Review Process

Peer Review Process

The Iraqi Journal for Applied Science (IJAS) is committed to ensuring a rigorous, fair, transparent, and efficient editorial process that supports the publication of high-quality scientific research.

Every manuscript submitted to the journal undergoes a structured editorial and peer-review workflow designed to evaluate its originality, scientific merit, methodological quality, ethical compliance, and relevance to the journal's aims and scope.

IJAS employs a double-anonymous (double-blind) peer-review system, ensuring that the identities of both authors and reviewers remain confidential throughout the review process.

Step 1 โ€“ Manuscript Submission

Authors submit their manuscripts through the journal's Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform.

A complete submission should include all required files and declarations in accordance with the journal's Author Guidelines.

Step 2 โ€“ Initial Editorial Screening

Upon submission, the Editorial Office conducts an initial assessment to determine whether the manuscript:

  • Falls within the journal's aims and scope.
  • Complies with the journal's formatting requirements.
  • Includes all required submission documents.
  • Meets basic standards of scientific quality.
  • Complies with the journal's ethical policies.

Manuscripts that do not satisfy these requirements may be returned to the authors for correction or declined without external peer review.

Step 3 โ€“ Similarity Screening

All submissions undergo similarity screening using recognized plagiarism-detection software.

Editors evaluate similarity reports by considering:

  • Overall similarity.
  • Similarity from individual sources.
  • Proper citation practices.
  • Context of overlapping text.

Editorial decisions are based on scientific judgment rather than similarity percentages alone.

Step 4 โ€“ Editorial Assessment

The Editor-in-Chief or an assigned Handling Editor evaluates the manuscript to determine whether it is suitable for external peer review.

The assessment considers:

  • Scientific originality.
  • Relevance to the journal.
  • Research significance.
  • Methodological quality.
  • Ethical compliance.
  • Overall suitability for publication.

Only manuscripts meeting the journal's editorial standards proceed to external review.

Step 5 โ€“ Reviewer Selection

Each eligible manuscript is normally assigned to at least two independent expert reviewers.

Reviewers are selected based on:

  • Subject expertise.
  • Research experience.
  • Publication record.
  • Previous reviewing performance.
  • Absence of conflicts of interest.

Additional reviewers may be invited whenever specialized expertise is required.

Step 6 โ€“ Peer Review

Reviewers independently evaluate the manuscript according to internationally recognized scholarly standards.

The evaluation includes:

  • Originality and novelty.
  • Scientific significance.
  • Research methodology.
  • Data quality and analysis.
  • Interpretation of results.
  • Clarity of presentation.
  • Adequacy of references.
  • Ethical compliance.
  • Contribution to the advancement of knowledge.

Reviewers provide constructive comments and confidential recommendations to the editors.

Step 7 โ€“ Editorial Decision

After considering the reviewers' reports, the Handling Editor and Editor-in-Chief reach one of the following decisions:

  • Accept.
  • Minor Revision.
  • Major Revision.
  • Reject with Resubmission Encouraged.
  • Reject.

The final publication decision rests exclusively with the Editor-in-Chief.

Step 8 โ€“ Revision

Where revisions are requested, authors should submit:

  • A revised manuscript.
  • A detailed response letter explaining how each reviewer comment has been addressed.

Revised manuscripts may be returned to the original reviewers for additional evaluation when appropriate.

Step 9 โ€“ Final Acceptance

Following satisfactory revision and editorial approval, the manuscript is formally accepted for publication.

The corresponding author is notified of the acceptance decision.

Step 10 โ€“ Production

Accepted manuscripts enter the production process, which may include:

  • Copyediting.
  • Technical editing.
  • Typesetting.
  • Metadata preparation.
  • DOI registration.
  • Proof generation.
  • Author proof review.
  • Final publication.

The published Version of Record becomes permanently available on the journal website.

Peer Review Timeline

IJAS aims to complete the editorial and peer-review process as efficiently as possible while maintaining high standards of scientific evaluation.

The overall processing time may vary depending on factors such as:

  • Manuscript complexity.
  • Reviewer availability.
  • Number of review rounds.
  • Timeliness of author revisions.

Authors are informed of editorial decisions as soon as reasonably practicable.

Confidentiality

All submitted manuscripts, reviewer reports, editorial correspondence, and related documents are treated as confidential.

Editors and reviewers must not:

  • Disclose manuscript content.
  • Reveal reviewer identities.
  • Use unpublished information for personal or professional advantage.

Confidentiality is maintained throughout the editorial process.

Ethical Compliance

The peer-review process is conducted in accordance with internationally recognized principles of publication ethics.

IJAS follows the recommendations of:

  • Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)
  • International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)
  • Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing

All participants in the editorial process are expected to uphold the highest standards of integrity, fairness, confidentiality, and professionalism.

Quality Assurance

The journal maintains rigorous editorial standards to ensure that published articles are:

  • Scientifically sound.
  • Original and innovative.
  • Methodologically rigorous.
  • Ethically compliant.
  • Relevant to the advancement of applied sciences.

The peer-review process plays a central role in preserving the quality, credibility, and integrity of the scholarly record.