I believe this manuscript is appropriate for the   Journal of Analytical Middle English Bibliography   because it combines a complete list and critical summary of previous studies with an in-depth analysis of not only individual contributions, but also the larger patterns of scholarship and their possible significance through the centuries. As I argue in the paper, the autobiographical nature of Hoccleve’s writing and the bouts of madness he claims to have experienced are topics upon which perspectives and approaches swing on a particularly long pendulum. Shifts in opinion regarding the literary quality of Hoccleve’s poetry are similarly striking. Current trends and the annotated Hoccleve bibliography will likely prove of special interest to many of your readers, enabling future research and encouraging scholarly self-awareness.

If you decide to consider the manuscript for publication, I suggest the following two experts as qualified reviewers:

Dr. Medieval Scholarship Professor of English, Southern University [email protected]

Dr. Manuscript Expert Director of Medieval Studies, Northern University [email protected]

Many thanks for your time and consideration. I look forward to your response.

Joe Student

Joe Student Ph.D. Candidate and Teaching Assistant Department of English University of the Western Shore

Download –> Letter 2: A Corresponding Author Submitting an Article Written by Several Researchers

Jane Researcher Private Plant Research Institute 9201 Pink Greenhouse Place Coquitlam, BC, Canada, V0V 1A1 604-604-6044 [email protected]

Dr Samuel Botanist Managing Editor Growing Our Greenhouse: A Journal of Current Research 2020 Glass Hill Colorado Springs, CO, USA, 59678 [email protected]

November 22, 2017

Dear Dr Botanist,

I am delighted to submit an original research article entitled ‘LED Lights Increase Vitamin C Content in Greenhouse Cherry Tomatoes’ for publication in   Growing Our Greenhouse: A Journal of Current Research . My colleagues and I at the Private Plant Research Institute in Coquitlam conducted the research and coauthored the manuscript; a full list of the names and affiliations of all ten coauthors is attached. We have all approved the manuscript for submission to   Growing Our Greenhouse , and I have been chosen as the corresponding author.

The article is particularly appropriate for the journal’s section dedicated to the cultivation of fruits and vegetables. It is, in fact, a continuation of the research presented in our article ‘Can LED Lights Really Replace the Sun for Tomatoes?’ which was published in that section of   Growing Our Greenhouse   two years ago. Then we were analysing the results of our first two seasons of growing tomatoes under LED lights. One of the unexpected discoveries we made as we determined which plants and lights produced the best results was that vitamin C content appeared to increase when the ripening fruit was exposed to LED light.

The research reported in the manuscript I am submitting today was designed to investigate further the apparent increases in vitamin C. Its methodology is similar to that of our earlier study, but we used only those cherry tomato plants that we had already shown could thrive under LED lights. We also established a larger number of experimental groups to explore the effects of variables such as light colour, light intensity, hours of exposure, ambient temperature and presence or absence of sunlight. Our findings were convincing to say the least, with vitamin C content doubling and sometimes trebling in fruit exposed to additional LED light. Even fruit given only LED lighting and deprived of all natural sunlight far exceeded the vitamin C content of those tomatoes exposed to natural sunlight alone.

We trust that your readers will find our hands-on empirical method as effective as they have in the past and benefit from our practices and discoveries as they grow and experiment in their own greenhouses.

Thank you for your continuing interest and consideration.

Yours sincerely,

Jane Researcher

Jane Researcher Research Director, Private Plant Research Institute

Download –> Letter 3: A Conference Participant Submitting a Paper to the Journal Editor She Met

Sheila Presenter Chair, School of Business Management Yorkshire University 2121 University Road York, North Yorkshire, UK, YO33 7EE 01904 323232 [email protected]

Dr Margaret Publisher Editor-in-Chief Journal of Innovative Business Studies 178B West Central Avenue London, UK, EC9M 6BB [email protected]

25 November 2017

Dear Dr Publisher,

It was a pleasure meeting you and discussing our similar interests at the Business Management conference in London a couple of weeks ago. As promised, I have revised my presentation and am submitting it for your consideration for the upcoming issue of the   Journal of Innovative Business Studies   dedicated to management innovations. The new title of the manuscript is ‘Empathy as a Management Strategy Yields Significant Increases in Efficiency and Productivity.’

You might recall that we discussed the challenges of reshaping my presentation, which was designed to generate in conference attendees the emotional responses it discusses, to conform to the structural requirements of the   Journal of Innovative Business Studies . The journal’s author instructions were actually very helpful, and I believe the overall argument of the paper is now clearer as a result of the rearrangement. I also took a look at the recent   Journal of Innovative Business Studies   articles by Sally Scholar and John Researcher that you recommended. The former was particularly helpful and I have cited it more than once in my closing discussion. That discussion has benefited significantly from our long talk at the conference and I hope you do not object to my acknowledgement of your insight.

As you know, the research presented in the manuscript is original and has not been published or submitted elsewhere. My methods comply with the journal’s ethical standards, I have no conflicts of interest to disclose and I have removed all traces of my identity in preparation for blind review. I would respectfully request that Stephen Harsh not review the manuscript, however. His knowledge in this area is extensive, but you may remember from his comments at the conference that he does not share my approach to management or view my recent research with a positive eye. I believe the following two experts would serve as more appropriate reviewers of my paper:

Frederick Newapproach CEO, Management Innovations UK Inc. [email protected] Samantha Kindheart Chair, Department of Business Management University of the Wolds [email protected]

I look forward to seeing you at the upcoming conference in Leeds. In the meantime, let me take this opportunity to thank you for your interest and consideration.

Best regards,

Sheila Presenter

Sheila Presenter Chair, School of Business Management Yorkshire University

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  • Manuscript Review

If You’re a Researcher, Remember These Before You Are Submitting Your Manuscript to Journals!

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Table of Contents

A manuscript is, often, the result of an extended period of hard work; you thus want to submit the best version you can to a journal. Doing this also maximizes the chances of your manuscript being published. So, it is advisable that authors review their manuscripts as many times as possible before sending it to their chosen journal. But what things must you focus on during review?  

Here’s a checklist!  

Title and author information  

What’s in a name? A lot, especially when it comes to scientific articles.   

An impactful title for your paper will make it stand out from the rest and may improve the chances of it being read in full. To capture the reader’s attention, ensure that your title reflects an interesting aspect of the study, such as the most noteworthy finding.  

Moreover, to avoid unnecessary revisions later on, make sure your manuscript contains all crucial information about its authors, including full names, affiliations, and email addresses for correspondence. ¹

Correct grammar and spelling  

Poor language makes a manuscript unfit for review, let alone publication. Thorough proofreading for grammar and spelling is crucial before submission, and ideally should be done several times.   

Formatting    

Most journals have a prescribed format for articles and editors do not accept manuscripts that deviate from these guidelines. In addition to ensuring that your manuscript meets the journal’s specific requirements for layout, font type, font size, spacing etc., make sure to submit the manuscript in the prescribed file format such as Microsoft Word (.DOCX), PDF (.PDF) or LaTeX (.tex).   

Correctly placed figures and tables    

Figures and tables help readers better understand your study by presenting information graphically or by presenting a collated “bigger picture”. Ensure they complement the text and avoid repeating the information. When your manuscript contains several figures, it is vital to embed them correctly within the text. Also, ensure correct labeling and numbering to prevent confusion.  

Cohesiveness  

Your manuscript should appear cohesive across different sections. Consider having a friend or colleague review it for consistent language and style. Professional editors can also provide valuable assistance here, as they are trained to spot inconsistencies, among many other issues.  

Citation and referencing  

If you fail to cite each reference to previous articles, you risk committing plagiarism. Therefore, scan your manuscript thoroughly to ensure that every mention of another study or article is properly cited with consistent numbering. In the reference section where you list cited works, ensure that you follow an accepted referencing format, such as the American Psychological Association (APA) Style, throughout.  

A conflict-of-interest statement  

A conflict of interest is a potential financial or personal incentive that could have influenced the objectivity of the researchers. For instance, if a study analyzing the effectiveness of a drug has been funded by a pharmaceutical company that stands to profit from the study’s findings, then there is a conflict of interest that the authors must acknowledge. Ensure that your manuscript provides a detailed and complete description of conflicts of interest to demonstrate the reliability of your findings.  

