News


1,000 academics enrolled at Publons Academy


Publons, the online network of peer reviewers, has launched the Publons Academy: a free, practical peer review training course aimed at speeding up scholarly communication and improving researcher development. The Publons Academy is a


comprehensive online course developed with researchers, peer reviewers, journal editors and Nobel Laureates. It enables new academics to practice and master the core competencies and skills of peer review, and connect with editors in their field. Participants learn the critical stages of peer review in 10 modules and practice writing actual reviews of papers published in their field. Their chosen supervisor mentors them through the course and endorses their skills upon completion. Graduates benefit from an extensive network of peer reviewers and editors at elite journals. Their peer review activity is visible on their Publons profile, and thousands of journal editors looking for reviewers are alerted. The course is aimed at


teaching the next generation of experts to guard research against dubious data and false findings; connects them with journal editors to demonstrate their subject-matter expertise; and helps them reap the benefits of peer review to advance their career. Simultaneously, Publons


says, the academy builds a larger, better educated pool of active reviewers whom editors can find, screen, contact, endorse and motivate using various features available on the Publons platform. This enhanced connection and communication between


30 Research Information June/July 2017


reviewer and editor is needed to speed up scholarly communication and improve researcher development. Higher Education Institutions


can also benefit from a partner version of the Publons Academy, as the course can be incorporated into their researcher development plans. The University of Glasgow, UK, and the University of Queensland, Australia, are among the first institutions to roll out the academy to their researchers. Publons co-founder and CEO Andrew Preston said: ‘We’re really pleased to see so many researchers pre-enrolled in the course and it being rolled out across institutions worldwide. Being an active peer reviewer is a phenomenal asset – for researchers and research itself. ‘Graduates of the Publons


Academy will gain the skills and connections needed to break into the world of peer review and further demonstrate their expertise. At the same time, the academy will build the next generation of subject-matter experts desperately needed to scrutinise research.’ Publons says around 1,000


academics have already pre-enrolled. Participants include university professors


“Graduates will gain the skills and connections needed to break into peer review”


The University of Glasgow has a partner version of the Publons Academy


to cardiologists starting out their career, and will be connected with editors from more than 1,250 journals formally integrated with Publons from publishers including: Wiley, Sage, Taylor & Francis, Springer Nature, and Cambridge University Press. Meanwhile, Publons has announced an expanded partnership with academic and educational publisher Sage Publishing. Building on a current trial, the expanded partnership means Publons’ reviewer recognition service will be rolled out to up to 500 additional leading journal titles. Reviewers can instantly add a verified record of every review performed to their Publons profile. Participating journals will benefit from the increased visibility of


peer review contributions, enabling reviewers, editors and institutions to easily keep track of reviewer activity, while maintaining reviewer anonymity. Tessa Picknett, executive


director for STM at Sage Publishing, said: ‘We continually work with the research community to address their challenges and look at new, forward thinking ways of supporting and engaging with peer review to best support their needs. Publons’ approach has always been refreshing, and we are delighted to be working with the team on this exciting initiative, supporting reviewers and ensuring verified recognition.’


Publons mission is to speed up research by harnessing


@researchinfo | www.researchinformation.info


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44