Are you seeking to add one or more scholarly journals to PubMed Central but unsure of where to start? Here’s an overview of what you need to know to successfully apply for PMC indexing, with insights from a recent Scholastica webinar now available to watch on demand.
If you’re planning to apply to add a journal to PubMed Central (PMC) for the first time (or after a long time!), you likely have questions about how the application process works and how to improve the chances of your content being accepted. We’ve got you covered!
During a recent webinar on how to add journals to PMC, Scholastica’s CEO and Co-Founder, Brian Cody, presented a step-by-step guide to the process. Brian’s presentation was followed by a panel discussion with editors who successfully applied for PMC indexing about their advice and lessons learned, featuring:
- Carly McCuaig, Managing Editor, Canadian Journal of Respiratory Therapy
- Dr. Arkadiy Finn, Senior Founding Editor, Journal of Brown Hospital Medicine
- Dr. Vijairam Selvaraj, Senior Founding Editor, Journal of Brown Hospital Medicine
You can register to watch the full webinar on demand here.
Brian and the panelists covered A LOT of information, and there were still some unanswered Q&A submissions at the end of the event, so we decided to do a follow-up blog post with session highlights and answers to those remaining questions (watch the webinar for all Q&A).
Quick Note: Scholastica’s experience with PMC indexing stems from preparing PMC-ready XML files and setting up automated PMC article deposits for our customers, as well as assisting customers with answering PMC technical evaluation questions in our role as a supporting vendor partner. Editorial teams and publishers seeking to add a journal to PMC must complete the application process, following PMC’s guidelines here.
Key takeaways from the session
First, an overview of NLM’s databases
Often, editors and publishers approach the Scholastica team to ask how to add journals to the PubMed search engine, rather than specifically to PMC. What we always tell them is that applying for inclusion in PMC is generally the fastest route to PubMed indexing.
Why?
As explained by former PMC Program Manager Kathryn Funk, in a past Scholastica blog interview, “PubMed is a kind of superset for content archived and indexed by NLM. It pulls in articles from both the MEDLINE index and PMC full-text archive.” Journals are generally eligible to apply for PMC indexing before MEDLINE, because MEDLINE has stricter criteria. So if you want your journal to be searchable via PubMed, applying to PMC is usually the place to start.
You can learn more about how to decide whether to apply for PMC, MEDLINE, or both here. Among the primary considerations will be the NIH’s Public Access Policy, which requires journals added to PMC to submit full-text Author’s Accepted Manuscripts or final versions of articles within their PMC agreement to the database immediately upon publication.
From there, you should know that PMC and the other NLM databases are specifically for content in the biomedical and life sciences. If your journal is in a related field, such as health advocacy or bioengineering, we recommend contacting PMC’s selection committee (pmcapplication@mail.nlm.nih.gov) to inquire about how to determine whether your content sufficiently falls within PMC’s scope.
During the webinar, Brian also provided some tips on assessing a journal’s citations to help determine its PMC relevance. If many referenced articles are in PMC, that could indicate the journal is a possible fit.
PMC application steps: session highlights and tips
Our top PMC application advice at Scholastica, which Brian emphasized during the recent webinar, is to thoroughly review the inclusion guidelines and ensure your journal fulfills ALL of them before initiating an application. This includes using PMC’s handy tools to run:
Journals must wait 24 months to reapply to PMC if rejected, so it’s well worth taking the time to get everything right on the first try!
Brian recommended doing an internal audit of your journal’s PMC application readiness as “step zero” of the process. He outlined the six stages of applying to PMC from there:
- Apply (submit an application with basic journal information)
- Initial screening by the PMC team
- Scientific quality review (per PMC’s standards)
- Technical evaluation (full-text XML articles with high-res images and supplementary content in PMC-ready packages)
- Pre-production
- Live release
From there, Brian covered some of the primary quality and evaluation areas to focus on, based on the Scholastica team’s experience supporting journals applying to PMC, including that journals must:
- Have a 2+year publishing history and 25+ published peer-reviewed articles
- Adhere to a regular publishing schedule that is publicly posted on the journal website
- List the names and affiliations of the editorial board members on the journal website
- Assign consistent PMC-recognized “article types” to all published articles (e.g., original research, clinical case reports, etc.)
- Demonstrate adherence to ethical best practices established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), and Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)
- Generate XML in an acceptable DTD (Document Type Definition) — generally JATS
- Have a process for handling article updates (e.g., corrections, retractions, etc.) and submitting updates to PMC
He also noted that publishers applying for the first time must get one journal accepted to PMC (and that journal must meet PMC’s Production Data Requirements for at least six months) before they can submit additional titles. That said, if your journal is part of a portfolio of titles you’d like to add to PMC and none of your publisher’s journals have been admitted to the database, be sure to start with one journal!
Answers to missed Q&A questions
As noted at the start of this blog post, we received numerous excellent questions during the PMC indexing webinar. Brian, Carly, Dr. Finn, and Dr. Selvaraj responded to many of them during the session, but it wasn’t possible to cover every single one, so we decided to respond to the rest here.