A declaration of ethical compliance  

Studies that involve animals and/or humans often require approval from a competent authority such as an ethical board at a university. Journals strictly require a declaration of ethical compliance from the authors to process manuscripts. Therefore, ensure that you include a declaration in the appropriate place in your manuscript.  

Cover letter  

A cover letter is a key document that accompanies submissions to a journal which mentions author information, the key findings and significance of the study, information on additional data and supplementary materials, and information on ethical compliance. The purpose of the cover letter is to demonstrate that your manuscript reflects authentic research and to persuade the editors to accept it, and a well-written cover letter goes a long way in helping your manuscript to be accepted.²

Conclusion  

Reviewing and making sure your manuscript meets the submission criteria of top journals is a tiresome process, yet it’s necessary to reduce the chances of rejection. ELS can make this process easier! With meticulous attention to detail, our English-speaking editors address grammar and language issues to readily improve the quality of your work. You can count on us to thoroughly check formatting, citation styles, and adherence to journal guidelines, guaranteeing that your manuscript is polished and ready to submit. Moreover, our Plus service offers additional letter customization, reference editing, and language flow checks. And if you’re in a hurry, opt for our Express service, and you can have a polished manuscript on your desk within 4 business days! Walk into 2024 with ELS. Click the link to know more.  

Type in wordcount for Plus Total: USD EUR JPY Follow this link if your manuscript is longer than 9,000 words. Upload

References:  

  • Manuscript submission guidelines. Geriatr Orthop Surg Rehabil. 2013 Jun;4(2):64-5. doi: 10.1177/2151458510383260. PMID: 24093079; PMCID: PMC3789503.   
  • https://researcheracademy.elsevier.com/writing-research/writing-skills/writing-persuasive-cover-letter-manuscript  

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Enago Academy

Writing a Cover Letter for Journal Submission

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One of the most neglected aspects of journal submission is the cover letter. Although it may seem like a formality, the cover letter is actually an important part of the submission process . The cover letter is your chance to tell the editor about your manuscript, why it is important, and how it fits into the scope of their journal. Overall, the letter should grab the editor’s attention. This letter should not be written hurriedly, because the quality of the cover letter can make or break your chances of publication . The cover letter should follow a fairly standard format.

Format of a Cover Letter

The first thing you need to do is check your target journal’s author instructions for the cover letter requirements . Sometimes, the journals will request that certain phrases or statements be included in the cover letter. If this is the case, then make sure that your letter contains all of the required information and statements mentioned in the instructions. Before writing the letter, here are a few key things to remember with regard to the format of the letter.

  • The letter should be written on a letterhead, and it should be limited to about one or one and a half pages long. All the proper letter heading materials should be included (the date and the address of the recipient should be at the top left, under the letterhead).
  • It should address the editor by name, if this is known.
  • The body of the letter should include four short paragraphs.
  • The first paragraph should introduce the author while stating that the author is submitting a manuscript for review. This section should include the title of the manuscript and the journal name.
  • The second paragraph should cover the focus of the manuscript. This should include about 4-5 sentences that describe the focus of the study, the hypothesis, the approach, and the methodology.
  • The third paragraph should be about 2-3 sentences and should describe the key findings and how these contribute to the field. It should also describe the scope of the manuscript to the journal based on the details of the manuscript. If you have any other important details that might make your manuscript stand out and encourage the editor to send it for review then do not forget to mention those details in this paragraph.
  • The final paragraph should always thank the editor for considering the manuscript for publication.

Points to Remember

In addition, there are certain key phrases that need to be included, and some of these are even required by most journals. It should be mentioned that the written manuscript is original and no part of it has been published before, nor is any part of it under consideration for publication at any another journal. The authors might also need to declare any conflicts of interest.

Related: Drafting your cover letter for manuscript submission ? Check out this post now for additional points to consider submitting your manuscript!

Finally, some journals require that you submit a list of potential reviewers in the cover letter and also allow you to mention any researchers who should not review your manuscript. All of these added statements are a very important to consider while writing a cover letter , especially if they are required by the journal, and contribute to the editors overall view of your manuscript submission. Do not forget to proofread your cover letter several times. The text should be revised for clarity and succinctness. Points or sentences that stray from the focus should be removed and all the sentences should be directly related to the purpose, the main results, and the most important findings and conclusions.

In addition, all basic grammar and construction issues should be corrected during the revision. If you need help with the revision, you can include your cover letter with your manuscript when seeking for a professional proofreading service . If you are still unsure of where to start with your cover letter, there several templates available that can help. We have listed some of these below:

https://spie.org/Documents/Publications/ Journals / sample _ cover _ letter .doc

www.springer.com/cda/content/document/…/JGIM+ Cover + letter + templates .doc

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Completing an article for an academic journal is an impressive accomplishment, but don’t turn off your computer yet. You still have to write a cover letter to accompany it. Part query letter, part sales pitch, the cover letter should encapsulate what your journal article is about, convince the editor that his readers will benefit from reading it and demonstrate your professional expertise on the topic. This may sound like a lot of ground to cover in one letter, but you can do it, and effectively, by following a sensible plan of action that includes a call to action for your article.

Direct your cover letter to the proper editor. Even a name on a website can be obsolete, so call the journal to confirm the person’s name and title so that you can address the person accordingly in your letter.

Center your name and contact information at the top of your letter. You may or may not wish to include your residential address, but be sure to include either your e-mail address, phone number or both so that the editor may contact you.

Open your letter with a provocative statement or question that represents the essential point or finding of your journal article. This is where the sales pitch element comes in, but don’t overdo it. Strive for a balance between enthusiasm and professionalism; the two are not mutually exclusive. A good example might be: “College professors have long suspected that students who sit in the front row in class earn higher grades, and now further proof can be found in my study of student grades."

Reveal other key elements of the journal article in the second paragraph. In this example, you would want to include the number of students who were included in your research, the name of the school, and crucially, what your findings portend for academia. Include pertinent information about your article in this paragraph, including its title, but try to leave the editor wanting to learn more, too.

Segue into why your article would be of interest to readers of the academic journal. This is where you should demonstrate that you’ve done your homework -- not only to impress the editor of the journal, but to prove that your article is suitable for publication. In this example, you might refer to the predominant readers of the journal and how your findings might help them improve the quality of their instruction for students who do not sit in the front row of class.

Cite your credentials with confidence. They might include your educational background, your teaching experience and any previous publication credits. Be specific; include the exact names of the courses you have taught and at which institutions. Likewise, include the titles of your previous works, the names of the journals in which they were published and the dates of publication.

Reveal your enthusiasm for your article and your conviction in its worth. Here, too, the sales pitch element comes into play. You might say, for example, “I am confident that readers of this journal will gain greater insight into student motivations, perhaps alter their teaching methods and enhance the value of their instruction by reading my article.”

Close your letter by offering to answer any questions the editor might have. Pledge to phone the editor within a week and thank the editor for his time and consideration in the meantime.

Proofread your letter to ensure that it is flawless and devoid of spelling and editing errors.

  • 2012 Writer’s Market, Robert Lee Brewer (ed.), 2012.
  • Freelance Writing.com: Sample Query Letter to Pitch an Article to an Academic Journal
  • Writers Digest.com: Advice on Writing Query Letters
  • Purdue University Online Writing Lab: Writing the Basic Business Letter
  • Colorado State University: Writing Guide: Business Letters
  • Daily Writing Tips.com: The Impotence of Proofreading
  • While writing a substantive journal article and a compelling cover letter are important, so is taking the time to ensure that you have identified a proper vehicle for your work. Mass mailing your article to journals is a waste of everyone’s time, and editors tend to have long memories for writers who waste their time.

With education, health care and small business marketing as her core interests, M.T. Wroblewski has penned pieces for Woman's Day, Family Circle, Ladies Home Journal and many newspapers and magazines. She holds a master's degree in journalism from Northern Illinois University.

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How To Write A Cover Letter For Journal Submission

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

Quick Takeaways:

  • A well-written cover letter is a valuable item in your submission package
  • Use our checklist as a guide to craft an effective cover letter, and
  • Download our example cover letter and use it as a template

Your cover letter should not only summarise the key message of your submitted paper, but also convincingly “sell” your work and make the editor want to read the full paper and send it out to peer reviewers.

