{"id":13741,"date":"2024-09-26T14:31:25","date_gmt":"2024-09-26T14:31:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/?page_id=13741"},"modified":"2026-03-31T09:47:05","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T09:47:05","slug":"publishing","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/info-resources\/exploration\/publishing\/","title":{"rendered":"Career area: Scientific publishing &#8211; journal editor"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"vf-grid | vf-grid__col-3\"><div class=\"vf-grid__col--span-2\"><!--[vf\/content]-->\n<div class=\"vf-content\">\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A &#8216;communications, outreach, publishing&#8217; career<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Publishing professionals are employed in a range of roles by society journals and commercial publishers.&nbsp; This includes professional editors for scientific journals and commissioning editors for science magazines or book publishers. &nbsp;The most common career destination for PhD-holders in publishing is a professional scientific editor at a journal, and we focus on this role here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"vf-tabs\"><ul class=\"vf-tabs__list\" data-vf-js-tabs=\"true\"><li class=\"vf-tabs__item\"><a class=\"vf-tabs__link\" href=\"#vf-tabs__section-ad9d22e7-f2ff-4f69-8d17-6906474a25b3\" data-vf-js-location-nearest-activation-target=\"\">Roles and responsibilities<\/a><\/li><li class=\"vf-tabs__item\"><a class=\"vf-tabs__link\" href=\"#vf-tabs__section-0e516856-67d5-40f7-8a48-9fb56f3d4d9c\" data-vf-js-location-nearest-activation-target=\"\">Career entry and progression<\/a><\/li><li class=\"vf-tabs__item\"><a class=\"vf-tabs__link\" href=\"#vf-tabs__section-2b831503-f499-4f03-ae98-402b00c99e2e\" data-vf-js-location-nearest-activation-target=\"\">Knowledge and skills<\/a><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"vf-tabs-content\" data-vf-js-tabs-content=\"true\">\n<section class=\"vf-tabs__section\" id=\"vf-tabs__section-ad9d22e7-f2ff-4f69-8d17-6906474a25b3\"><h2>Roles and responsibilities<\/h2>\n<p>The tasks associated with a professional scientific editor role may include a subset of the following activities:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>deciding whether an article is in scope of a journal and if it should be sent out to peer review.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>supervising the entire peer review life-cycle of manuscripts. &nbsp;This includes:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>identifying potential reviewers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>assess reviewers reports.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>deciding whether to publish a manuscript.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>communicating editorial decisions to authors.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>attending editorial team meetings, where decisions are discussed.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>actively engaging with the scientific community to promote the activities of the journal\/attract papers and reviewers, and keep up-to-date with changes in the scientific field and in publishing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>identifying and approaching scientists to write reviews, books etc on specific topics.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>writing editorial pieces, short research summaries etc.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"vf-tabs__section\" id=\"vf-tabs__section-0e516856-67d5-40f7-8a48-9fb56f3d4d9c\"><h2>Career entry and progression<\/h2>\n<p>It is possible to enter scientific publishing directly from the bench. Applicants with at least one postdoc may be preferred over applicants directly from the PhD, but this depends on the publisher. The job title for the first position varies: depending on the publisher this can be \u2018Assistant editor\u2019, \u2018Associate editor\u2019, \u2018Scientific editor\u2019 or another title. To understand which title is used by a specific publisher, you can look for their editors on LinkedIn and see what position they had when they joined the journal from academia, or look for the newest editors on their website (most journals have an \u2018about the editors\u2019 page with a biosketch for each of their editors).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Many scientific publishers offer possibilities for career progression, i.e. moving to more senior roles (editor, senior editor, chief\/executive editor) at the same\/another journal, or moving into other management positions within publishing. After gaining experience in the role, some editors also later change career direction \u2013 for example, moving into grant or science management roles, or becoming consultants in scientific writing.