Abstract
“Most authors report that they greatly value the JALA review and revision process.”
Education is the cornerstone of ALA, the foundation upon which the bricks and mortar of its membership has built a vital international scientific community. Every initiative undertaken by ALA is designed to serve the best interests of this elite group of scientific specialists. ALA strives to create opportunities that can propel individuals forward in their careers, and nowhere is this better illustrated than in the JALA manuscript review process.
JALA accepts manuscript submissions from ALA members and nonmembers on a year-round basis via http://labautomation.org/jalainstructions.php. All proposed manuscripts are subject to review by experts and can be accepted as written, declined as inappropriate, or as is typically the case, returned to authors for revision. Because we must keep the bar set high in terms of scientific and technical quality, the majority of manuscripts submitted to JALA are not approved as written. However, they are not immediately dismissed. The JALA manuscript review process thrives on a spirit of mentorship, not judgment.
For the majority of manuscripts submitted, authors are provided detailed feedback and suggestions for improvement from peer reviewers and offered the opportunity to revise and resubmit their manuscripts, or provide explanations in response to reviewer concerns. Reviewer feedback comes in many forms: requests for clarification of important findings, improvements to manuscript organization, and better justifications of results. Even guidance on research directions is not uncommon.
Major revisions and author responses are frequently rereviewed by the original peer reviewers before final publishing decisions are made by the executive editor. Revisions are not always approved; sometimes authors are required to make several rounds of revisions. As long as a prospective author is willing to continue working on his or her manuscript, JALA peer reviewers are willing to continue to provide critical analysis and guidance.
Most authors report that they greatly value the JALA review and revision process. They appreciate the additional professional insight, and consider the process an opportunity to improve the presentation of their work—work that, in many cases, eventually does end up in print.
Sincerely,