A good manuscript cover letter can make your submission stand out from the hundreds of submissions a journal may receive each week. A bad cover letter, on the other hand, may work against you by making a poor first impression, as explained by Dr. Rachel Baron, our Co-Chief Editor:

Watch the rest of this webinar:  Ready To Submit For Publication? How To Ensure Your Paper Makes An Impact

In this guide:

  • 1) Meaning of ‘et al.’
  • a) Table: Correct use of ‘et al.’ by style guide
  • b) Unusual scenarios

Although the transition to digital submission systems has decreased the significance of cover letters, many journals still require or recommend one.  Nature , for example, states,

“Although optional, the cover letter is an excellent opportunity to briefly discuss the importance of the submitted work and why it is appropriate for the journal.”

Whether your target journal requires a cover letter or you’ve decided to write one nevertheless, it’s worth taking the time to write an effective and compelling letter. In this guide, we’ll show you how you can do so in six simple steps.

A. Writing a Cover Letter for Your Manuscript

Step 1: address the recipient professionally, step 2: state the manuscript essentials (e.g., title & type).

Step 3: Summarise your study

Step 4: Meet journal-specific requirements

Step 5: include standard declarations, step 6: sign off professionally, putting it all together: a quick checklist.

B.  Example Cover Letter [Free Download]

QUICK ASIDE

Your target journal may set a 1-page limit for cover letters. Even if it doesn’t impose a page or word-count limit, cover letters are best kept to 1–2 pages long (with single-line spacing), so it’s important to make the optimum use of the limited space available.

It’s important that you greet the right person as the letter’s recipient, and that you do so professionally. Avoid using a generic greeting, such as ‘Hello’, ‘Greetings’, or ‘To whom it may concern’.

Browse through your target journal’s website to find out the name of the journal editor, who usually carries the job title ‘Editor-in-Chief’, ‘Chief Editor’, ‘Editor’, ‘Executive Editor’, or ‘Managing Editor’. Journals with a broad scope may require you to name the senior or associate editor who handles a specific topic or article type. Typically, this information is listed on a page titled ‘Editorial Board’, ‘Journal Staff’, or something similar.

✗  Dear Sir/Madam,

✓  Dear Dr Huang,

✓  Dear Mr Horton:

✓  Dear Ms Li

✓  Dear Editor-in-Chief:             (use the editor’s title only if you can’t find the name of the editor)

The use of punctuation in your greeting (e.g., Dr. Huang vs Dr Huang), as well as in the rest of the letter, will vary depending on whether you’re following US, UK, or other   convention. We recommend that you pick one style and follow it throughout the letter.

In your first paragraph, explain why you’re writing the letter. Remember to include not only the title of your manuscript but also the type of submission (e.g., original research article, review article, short communication, letter, case report). Use your target journal’s terminology for the name of the article type, to show attention to detail and that you are familiar with the journal’s style.

Also mention any special circumstances, including if you’ve had previous contact with the journal or if the manuscript is a resubmission. Use formal English and consistent punctuation and spelling style (e.g., US, as in the first example below, or UK, as in the second and third examples) throughout the letter.

✓  I am writing to submit my paper, “Title of your manuscript,” to Journal Name as an Original Article.

✓  On behalf of my co-authors, I am submitting the attached Brief Communication, ‘Title of your manuscript’, to Journal Name for fast-track consideration for the upcoming special issue on X.

✓  My co-authors and I were pleased to receive your favourable response of 1 April 2021 to our pre-submission enquiry regarding a state-of-the-art review on X. Accordingly, we would like to submit the enclosed manuscript, ‘Title of your manuscript’, for consideration for publication as a Review Article in Journal Name.

Omitting any of the key pieces of information (i.e., article name, article type, journal name) or sounding informal or too pushy can result in a poor opening.

✗ Please consider my article for publication in your journal!

✗ I’d be glad if you’d accept our paper for publication in Journal Name

Do check that you’ve correctly named, and correctly spelt, your target journal (and its Editor-in-Chief), especially if you are submitting a rejected manuscript to a new journal.

Step 3: Summarise your study

The next paragraph is one of the most important parts of the cover letter. This is where you convince the editor that your manuscript is worth reviewing.

As tempting as it may be, don’t simply copy and paste the abstract of your manuscript, as the purposes and styles of an abstract and a cover letter are different. In your abstract, you summarise the manuscript using similar language and a similar order of information (introduction, methods, results, conclusion), so as to entice readers to read the full text.

In your cover letter, however, you summarise the manuscript but focus on the value of your contribution to the journal and discipline, so as to persuade the editor to read the abstract. Use plain, non-technical language because the editor may not be an expert in your particular field or topic, and avoid sounding too self-promotional, emotional, informal, or wordy.

Start with the most important message or feature of your manuscript. You can highlight the novelty of your study, innovation of your approach, or strength of your conclusions. Also explain how your manuscript matches the aims and scope of the target journal by stating how the practical or theoretical implications of your study are relevant to the specific readership.

✓ Our 2-year trial of Z for X among Y shows that delaying Z administration to bedtime doubles its efficacy. This shift in timing is a simple, safe, and cost-effective way to increase drug efficacy and reduce X prevalence. The results are robust and applicable worldwide, given the strong study design (randomised cross-over trial of 1 million patients in 5 continents), and would be immediately useful for health care professionals who read Journal Name.

✗ X is a horrendous affliction affecting half of Y. Currently, the most common treatment regimen for X is Z, but it is sadly only of 50% clinical efficaciousness. This milestone clinical investigation aimed to achieve a massive reduction in morbidity and mortality by effecting a great improvement in the effectiveness of Z as treatment of X among Y. Utilising a groundbreaking chronotherapeutic modality approach, we carefully designed a randomised cross-over trial…

In 2-page cover letters, you could further justify your request for considering your paper for a certain article category or fast-track (expedited) publication, or include other relevant or insightful information. However, don’t request any waivers of submission or publication fees and don’t make any recommendations for or against potential reviewers unless allowed or required by the journal (see next section).

Some journals may require you to provide specific information in the cover letter, the most common of which are related to:

●   Authorship ●   Funding, conflicts of interest ●   Ethical approval for experiments involving humans or animals ●   Clinical trial registration ●   Data availability or sharing ●   If all authors are willing to transfer copyright to the journal if the manuscript is accepted

Some journals ask you to state if your manuscript has been previously rejected by another journal, in which case past review reports should be enclosed, along with a point-by-point response. Some journals ask for:

●   Names and affiliations of all the authors of the submitted manuscript ●   Word count and number of tables and figures ●   Number and size of supplementary files ●   If the authors are willing to pay for colour-page charges ●   Suggestions of images for cover art

Journals may also require or recommend that you list potential impartial peer reviewers (with institutions and email addresses) and/or people who you think shouldn’t be asked to be reviewers, with reasons. You may be asked to nominate an associate editor from a list in the journal’s website who can act as the topic-specific handling/academic editor. You may also be asked to specify your choice of peer review model from a limited selection of available models (e.g., single- or double-anonymised, or open-identity review).

It’s therefore important to read the journal’s Instructions for Authors page.

For example, to meet the requirement of  PLOS ONE  to ‘list any opposed reviewers’, you could write:

✓  We request that Prof X from the University of Y not be invited as a peer reviewer, because the journal uses double-anonymised review, but we recently sent her a non-anonymised draft of our manuscript for informal pre-submission review.

✗  Please under no circumstances whatsoever, don’t send our paper to Prof X from the University of Y to review because she gave us a really negative review for another paper in another journal 3 years ago.

Meeting all of the journal’s cover letter requirements, as well as submission requirements (e.g., authorship/contributorship and other declarations; copyright transfer form; if the journal requires that the manuscript be anonymized except the title page; or if figures and tables should be submitted in a separate file) will make your publication journey smoother by avoiding delays due to resubmission(s).

In the concluding section of your cover letter, you should include certain standard declarations that nearly all journals expect. For example,

●   Statement clarifying that all of the authors agree with the decision to submit the manuscript to the target journal: ●   All authors have read and approved the manuscript and have agreed to submit it to  Journal Name.

●   Statement of originality and exclusive submission to the journal: ●   The manuscript has not been previously published and is not being considered by another journal for publication.

●   Declarations associated with obtaining permission to use copyrighted material: ●   Our manuscript includes a figure published by Chan et al. (2020). We have obtained the necessary permission to reproduce the figure in our manuscript.