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"vf-tabs__section\" id=\"vf-tabs__section-2b831503-f499-4f03-ae98-402b00c99e2e\"><h2>Knowledge and skills<\/h2>\n<p>Editors need a broad scientific knowledge and critical thinking skills to read and assess the scope of articles from a range of fields. They have to make logical decisions based on expert reviews and clearly articulate the basis of the decision to authors. A core of the job involves engaging with authors, reviewers, and the scientific community using a variety of communication channels&nbsp;(e.g. email, in-person meetings, phone calls, social media platforms, and scientific events). The ability to reach out and build a strong network is therefore a key aspect of the role.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In our&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/blog\/2022\/03\/skills-for-a-scientific-career\/\">careers and skills survey,<\/a>&nbsp; 5 science publishing professionals told us the competencies they use most in their daily work&nbsp; The most frequently selected competencies were:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>broad scientific knowledge (selected by 86% of respondents)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>effective communication (selected by 86%)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>clarity of thought( selected by 57%)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>networking (selected by 57%)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>team.work (selected by 57%)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Language requirements<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>For companies\/societies publishing English-language journals, no additional languages are required. Scientific editors are not involved in copy editing at most journals, so while excellent communication skills are very important, you do not need to have perfect English grammar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div><!--[vf\/content]-->\n<div class=\"vf-content\">\n\n<figure class=\"vf-figure wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"667\" class=\"vf-figure__image\" src=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-content\/uploads\/B9A8712-m.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-13337\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-content\/uploads\/B9A8712-m.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-content\/uploads\/B9A8712-m-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-content\/uploads\/B9A8712-m-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<article class=\"vf-card vf-card--brand vf-card--bordered vf-u-margin__bottom--800\" default>\n  \n  <div class=\"vf-card__content | vf-stack vf-stack--400\">\n          <h3 class=\"vf-card__heading\">\n        \n        What do people value about this career?\n              <\/h3>\n    \n    \n          <p class=\"vf-card__text\"><!-- wp:paragraph -->\r\n\r\nIn our<a class=\"vf-card_link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/blog\/2022\/03\/skills-for-a-scientific-career\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u00a0careers and skills survey<\/a>,\u00a0 science publishing professionals told us that they appreciate that their work:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>is intellectually stimulating<\/li>\r\n \t<li>can be completed\u00a0 within reasonable working hours<\/li>\r\n<\/ul><\/p>\n      <\/div>\n<\/article>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<style>\n    <\/style>\n\n<section id=\"wp-block-1\">\n  <div class=\"vf-card-container  | vf-u-fullbleed  \n  | vf-u-background-color-ui--grey--light \">\n          <div class=\"vf-section-header | vf-u-margin__bottom--600 | vf-u-sr-only\">\n        <h2 class=\"vf-section-header__heading\" >\n        header    <\/h2>\n              <\/div>\n      \n\n<div class=\"vf-grid | vf-grid__col-3\"><div class=\"vf-grid__col--span-2\"><!--[vf\/content]-->\n<div class=\"vf-content\">\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Want to learn more about this career area?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<details  class=\"vf-details\" id=\"\"  >\n<summary class=\"vf-details--summary\">\nOverview articles<\/summary>\n<div class=\"acf-innerblocks-container\">\n<div class=\"vf-links vf-links--tight vf-links__list--s vf-links__list--very-easy\">\n    <ul class=\"vf-links__list vf-list vf-links__list--secondary\">\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/gsonet.org\/karrierewissen\/leaving-academia-for-scientific-publishing\/\">\n        Leaving Academia for Scientific Publishing: A Career Path Beyond the Lab &#8211; Article      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/projectscientists.blogspot.com\/2007\/03\/so-you-want-career-in-publishing.html\">\n        So you want a career in publishing? \u2013 Blog entry      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41592-021-01233-0\">\n        Going pro \u2013 Nature Methods Career article      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.csescienceeditor.org\/article\/perspectives-from-a-scientist-editor\/\">\n        