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The PÕ¾ÊÓƵ Transfer Desk is now a deeply-integrated aspect of submissions for most of our portfolios.

This post, part of the Insight Into Transfers series, addresses common concerns from our authors and external editors about the transfer service and its benefits.

What happens to a paper when it arrives at the Transfer Desk?

When a paper arrives at the Transfer Desk, the Submission Support team will create a ticket for it on a software called Freshdesk based on its properties. The ticket is automatically assigned to an Editorial Submission Advisor (ESA), a subject specialist with expert knowledge on the manuscript research topic. The ESA first performs a light assessment of the quality and ethical standards of the paper. If the paper meets our requirements, the ESA will analyze the manuscript with the help of our advanced journal-matching technology, taking into account author preferences and any editor or reviewer comments to find the most suitable journals from our portfolio for the research. The ESA then sends the recommendation list to the author. The author will not be charged for our service and they will have an opportunity to revise the manuscript while receiving the benefits from the Transfer Desk. Additionally, the author is free to decline the service if they are not interested. 

What criteria do you use to select journals for recommendation?

We use the following criteria in combination to find the most suitable journals for recommendation:

• Degree of match between prospective journal scope and the research topic area
• Impact factor of the donating journal
• Donating journal business model (open access, open choice or subscription)
• Comments from the donating journal editor and reviewers
• Detailed submission requirements of the potential receiving journals
• Requirements and preferences of authors

What if the suggestions are not right for the author?

If the author does not like our suggestions, we will identify other suitable journals that satisfy their preferences/requirements using a variety of tools; If the author has not already told us what kind of journal they are looking for, we will ask for their preferences/requirements (e.g. a journal with a higher impact factor, or particular indexing) and let them know we will look for alternative journals.

If no suitable journals are found, the author is free to select the destination journal on their own, or if they wish to reconsider submission to one of our recommendations they can get back to us within the next 60 days, and we will be happy to assist.

Can authors revise their papers?

 Yes, they can.

 When the manuscript is transferred to the journal of the author¡¯s choice, they will receive an email from the journal with instructions on how to finalize the submission. When finalizing the submission, the author will have the opportunity to revise their manuscript and upload a new cover letter. Typically, the author will initially be given seven days to upload a revised version of the manuscript. If they need more time to conduct major revisions, they may contact the Editorial Office of the journal to ask for more time.

What if an author has already decided where they would like to submit?

If the author decides to submit to a journal that is within our portfolio, we can still offer to transfer the submission, and the author can choose whether they would prefer to submit autonomously or through our service. If the journal of their choice is outside our portfolio, the author is free to submit where they wish. No author is obligated to use the Transfer Desk at any point.

What happens if an editor has suggestions about where an author should submit next?

 If an editor recommends a journal to the author, and it is within our transfer portfolio, we generally take the editor¡¯s suggestion into account as editors have a deep understanding of the research landscape in their field of expertise. In addition, some journals have relationships with each other that allow them to pass papers between themselves, which could facilitate the receptivity to transfers. 

If a paper is successfully transferred, are editors obliged to review or accept the paper?

No, they are not. Transferring a paper does not guarantee that the paper will be reviewed or published, and Transfer Desk recommendations are not based on consultation with the suggested journals. All journals are editorially independent and will assess the manuscript against their own criteria.

If you are an editor you can learn how you can benefit by using the Transfer Desk service.

If you are an author you can learn more about Transfer Desk, how to use it and its benefits by visiting its dedicated page.

About the author

Junya Zeng is an Editorial Submission Advisor working with the transfer service as part of its China-based team. She has been working at Transfer Desk for over a year.