●   Who the Corresponding Author is: ●   Please note that I am the designated Corresponding Author for this submission.

Finally, professionally thank the editor for reviewing your submission, without being too flattering or sounding insincere.

✓  We thank you for considering our submission and we look forward to hearing from you.

✗  We are extremely indebted to you for graciously considering this humble manuscript for possible publication in your highly esteemed journal. Please reply soonest! Thanks!

Check if your target journal requires you to declare and enclose copies of similar manuscripts in preparation, submitted to other journals, posted to a preprint site, or previously presented at a conference. Check if your target journal considers preprint posting as prior publication.

End your cover letter by signing off professionally, and providing full contact details (e.g., mailing address, fax number, telephone number, email address). For example,

Yours sincerely, [First and Last Name of Corresponding Author] Job title Department of _________ University of ________ University address Fax: Phone: Email:

If you haven’t addressed the recipient by name but have instead used the editor’s title, replace ‘Yours sincerely’ with ‘Yours faithfully’.

If you’ve followed our guidelines above, you should have an effective cover letter. Good luck with your submission! Reach out to  [email protected]  should you require any editorial assistance.

Our downloadable draft manuscript submission cover letter, written in US style, deals with a fictitious case but is customisable and is annotated with helpful Comments. Please edit or replace text as needed and delete all Comments when finalising your letter. Remember to use non-technical, jargon-free but formal language, and avoid abbreviations, or spell them out at first mention.

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

Our latest online workshop built on the success of face-to-face workshops we developed specifically for local universities. Over 30 faculty members joined the session, presented by our Chief Operating Officer, Mr Nick Case, to learn from our case studies on editing research proposals.

The response to our workshop, which included a constructive and insightful Q&A session, was very positive.Drawing on our extensive experience working with hundreds of Hong Kong researchers targeting the GRF and ECS every year, we used examples of poor and subsequently improved proposals to show the attendees how they can make their applications stand out.

Wondering why some abbreviations such as ‘et al.’ and ‘e.g.’ use periods, whereas others such as CV and AD don’t? Periods are typically used if the abbreviations include lowercase or mixed-case letters. They’re usually not used with abbreviations containing only uppercase letters.

Unusual Scenarios

The response to our workshop, which included a constructive and insightful Q&A session, was very positive.Drawing on our extensive experience working with hundreds of Hong Kong researchers targeting the GRF and ECS every year, we used examples of poor and subsequently improved proposals to show the attendees how they can make their applications stand out. The response to our workshop, which included a constructive and insightful Q&A session, was very positive.Drawing on our extensive experience working with hundreds of Hong Kong researchers targeting the GRF and ECS every year, we used examples of poor and subsequently improved proposals to show the attendees how they can make their applications stand out. The response to our workshop, which included a constructive and insightful Q&A session, was very positive.Drawing on our extensive experience working with hundreds of Hong Kong researchers targeting the GRF and ECS every year, we used examples of poor and subsequently improved proposals to show the attendees how they can make their applications stand out.

Author Resources

Check out AsiaEdit’s professional research grant proposal editing service. Read more about our training services covering all aspects of academic writing tailored for local institutions.

More resources on research grant proposal writing: On-demand Webinars Preparing an effective research proposal – Your guide to successful funding application Preparing an effective research proposal – Your guide to successful funding application (Part 2)

writing a cover letter to an academic journal

Felix is a BELS-certified academic editor with a decade of experience in editorial operations and management . He is passionate about science communication and takes pride in helping researchers disseminate their work. Felix has been with AsiaEdit since May 2020.

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TAA Abstract

How to write a cover letter for your academic journal article

In this age of electronic submissions and instant gratification, the simple courtesies of yesterday are sometimes lost in the speed of today’s processes. Regardless, most people agree that good manners never go out of style.

As a result, introducing your article with a well-written cover letter to the editor can be the catalyst to a favorable review and acceptance of your submission for publication. These tips can help you write a cover letter that sells your research to the journal editor.

1) Make it personal

The cover letter should address the journal editor directly and convince them that your research is both worthy of review and a good fit for their journal. You want the reader to know that you are interested in being published with them, not simply in being published.

Most journals provide editor contact information on their websites. Where possible, the letter should be addressed to a specific person by name. In all cases, it should identify the paper you are submitting for review and the journal to which it is being submitted. Be sure to include how your manuscript fits within the scope of the journal.

2) Include key details about your manuscript

Identify the complete title and any co-authors on the manuscript. Briefly describe the type of research conducted, the underlying research question(s), and the main finding(s) from the study. A well-written abstract can provide most of these details as a starting point for the concise delivery of information in your cover letter.

When discussing findings, address how those findings are significant, and more specifically, why they are of interest to the journal’s readers.

3) Confirm eligibility for publication

Clearly state that the manuscript has not been published elsewhere; that there are no conflicts of interest or other issues preventing publication; and when working with co-authors, that all authors have approved the submission of the manuscript for consideration by this journal. Include any additional statements of eligibility as required by the journal guidelines.

4) Format the letter professionally

Properly format your letter using a business letter style. Use institutional or personal letterhead with corresponding contact information or include the contact details in your signature block. Include a date line, recipient address information for the journal editor, a greeting, a closing, and a signature block.

5) Express gratitude and demonstrate attention to detail

Thank the editor for their time and consideration of your article for publication. Demonstrate your appreciation for their time (and your professionalism as an author) by ensuring that all required elements are included in the cover letter according to the journal’s author guidelines.

A well-written cover letter will get the attention of an editor, but the manuscript will determine ultimate publication. Be sure that the claims presented in the letter are supported by the article submitted for review.

Eric Schmieder

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Open Access

Ten simple rules for writing a cover letter to accompany a job application for an academic position

* E-mail: [email protected]

Affiliation Department of Genetics, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia

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Affiliation Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia

  • Lubomir Tomaska, 
  • Jozef Nosek

PLOS

Published: May 31, 2018

  • https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006132
  • Reader Comments

Citation: Tomaska L, Nosek J (2018) Ten simple rules for writing a cover letter to accompany a job application for an academic position. PLoS Comput Biol 14(5): e1006132. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006132

Editor: Fran Lewitter, Whitehead Institute, UNITED STATES

Copyright: © 2018 Tomaska, Nosek. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Funding: The authors received no specific funding for this work.

Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Introduction

It is becoming a difficult task to find an academic position that is best suited for one’s capabilities and preferences. In an extremely competitive environment [ 1 ], there are tens of applicants (and often more) per a single position. As a result, the hiring committees judge the quality of the candidates based on numerous criteria, including previous achievements listed in their CVs; recommendation letters from their instructors, supervisors, or peers; technical and presentation skills; and research plans. In many cases, the first encounter with the applicants is mediated by their cover letter. If well crafted, the letter can simultaneously act as an introduction, a first-stage filter, and a cogent, compelling argument for one’s candidacy (e.g., [ 2 – 6 ]). On the other hand, a generic, boring, uninspiring cover letter full of typos will increase the probability of dismissal of the application, oftentimes irreversibly blocking the applicant’s entry to a potential dream position. The list of rules below should be helpful in composing a cover letter that will serve as a catalyst for pushing the application into the next stages of evaluation. The provided rules are specifically designed for job applications for an academic position (e.g., PhD student, postdoc, lecturer, faculty member). Although most also apply for other types of jobs (e.g., in industry), these may have specific requirements that need to be taken into account.

Rule 1: Before starting the application, make a list of pros and cons for the position

On 11 November 1838, Charles Darwin proposed to his cousin, Emma Wedgwood, and wrote in his diary, “The day of days!” What followed (beginning 29 January 1839) were 43 years of happy marriage, underlining the fact that Darwin’s proposal and Ms. Wedgwood’s acceptance were both correct decisions. Perhaps what is not so widely known is that Darwin, in the months immediately preceding his engagement, had written two notes weighing up the pros and cons of marriage [ 7 ]. Following Darwin’s example, before starting to compose an application letter, it should prove helpful to summarize the reasons in favor of (and also against) applying for the position. Perform detailed research of the available positions that may suit you. Go beyond the information provided by job ads and institution websites; consult mentors, advisers, and colleagues. Start writing the cover letter only if the pros of application outweigh the cons. This will help you to compose a text in an enthusiastic style.