Q. How does PMC determine a journal’s quality and relevance?
A: PMC determines a journal’s quality and relevance through a rigorous evaluation conducted by its internal selection committee, as well as the recommendations of expert consultants, as explained here. The auditors will assess your journal articles published in the last two years (articles you supply and potentially ad hoc) as well as the editorial and publishing processes and policy information on your journal website. Ensure everything is clear, consistent, and aligned with the PMC criteria!
Q. Can journals that publish articles as they are ready get indexed in PMC?
A: Yes, you can apply to add a journal that follows a rolling publishing schedule to PMC, provided that the journal has published articles at a consistent and relatively predictable frequency for at least two years with a minimum of 25 published peer-reviewed articles.
You’ll need to accurately describe your journal’s publishing schedule in your PMC application and on your journal website. For example, you might state that the journal follows “rolling” or “continuous” article publication and then explain that that means “articles are published online as soon as they are ready.” If you retroactively compile articles into issues, you might state: “Articles are added to an annual issue continuously throughout the year.”
PSA: If you ever consider switching from issue-based to rolling publishing, be sure to reach out to PMC for guidance to avoid technical issues that can arise.
Q. Would it be a red flag for PMC for the journal owner and the EiC to be the same person?
A: While PMC does not explicitly forbid this scenario, it could result in a journal failing to pass its Scientific and Editorial Quality Assessment if the PMC selection committee has concerns about the potential for bias or a lack of transparency in the journal’s editorial and publication processes. We recommend contacting PMC’s selection committee (pmcapplication@mail.nlm.nih.gov) to inquire about specific guidelines for journals in that situation.
In general, it is considered a conflict of interest for the owner of a journal to serve as the EiC without strict safeguards to ensure integrity, including:
- Independent Editorial Board: A diversified and independent editorial board that makes final decisions on papers
- External Peer Review: All submissions, especially any from the owner-editor, are reviewed by independent, external experts
- Ethical standards for editors as authors: In cases where the EiC or other editors submit articles to the journal, the journal should strictly follow ethical best practices established by standard-setting bodies, including the COPE standards for “Editor as author”
- Transparency: Clearly disclosing the ownership structure and the role of the editor in the journal’s “About” section
The Council of Science Editors has a comprehensive set of policies on handling “Relations between Editors and Publishers, Sponsoring Societies, or Journal Owners” that we highly recommend reading.
Q. When we recently submitted to PMC, there was no opportunity in the application to add content (i.e., 25 most recent articles). Is there a separate section of the application for that?
A: You won’t supply 25+ example articles to PMC if/until you get to the fourth stage of the application process, which is the Technical Evaluation. You can learn more about the Technical Evaluation process and minimum data criteria here.
Q. Are XML articles typeset by Scholastica fully compatible with PubMed’s technical requirements?
A: YES! Journals that use the Scholastica Production Service receive full-text XML versions of their typeset articles in a PMC-compliant DTD. Meaning, the XML files are ready to submit to PMC when you’re ready to apply or if you’ve already been admitted to the database. We also offer Scholastica Production customers the option to integrate with PMC and have their articles automatically deposited into the database at no additional cost (so you don’t have to sweat the technical stuff!). You can learn more about how Scholastica prepares PMC-ready XML and our PMC integration option in this blog post.
Q. Can Scholastica supply XML files for pre-existing PDFs that another supplier typeset earlier (i.e, back content)?
A: If a journal does not have full-text XML for previous articles, Scholastica can help produce PMC-ready XML for those articles through our Production service. When working from a PDF, the process and cost are similar to typesetting a new article.
Q. Can you apply to add only select content to PMC if you have a subscription or a hybrid access journal?
A: Yes, PMC offers different participation agreement options, including depositing all NIH-funded articles from a journal or establishing a “selective deposit” agreement. Learn more here. Journals must submit the full-text of the selection of articles that they commit to indexing in PMC.
Q. How early should journals involve their production vendors or platform partners in the PMC application process?
A: The answer to this question will depend on your production vendor/partners, so we recommend reaching out to them as early as possible. When your editorial team decides you’re ready to apply to PMC, reach out to all potential stakeholders to discuss their role in the application process and logistical planning.
Putting it all together
We extend a BIG thank you to all of our PMC indexing best practices webinar speakers!
You can register to watch the webinar recording on demand here. All registrants will also receive a PMC application checklist, including pro tips from the Scholastica team’s experience helping journals apply.
Dr. Finn also shared the INASP Handbook for Journal Editors as a helpful resource. It includes detailed guidance on establishing journal policies and processes in line with ethical best practices, as well as information about PMC.
We hope these resources will help make your PMC indexing journey easier. Of course, this blog post and webinar are not a replacement for PMC’s guidelines. Be sure to read PMC’s application instructions thoroughly before getting started.
Happy indexing!
