Peer Review Policy

Maarif Research Journal employs a double-blind peer review system.

The review process is an important aspect of the publication process of an article. It enables authors to improve their manuscripts and aids editors in making decision on manuscripts.

A double-blind peer review system is an anonymous review system whereby the identity of the author(s) of a manuscript is concealed from the selected reviewers. All details that may enable a reviewer to identify the author(s) of a manuscript are removed from the manuscript before the manuscript is sent to the reviewer. Similarly, the reviewers’ identities are also concealed from the author(s) when sending the reviewers’ comments to the author(s).

The Peer Review Process

Marrif Research Journal employs a three-stage review process – editorial office, external review and Editors’ decision.

The first stage of the review process takes place in the editorial office. On submission, a manuscript is examined and reviewed to ensure that it meets the minimum requirements of the journal before it is sent to external reviewers. At this stage, the review concentrates on the following topics:

Possible plagiarism: The manuscript is evaluated to compare the level of similarity with other published works. Available private or commercial computer programs that assess plagiarism and other borrowings may also be employed as and when required. Manuscripts that have high level of similarity with other works (including the author(s) previous works) are rejected at this stage. Authors are provided with the similarity report together with the decision to reject the manuscript.

Scope: After a manuscript has undergone similarity checks and is assessed as acceptable, the content of the manuscript is checked to ensure that it fits within the scope of the journal selected by the author(s).

Recent references : Maarif Research Journal encourages authors to cite recent articles, in order to include the latest research on a given subject. Preferably, cited articles should include works that have been published within the last five years. This is especially important for articles submitted to journals in the life sciences.

Manuscripts are checked for the structure, organization, correctness and clarity of the language to provide conformity with the journal's Instructions for Authors. The editorial office usually makes corrections to minor grammatical errors in such a manner that it does not alter the manuscript. However, in situations where language is substantially difficult to comprehend, the manuscript is returned to the author to improve clarity of the language.

Manuscripts that fail in this first stage of the review process are returned to the author(s) for modification and resubmission. This first stage of the review is very important as it enables the author(s) to improve the manuscript at an early stage.

Once a manuscript successfully completes the editorial office review process, it proceeds to the second stage. The second stage of the review process employs the double-blind review system. Two or more external reviewers are selected from our database, the editorial board of the journal or other sources. These reviewers have expert knowledge of the subject area of the manuscript. The reviewers are invited to review the manuscript by sending them copies of the abstract of the manuscript. Upon acceptance to review the manuscript, the full text of the manuscript is sent to the reviewers after the author(s) identities have been concealed.

Reviewers are required to evaluate the manuscripts and provide useful comments to enable the author(s) to improve the quality of the manuscript. Reviewers also score the manuscript in terms of originality, contribution to the field, technical quality, clarity of presentation and depth of research.

Upon receipt of the reviews and the revised submission (if needed), the manuscript undergoes the third and final stage of the review process. The original manuscript, the revised manuscript and all the reviewers’ comments are sent to the editor of the journal. The editor reviews the manuscript and makes one the following decisions

-Accept as it is

-Accept with minor correction

-Requires major corrections

-Send revised manuscript for review again

-Reject

Manuscripts that are accepted as it is are scheduled for publication. Manuscripts that require corrections (either minor or major) are sent to the author(s) to affect the corrections suggested by the editor. After effecting the corrections, the editor reviews the manuscripts again before the manuscripts are accepted for publication. In some cases, the editor may require authors to make corrections a second time. In other cases, the editor may request for the revised manuscripts with (or without) the additional corrections to be sent to a specific reviewer who had earlier reviewed the manuscript before the manuscript can be accepted for publication.