Rule 2: Remember KISS—Keep It Short and Simple

This is one of the key concepts in effective speaking and writing. For a cover letter, if not required otherwise by specific formal requirements, two pages are the maximum. Address the letter to a named person. A short introduction serves as a “handle,” i.e., it should get attention from the committee members [ 2 ]. Then you can proceed to a brief and clear summary of your most important—and relevant—qualifications. The balance between your research, teaching, and administration (or other) skills depends on the nature of the position. Next, explain what attracts you to the position and how it fits into your career plan. To be concise, stay focused. Anything less than a sharp focus and your readers will quickly lose interest and move on to the next application. Do not duplicate your CV. Rather, emphasize what does not get covered or rise to the surface in your CV or résumé. Make sure your cover letter is consistent with your CV. In the case of a digital cover letter, you can provide active links to information that may be relevant such as your website or list of publications (e.g., as a link to ResearcherID, ORCID, or GoogleScholar). The closing of the letter is as important as its opening. Do not let it meander to an indefinite or weak last paragraph. End your letter decisively by including a statement expressing interest in an interview.

Rule 3: Be original, nonconformist, and personal

Although it is useful to read cover letters of successful candidates, do not get too influenced by their style and content. Be yourself. Think of your cover letter as the opener to your application, similar to a cork that represents an entry to the contents of a wine bottle. Just as a cracked or rotten cork will discourage a user from pouring the contents of the bottle into a glass and evaluating all of its attributes, an uninspiring cover letter might prevent the recruiter from reading the full application and assessing your suitability for the position.

Rule 4: Show motivation and sincere interest

If you are applying for a research position, try to address the following questions: why you are choosing this position; what is exciting about the projects performed in the laboratory; and what part of the project you would like to pursue. You need to show that you did not just read the titles of recent publications but that you are familiar with the methodology, experimental design, and analysis as they are performed by your prospective employer. This will help you suggest future experiments or research directions aimed at better understanding of corresponding phenomena. In case of a faculty position, explain why you plan to pursue your career at the given institution; indicate how you will benefit from the collaboration with the groups at the department and vice versa, and how you plan to obtain support for your research; describe your experience with supervising students and postdocs; and show motivation for teaching, if the position requires teaching-related activities [ 8 ].

Rule 5: Provide an honest description of yourself

Provide a glimpse of your personality, possibly in the form of a story that highlights your specific characteristics. Pick a few adjectives that describe you most of the time, regardless of the situation. You may provide information about the path that led to your interest in a particular field. Be positive.

Rule 6: Highlight your strengths

How will the lab or institution benefit from having you onboard? List your major achievements and technical skills. State explicitly how your abilities and interests align with the position. Expand on what makes you especially suitable or appealing for the specific position you are applying for. Explain which of your strengths may set you apart from other candidates. If your background does not exactly match all of the criteria that the employer seeks, spell out what you are willing to do to learn the specific skills that the hiring organization needs (e.g., taking a special course or training). Do not forget about your behavioral strengths, such as your ability to lead a project, to work as a team member, or to be an effective communicator [ 9 ].

Rule 7: Do not recycle

If you are sending applications for several positions, do not use the same text and just change the name of the institution. It is important to tailor your letter to the position you are applying for. Every research group and every institution prides itself on certain characteristics that make it unique. Therefore, generic, template-like letters are prone to be identified. They can make you seem rushed, noncommittal and not particularly interested in the position advertised and are most likely to end up in the recycle bin.

Rule 8: Avoid overstatements and false claims

Overstatements tend to be annoying, and false claims, when uncovered, result in immediate rejection. Do not make yourself look better or more qualified. Avoid pompous metaphors and clichés. Be honest and truthful. Do not exaggerate. Also, do not be unrealistic in what you could achieve should you be offered the position, i.e., do not list promises that you cannot keep. Remember that it is always better not to be accepted for a position than to run into troubles or conflicts while holding it.

Rule 9: Do not underestimate the formal quality of the letter

If a letter reads well, looks good, and is devoid of spelling and grammatical errors, then the reader will have a tendency to associate those qualities with the candidate. If someone is unable to express him/herself without errors, that triggers an immediate rejection [ 5 ]. Proofreading for content, accuracy, and style is crucial. Here are some suggestions: Spell check and get a colleague or trusted personal contact to check spelling and readability, too. Automated spell checkers may not catch inappropriate usage of similarly spelled words or homonyms; be particularly careful about writing the recipient's and institution’s names correctly, check any dates and addresses you are referencing, avoid lists or bullet points, and avoid unusual or unreadable fonts.

Rule 10: Plan ahead and do not rush

When you think the letter is in the best shape possible, try to put yourself in the position of the recruiter. To do so, set it aside for a couple of days. Such detachment will help you to see flaws that were not obvious at the time of writing. Format the letter even if it is being sent by email. Ask for references or recommendations in advance. Allocate sufficient time to finalize the letter. Note that different countries may have different application processes and that not everything indicated above will apply to every country. Therefore, have someone with knowledge of local customs review the letter as well. Finally, do not miss the deadlines.

Although a well-written cover letter is only a small step towards a successful job application, it may provide an important advantage by sparking the interest of the hiring committee for that particular applicant. Even if it is not formally required, it should still be included with the application, as it can help to underline the applicant's qualities related to the position description and it may point to a particular section of a lengthy résumé where they can find more detailed information [ 5 ]. To put it metaphorically, a cover letter is a handle on the door to the application, and depending on its quality, the door can remain closed, or it can be opened.

Acknowledgments

We thank Smaranda Willcox (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) for the English language editing. We also thank Annamária Hlavatá, Paulína Káňovičová, and Jakub Králik (Department of Genetics, Comenius University in Bratislava) for sparking the idea about this Ten Simple Rules article.

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  • 4. Miller Vick J, Furlong JS, Lurie R. Academic Job Search Handbook. 5th Edition. University of Pennsylvania Press 2016
  • 6. Carr L. How to Write a Cover Letter for Academic Position. Available from: http://www.jobs.ac.uk/media/pdf/careers/resources/how-to-write-a-cover-letter-for-academic-jobs.pdf . Accessed on 8 April 2018.
  • 7. Darwin Correspondence Project. Available from: https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/tags/about-darwin/family-life/darwin-marriage . Accessed on 8 April 2018.
  • 8. Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Burroughs Wellcome Fund. Making the Right Moves: A Practical Guide to Scientific Management for Postdocs and New Faculty. Available from: http://www.hhmi.org/sites/default/files/Educational%20Materials/Lab%20Management/Making%20the%20Right%20Moves/moves2.pdf . Accessed on 8 April 2018.
  • 9. Dolan B. How to Write an Academic CV. Genes to Genomes–a blog from the Genetics Society of America 2018. Available from: http://genestogenomes.org/how-to-write-an-academic-cv/ . Accessed on 8 April 2018.

The Writing Center • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Academic Cover Letters

What is this handout about.

The long list of application materials required for many academic teaching jobs can be daunting. This handout will help you tackle one of the most important components: the cover letter or letter of interest. Here you will learn about writing and revising cover letters for academic teaching jobs in the United States of America.

What is an academic cover letter?

An academic cover letter describes your experiences and interest as a candidate for a specific position. It introduces you to the hiring committee and demonstrates how your academic background fits with the description of the position.

What do cover letters for academic teaching jobs typically contain?

At their most basic level, academic cover letters accomplish three things: one, they express your interest in the job; two, they provide a brief synopsis of your research and teaching; and three, they summarize your past experiences and achievements to illustrate your competence for the job. For early-career scholars, cover letters are typically no more than two pages (up to four pages for senior scholars). Occasionally, a third page may make sense for an early-career scholar if the application does not require a separate teaching statement and/or research statement. Digital versions of cover letters often contain hyperlinks to your CV or portfolio page. For some fields, cover letters may also include examples of your work, including music, popular articles, and other multimedia related to your research, service, or teaching available online. Typically, letters appear on departmental or university letterhead and include your signature. Above all, a strong cover letter presents your accomplishments and your familiarity with the institution and with the position.

How should I prepare to write my academic cover letter?

Like all writing, composing a cover letter is a process. The process may be as short as a few hours or as long as several weeks, but at the end the letter should present you as a strong candidate for the job. The following section has tips and questions for thinking through each stage of this writing process. You don’t need to answer all of these questions to write the letter; they are meant to help you brainstorm ideas.

Before you begin writing your cover letter, consider researching the institution, the department, and the student population. Incorporating all three aspects in your letter will help convey your interest in the position.

Get to know the institution. When crafting your cover letter, be aware of the type of institution to which you are applying. Knowing how the institution presents itself can help you tailor your letter and make it more specific.

  • Where is the institution located?
  • Is it on a quarter-system or semester-system?
  • What type of institution is it? Is it an R1? Is it an R2? Is it a liberal arts college? Is it an HBCU? Is it a community college? A private high school?
  • What is the institution’s culture? Is it teaching-focused or research-focused? Does it privilege experiential learning? Does it value faculty involvement outside the classroom? Is it affiliated with a specific religious tradition?
  • Does it have any specific institutional commitments?
  • How does the institution advocate for involvement in its local community?
  • What are the professional development opportunities for new and junior faculty?

Learn about the department. Knowing the specific culture and needs of the department can help you reach your audience: the department members who will be reading your documents and vetting you as a candidate.

  • Who is on the search committee? Who is the search committee chair?
  • What is the official name of the department?
  • Which different subfields make up the department?
  • Is it a dual appointment or a position in a dual department?
  • How does the department participate in specific types of student outreach?
  • Does the department have graduate students? Does it offer a terminal Master’s degree, Ph.D., or both? How large are the cohorts? How are they funded?
  • Does the department encourage or engage in interdisciplinary work?
  • Does the majority of the department favor certain theoretical or methodological approaches?
  • Does the department have partnerships with local institutions? If so, which ones?
  • Is the department attempting to fill a specific vacancy, or is it an entirely new position?
  • What are the typical course offerings in the department? Which courses might you be expected to teach? What courses might you be able to provide that are not currently available?

Consider the students. The search committee will often consider how you approach instructing and mentoring the student body. Sometimes committees will even reserve a position for a student or solicit student feedback on a candidate:

  • What populations constitute the majority of the undergraduate population?
  • Have there been any shifts in the student population recently?
  • Do students largely come from in-state or out-of-state?
  • Is there an international student population? If so, from which countries?
  • Is the university recruiting students from traditionally underrepresented populations?
  • Are students particularly active on campus? If so, how?

Many answers to these questions can be found both in the job description and on the institution’s website. If possible, consider contacting someone you know at the institution to ask about the culture directly. You can also use the institution’s course catalog, recruitment materials, alumni magazine, and other materials to get answers to these questions. The key is to understand the sort of institution to which you are applying, its immediate needs, and its future trajectory.

Remember, there is a resource that can help you with all three aspects—people. Reach out to your advisor, committee members, faculty mentors, and other contacts for insight into the prospective department’s culture and faculty. They might even help you revise your letter based on their expertise. Think of your job search as an opportunity to cultivate these relationships.

After you have done some initial research, think about how your experiences have prepared you for the job and identify the ones that seem the most relevant. Consider your previous research, internships, graduate teaching, and summer experiences. Here are some topics and questions to get you started thinking about what you might include.

Research Experiences. Consider how your research has prepared you for an academic career. Since the letter is a relatively short document, select examples of your research that really highlight who you are as a scholar, the direction you see your work going, and how your scholarship will contribute to the institution’s research community.

  • What are your current research interests?
  • What topics would you like to examine in the future?
  • How have you pursued those research interests?
  • Have you traveled for your research?
  • Have you published any of your research? Have you presented it at a conference, symposium, or elsewhere?
  • Have you worked or collaborated with scholars at different institutions on projects? If so, what did these collaborations produce?
  • Have you made your research accessible to your local community?
  • Have you received funding or merit-based fellowships for your research?
  • What other research contributions have you made? This may include opinion articles, book chapters, or participating as a journal reviewer.
  • How do your research interests relate to those of other faculty in the department or fill a gap?

Teaching Experience. Think about any teaching experience you may have. Perhaps you led recitations as a teaching assistant, taught your own course, or guest lectured. Pick a few experiences to discuss in your letter that demonstrate something about your teaching style or your interest in teaching.

  • What courses are you interested in teaching for the department? What courses have you taught that discussed similar topics or themes?
  • What new courses can you imagine offering the department that align with their aim and mission?
  • Have you used specific strategies that were helpful in your instruction?
  • What sort of resources do you typically use in the classroom?
  • Do you have anecdotes that demonstrate your teaching style?
  • What is your teaching philosophy?
  • When have you successfully navigated a difficult concept or topic in the classroom, and what did you learn?
  • What other opportunities could you provide to students?

Internships/Summer/Other Experiences. Brainstorm a list of any conferences, colloquiums, and workshops you have attended, as well as any ways you have served your department, university, or local community. This section will highlight how you participate in your university and scholarly community. Here are some examples of things you might discuss:

  • Professional development opportunities you may have pursued over the summer or during your studies
  • International travel for research or presentations
  • Any research you’ve done in a non-academic setting
  • Presentations at conferences
  • Participation in symposia, reading groups, working groups, etc.
  • Internships in which you may have implemented your research or practical skills related to your discipline
  • Participation in community engagement projects
  • Participation in or leadership of any scholarly and/or university organizations

In answering these questions, create a list of the experiences that you think best reflect you as a scholar and teacher. In choosing which experiences to highlight, consider your audience and what they would find valuable or relevant. Taking the time to really think about your reader will help you present yourself as an applicant well-qualified for the position.

Writing a draft

Remember that the job letter is an opportunity to introduce yourself and your accomplishments and to communicate why you would be a good fit for the position. Typically, search committees will want to know whether you are a capable job candidate, familiar with the institution, and a great future addition to the department’s faculty. As such, be aware of how the letter’s structure and content reflect your preparedness for the position.

The structure of your cover letter should reflect the typical standards for letter writing in the country in which the position is located (the list below reflects the standards for US letter writing). This usually includes a salutation, body, and closing, as well as proper contact information. If you are affiliated with a department, institution, or organization, the letter should be on letterhead.

  • Use a simple, readable font in a standard size, such as 10-12pt. Some examples of fonts that may be conventional in your field include Arial, Garamond, Times New Roman, and Verdana, among other similar fonts.
  • Do not indent paragraphs.
  • Separate all paragraphs by a line and justify them to the left.
  • Make sure that any included hyperlinks work.
  • Include your signature in the closing.

Before you send in your letter, make sure you proofread and look for formatting mistakes. You’ll read more about proofreading and revising later in this handout!

The second most important aspect of your letter is its content. Since the letter is the first chance to provide an in-depth introduction, it should expand on who you are as a scholar and possible faculty member. Below are some elements to consider including when composing your letter.

Identify the position you are applying to and introduce yourself. Traditionally, the first sentence of a job letter includes the full name of the position and where you discovered the job posting. This is also the place to introduce yourself and describe why you are applying for this position. Since the goal of a job letter is to persuade the search committee to include you on the list of candidates for further review, you may want to include an initial claim as to why you are a strong candidate for the position. Some questions you might consider:

  • What is your current status (ABD, assistant professor, post-doc, etc.)?
  • If you are ABD, have you defended your dissertation? If not, when will you defend?
  • Why are you interested in this position?
  • Why are you a strong candidate for this position?

Describe your research experience and interests. For research-centered positions, such as positions at R1 or other types of research-centered universities, include information about your research experience and current work early in the letter. For many applicants, current work will be the dissertation project. If this is the case, some suggest calling your “dissertation research” your “current project” or “work,” as this may help you present yourself as an emerging scholar rather than a graduate student. Some questions about your research that you might consider:

  • What research experiences have you had?
  • What does your current project investigate?
  • What are some of the important methods you applied?
  • Have you collaborated with others in your research?
  • Have you acquired specific skills that will be useful for the future?
  • Have you received special funding? If so, what kind?
  • Has your research received any accolades or rewards?
  • What does your current project contribute to the field?
  • Where have you presented your research?
  • Have you published your research? If so, where? Or are you working on publishing your work?
  • How does your current project fit the job description?

Present your plans for future research. This section presents your research agenda and usually includes a description of your plans for future projects and research publications. Detailing your future research demonstrates to the search committee that you’ve thought about a research trajectory and can work independently. If you are applying to a teaching-intensive position, you may want to minimize this section and/or consider including a sentence or two on how this research connects to undergraduate and/or graduate research opportunities. Some questions to get you started:

  • What is your next research project/s?
  • How does this connect to your current and past work?
  • What major theories/methods will you use?
  • How will this project contribute to the field?
  • Where do you see your specialty area or subfield going in the next ten years and how does your research contribute to or reflect this?
  • Will you be collaborating with anyone? If so, with whom?
  • How will this future project encourage academic discourse?
  • Do you already have funding? If so, from whom? If not, what plans do you have for obtaining funding?
  • How does your future research expand upon the department’s strengths while simultaneously diversifying the university’s research portfolio? (For example, does your future research involve emerging research fields, state-of-the-art technologies, or novel applications?)

Describe your teaching experience and highlight teaching strategies. This section allows you to describe your teaching philosophy and how you apply this philosophy in your classroom. Start by briefly addressing your teaching goals and values. Here, you can provide specific examples of your teaching methods by describing activities and projects you assign students. Try to link your teaching and research together. For example, if you research the rise of feminism in the 19th century, consider how you bring either the methodology or the content of your research into the classroom. For a teaching-centered institution, such as a small liberal arts college or community college, you may want to emphasize your teaching more than your research. If you do not have any teaching experience, you could describe a training, mentoring, or coaching situation that was similar to teaching and how you would apply what you learned in a classroom.

  • What is your teaching philosophy? How is your philosophy a good fit for the department in which you are applying to work?
  • What sort of teaching strategies do you use in the classroom?
  • What is your teaching style? Do you lecture? Do you emphasize discussion? Do you use specific forms of interactive learning?
  • What courses have you taught?
  • What departmental courses are you prepared to teach?
  • Will you be able to fill in any gaps in the departmental course offerings?
  • What important teaching and/or mentoring experiences have you had?
  • How would you describe yourself in the classroom?
  • What type of feedback have you gotten from students?
  • Have you received any awards or recognition for your teaching?

Talk about your service work. Service is often an important component of an academic job description. This can include things like serving on committees or funding panels, providing reviews, and doing community outreach. The cover letter gives you an opportunity to explain how you have involved yourself in university life outside the classroom. For instance, you could include descriptions of volunteer work, participation in initiatives, or your role in professional organizations. This section should demonstrate ways in which you have served your department, university, and/or scholarly community. Here are some additional examples you could discuss:

  • Participating in graduate student or junior faculty governance
  • Sitting on committees, departmental or university-wide
  • Partnerships with other university offices or departments
  • Participating in community-partnerships
  • Participating in public scholarship initiatives
  • Founding or participating in any university initiatives or programs
  • Creating extra-curricular resources or presentations

Present yourself as a future faculty member. This section demonstrates who you will be as a colleague. It gives you the opportunity to explain how you will collaborate with faculty members with similar interests; take part in departmental and/or institution wide initiatives or centers; and participate in departmental service. This shows your familiarity with the role of faculty outside the classroom and your ability to add to the departmental and/or institutional strengths or fill in any gaps.

  • What excites you about this job?
  • What faculty would you like to collaborate with and why? (This answer may be slightly tricky. See the section on name dropping below.)
  • Are there any partnerships in the university or outside of it that you wish to participate in?
  • Are there any centers associated with the university or in the community that you want to be involved in?
  • Are there faculty initiatives that you are passionate about?
  • Do you have experience collaborating across various departments or within your own department?
  • In what areas will you be able to contribute?
  • Why would you make an excellent addition to the faculty at this institution?

Compose a strong closing. This short section should acknowledge that you have sent in all other application documents and include a brief thank you for the reader’s time and/or consideration. It should also state your willingness to forward additional materials and indicate what you would like to see as next steps (e.g., a statement that you look forward to speaking with the search committee). End with a professional closing such as “Sincerely” or “Kind Regards” followed by your full name.

If you are finding it difficult to write the different sections of your cover letter, consider composing the other academic job application documents (the research statement, teaching philosophy, and diversity statement) first and then summarizing them in your job letter.

Different kinds of letters may be required for different types of jobs. For example, some jobs may focus on research. In this case, emphasize your research experiences and current project/s. Other jobs may be more focused on teaching. In this case, highlight your teaching background and skills. Below are two models for how you could change your letter’s organization based on the job description and the institution. The models offer a guide for you to consider how changing the order of information and the amount of space dedicated to a particular topic changes the emphasis of the letter.

Research-Based Position Job Letter Example:

Teaching-based position job letter example:.

Remember your first draft does not have to be your last. Try to get feedback from different readers, especially if it is one of your first applications. It is not uncommon to go through several stages of revisions. Check out the Writing Center’s handout on editing and proofreading and video on proofreading to help with this last stage of writing.

Potential pitfalls

Using the word dissertation. Some search committee members may see the word “dissertation” as a red flag that an applicant is too focused on their role as a graduate student rather than as a prospective faculty member. It may be advantageous, then, to describe your dissertation as current research, a current research project, current work, or some other phrase that demonstrates you are aware that your dissertation is the beginning of a larger scholarly career.

Too much jargon. While you may be writing to a specific department, people on the search committee might be unfamiliar with the details of your subfield. In fact, many committees have at least one member from outside their department. Use terminology that can easily be understood by non-experts. If you want to use a specific term that is crucial to your research, then you should define it. Aim for clarity for your reader, which may mean simplification in lieu of complete precision.

Overselling yourself. While your job letter should sell you as a great candidate, saying so (e.g., “I’m the ideal candidate”) in your letter may come off to some search committee members as presumptuous. Remember that although you have an idea about the type of colleague a department is searching for, ultimately you do not know exactly what they want. Try to avoid phrases or sentences where you state you are the ideal or the only candidate right for the position.

Paying too much attention to the job description. Job descriptions are the result of a lot of debate and compromise. If you have skills or research interests outside the job description, consider including them in your letter. It may be that your extra research interests; your outside skills; and/or your extracurricular involvements make you an attractive candidate. For example, if you are a Latin Americanist who also happens to be well-versed in the Spanish Revolution, it could be worth mentioning the expanse of your research interests because a department might find you could fill in other gaps in the curriculum or add an additional or complementary perspective to the department.

Improper sendoff. The closing of your letter is just as important as the beginning. The end of the letter should reflect the professionalism of the document. There should be a thank-you and the word sincerely or a formal equivalent. Remember, it is the very last place in your letter where you present yourself as a capable future colleague.

Small oversights. Make sure to proofread your letter not just for grammar but also for content. For example, if you use material from another letter, make sure you do not include the names of another school, department, or unassociated faculty! Or, if the school is in Chicago, make sure you do not accidentally reference it as located in the Twin Cities.

Name dropping. You rarely know the internal politics of the department or institution to which you are applying. So be cautious about the names you insert in your cover letters. You do not want to unintentionally insert yourself into a departmental squabble or add fire to an interdepartmental conflict. Instead, focus on the actions you will undertake and the initiatives you are passionate about.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Ball, Cheryl E. 2013. “Understanding Cover Letters.” Inside Higher Ed , November 3, 2013. https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2013/11/04/essay-cover-letter-academic-jobs .

Borchardt, John. 2014. “Writing a Winning Cover Letter.” Science Magazine , August 6, 2014. https://www.sciencemag.org/careers/2014/08/writing-winning-cover-letter# .

Helmreich, William. 2013. “Your First Academic Job.” Inside Higher Ed , June 17, 2013. https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2013/06/17/essay-how-land-first-academic-job .

Kelsky, Karen. 2013. “How To Write a Journal Article Submission Cover Letter.” The Professor Is In (blog), April 26, 2013. https://theprofessorisin.com/2013/04/26/how-to-write-a-journal-article-submission-cover-letter/ .

Tomaska, Lubomir, and Josef Nosek. 2008. “Ten Simple Rules for Writing a Cover Letter to Accompany a Job Application for an Academic Position.” PLoS Computational Biology 14(5). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006132 .

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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writing a cover letter to an academic journal

“Hey, You There!”: Theorizing the Open Letter as Methodology in Academic Writing

  • Nicholas Rickards Faculty of Education, Brock University

From James Baldwin's (1962) “A Letter to My Nephew,” which laid bare the brutalities of being black in 1960s America, to Chanelle Miller’s published victim impact statement addressed to her assailant, which provided vocabulary and was kindle for #MeToo, examples abound demonstrating the ways in which the open letter continuously surfaces during pivotal historical junctures. Although the contextual significance of this format of authorship is widely used in scholarly disciplines ranging from education to history, the structural significance of the open letter as a methodologic approach to academic writing has yet to be theorized, leaving questions that merit attention: Why is the open letter so often used by marginalized groups? What are the literary and rhetorical effects of the enclosed addressed between sender and receiver? Finally, how does this format of writing create and affect the positionality and subjectivity of authors? By writing a letter addressed to Academia/School, this essay makes the case for the open letter as something to be studied but also a methodology and study in and of itself. By drawing on literary theory, cultural studies, and research on writing in academia, this essay suggests that the open letter is an important form of authorship and argues for revisiting the open letter as a legitimate form of scholarship as well as an authentic form of academic writing in education. 

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writing a cover letter to an academic journal

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  1. How to write a cover letter for journal submission

    Your manuscript's title. Name of the journal you are submitting to. Statement that your paper has not been previously published and is not currently under consideration by another journal. Brief description of the research you are reporting in your paper, why it is important, and why you think the readers of the journal would be interested in it.

  2. Cover letters

    Ensure the cover letter contains the complete manuscript title, the authors' names, and the manuscript number (assigned by the journal when the manuscript was first received).

  3. Journal Article Publication Letters

    A journal publication letter, also known as a journal article submission cover letter, is a cover letter written to a peer-reviewed journal to advocate for the publication of a manuscript. Not all journals ask for a publication letter. Some see publication letters as optional, but many peer-reviewed academic journals request or require them.

  4. Cover letters

    First paragraph: include the title of your manuscript and the type of manuscript it is (e.g. review, research, case study). Then briefly explain the background to your study, the question you sought out to answer and why. Second paragraph: you should concisely explain what was done, the main findings and why they are significant.

  5. Writing a Cover Letter for Journal Submission [Free Template]

    Begin your cover letter with a paragraph that states the name of the manuscript and the names of the authors. You can also describe what type of manuscript your submission is (research article, review, case report, etc.). In this first paragraph and the next, describe the rationale behind your study and the major findings from your research.

  6. Academic Guides: Writing for Publication: Cover Letters

    Make sure that your cover letter is free of typographical errors, misspellings, casual language, and any other idiosyncrasies such as a nonstandard font. A good cover letter will ensure that the content of your article is given serious consideration by the journal's editors. Make sure your cover letter is brief and direct (usually no more than ...

  7. How to Write a Cover Letter for Journal Submission

    Name of the journal to which you are submitting Your manuscript's title Article type (review, research, case study, etc.) Submission date Brief background of your study and the research question you sought to answer Brief overview of methodology used

  8. Cover Letter for Journal Submission: Sample & How To Write

    Updated 02/12/2023 As seen in: 4 likes comments Every day, you help the world to move forward. Conducting research, performing tests, and working on scientific experiments are a part of your routine. The data you've collected must be processed and presented in a neat manuscript. But wait. Who's going to read it? Oh, right.

  9. Writing a cover letter for journal submission (Download template)

    1. Title of the paper and corresponding author details: Although mentioning these details seems obvious, you should ensure that these are included in your cover letter. 2. A short summary of your findings: In just 3-4 sentences, you should summarize the most important findings of your study. It would be best to avoid technical details here.

  10. Cover Letters for Journal Submission

    A cover letter intended to be submitted with your article manuscript is not a formality. Care should be taken when writing such a letter. When writing a cover letter, keep these tips in mind: Include a statement that your research has not been published elsewhere or is not under consideration for publication elsewhere

  11. How to choose a journal and write a cover letter

    Publishing in scholarly journals is just one form of output from a research project, and one of the most significant pressures on modern academics is to produce papers and find suitable journals which will accept them. [ 1, 2, 3] This process is not always easy, particularly for Early Career Researchers, as the number of options and determining ...

  12. Writing a Successful Journal Cover Letter (Free Templates)

    What do you put in a journal cover letter? Your cover letter needs certain basic elements. Generally they are: Editor and target journal Salutation (Dear Dr. …)

  13. Writing effective cover letters for journal submissions: Tips and a

    Cover letters can be submitted as normal text files, such as Word, or input directly in a field in the journal's online submission system. Let's look at some tips for each section. And don't forget to download the template, which shows these tips already in place. 1. Addressee's information and date of submission.

  14. How to write a cover letter for journal submission

    Begin the cover letter with the manuscript title and the journal name for article submission. Mention clearly the category of the article type (letter, article, brief, review) pertaining to the particular journal. Background and context Briefly, in a couple of sentences, describe the background of the research to bring context to your work.

  15. How to write effective cover letters for a paper submission

    A letter to the editor (or editors) is essentially a cover letter that accompanies your paper submission to an academic journal. Uploading such a letter is often one of the last steps to conclude before hitting the 'submit' button that sends off your manuscript.

  16. Three Cover Letter Templates to Journal Editors

    Each cover letter is unique, and those addressed to journal editors by scientists and academics when they submit their writing for publication are no exception. As an opportunity to present original research in the best possible light, a cover letter is indispensible for persuading a busy editor that a manuscript is worthy of peer review.

  17. Submitting your manuscript to journals checklist

    A cover letter is a key document that accompanies submissions to a journal which mentions author information, the key findings and significance of the study, information on additional data and supplementary materials, and information on ethical compliance. The purpose of the cover letter is to demonstrate that your manuscript reflects authentic ...

  18. Writing a Cover Letter for Journal Submission

    Writing a Cover Letter for Journal Submission By Enago Academy Aug 11, 2021 3 mins read 🔊 Listen One of the most neglected aspects of journal submission is the cover letter. Although it may seem like a formality, the cover letter is actually an important part of the submission process.

  19. Drafting a Cover Letter for Academic Journals

    Writing a covering letter is a necessary step before submitting an unsolicited manuscript to an academic journal. In cases where the author has not queried the editor of the target...

  20. How to Write a Cover Letter for an Academic Journal Submission

    3. Open your letter with a provocative statement or question that represents the essential point or finding of your journal article. This is where the sales pitch element comes in, but don't overdo it. Strive for a balance between enthusiasm and professionalism; the two are not mutually exclusive. A good example might be: "College ...

  21. How To Write A Cover Letter For Journal Submission

    A. Writing a Cover Letter for Your Manuscript. Step 1: Address the recipient professionally. Step 2: State the manuscript essentials (e.g., title & type) Step 3: Summarise your study. Step 4: Meet journal-specific requirements. Step 5: Include standard declarations. Step 6: Sign off professionally.

  22. How to write a cover letter for your academic journal article

    1) Make it personal. The cover letter should address the journal editor directly and convince them that your research is both worthy of review and a good fit for their journal. You want the reader to know that you are interested in being published with them, not simply in being published. Most journals provide editor contact information on ...

  23. Ten simple rules for writing a cover letter to accompany a job ...

    Introduction. It is becoming a difficult task to find an academic position that is best suited for one's capabilities and preferences. In an extremely competitive environment [], there are tens of applicants (and often more) per a single position.As a result, the hiring committees judge the quality of the candidates based on numerous criteria, including previous achievements listed in their ...

  24. Academic Cover Letters

    At their most basic level, academic cover letters accomplish three things: one, they express your interest in the job; two, they provide a brief synopsis of your research and teaching; and three, they summarize your past experiences and achievements to illustrate your competence for the job.

  25. "Hey, You There!": Theorizing the Open Letter as Methodology in

    By drawing on literary theory, cultural studies, and research on writing in academia, this essay suggests that the open letter is an important form of authorship and argues for revisiting the open letter as a legitimate form of scholarship as well as an authentic form of academic writing in education.

  26. How to write a cover letter

    How to write a cover letter - Current students. Make a good first impression with employers: learn how to write an engaging, well-crafted cover letter that helps you get that all-important job interview. Register for a cover letter workshop now.

  27. Cover Letter Samples and Templates

    Cover Letter Samples. When you're applying for a job, a cover letter lets you show a personal side and demonstrate why hiring you is a smart decision. Cover letters should be around three paragraphs long and include specific examples from your past experience that make you qualified for the position.A cover letter should include the following ...

  28. Cover Letters that Unlock Opportunities

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