Perspectives from a Scientific Editor \u2013 Council of Science Editor      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.science.org\/content\/article\/editing-scientific-career\">\n        Editing as a Scientific Career \u2013 Science Careers      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S0012160619305329\">\n        From the bench to the press: Scholarly publishing as a career route for the scientist  \u2013 Developmental biology special issue \u2018Careers beyond the bench\u2019      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n  <\/ul>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n<details  class=\"vf-details\" id=\"\"  >\n<summary class=\"vf-details--summary\">\nGetting involved in peer-review activities<\/summary>\n<div class=\"acf-innerblocks-container\">\n<div class=\"vf-links vf-links--tight vf-links__list--s vf-links__list--very-easy\">\n    <ul class=\"vf-links__list vf-list vf-links__list--secondary\">\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.blopig.com\/blog\/2021\/03\/peer-review-reviewing-as-an-early-career-researcher\/\">\n        Blog article from Alissa Hummer with advice on how to get involved in peer review      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/prelights.biologists.com\/\">\n        PreLights, an initiative from the company of biologists, where early researchers can apply to become \u2018prelighters\u2019 and highlight interesting preprints.      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/emerginginvestigators.org\/prospective_staff\">\n        Contributing as an editor to the Journal of Emerging Investigators, a journal for middle and high school students to publish their research.      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ascb.org\/mboc-early-career-editor-profiles\/\">\n        MBoC Early-Career Editor Profiles, a group of Early-Career Editors dedicated to curating and highlighting preprints.      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n  <\/ul>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n<details  class=\"vf-details\" id=\"\"  >\n<summary class=\"vf-details--summary\">\nResources<\/summary>\n<div class=\"acf-innerblocks-container\">\n<div class=\"vf-links vf-links--tight vf-links__list--s vf-links__list--very-easy\">\n    <ul class=\"vf-links__list vf-list vf-links__list--secondary\">\n    <li class=\"vf-list__item\">\n          <a class=\"vf-list__link\" href=\"https:\/\/intersectjobsims.com\/\">\n        InterSECT Job Sim simulation library.      <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n  <\/ul>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:12px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"vf-box vf-box--normal vf-box-theme--quinary | vf-u-margin__bottom--400\">\n                            <p class=\"vf-box__text\">We highly recommend learning more about the careers using the resources above, then conducting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/info-resources\/making-connections\/#vf-tabs__section-c9d226ee-2bad-45ed-bf4a-7d49cd01ad03\">informational interviews<\/a> to gain further insights directly from former PhDs working in career areas that interest you.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div><!--[vf\/content]-->\n<div class=\"vf-content\">\n\n<article class=\"vf-card vf-card--brand vf-card--bordered vf-u-margin__bottom--800\" default>\n  \n  <div class=\"vf-card__content | vf-stack vf-stack--400\">\n          <h3 class=\"vf-card__heading\">\n                  <a class=\"vf-card__link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/internal-information\/eicat\/embl-fellows-career-service\/career-exploration\/\" target=\"\">\n        \n        For EMBL fellows\n                  <svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"vf-card__heading__icon | vf-icon vf-icon-arrow--inline-end\" width=\"1em\" height=\"1em\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n            <path d=\"M0 12c0 6.627 5.373 12 12 12s12-5.373 12-12S18.627 0 12 0C5.376.008.008 5.376 0 12zm13.707-5.209l4.5 4.5a1 1 0 010 1.414l-4.5 4.5a1 1 0 01-1.414-1.414l2.366-2.367a.25.25 0 00-.177-.424H6a1 1 0 010-2h8.482a.25.25 0 00.177-.427l-2.366-2.368a1 1 0 011.414-1.414z\" fill=\"currentColor\" fill-rule=\"nonzero\"><\/path>\n          <\/svg>\n        <\/a>\n              <\/h3>\n    \n    \n          <p class=\"vf-card__text\">Further internal resources (e.g. library of recorded career talks) can be found on our intranet pages.<\/p>\n      <\/div>\n<\/article>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n        <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n<hr class=\"vf-divider\">\n\n\n\n\n        <div class=\"vf-section-header\">\n        <h2 class=\"vf-section-header__heading\">\n            <a class=\"vf-section-header__heading vf-section-header__heading--is-link\"\n               target=\"\"\n               href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/blog\/category\/career-profiles\/profiles_comms\/publishing\/\">\n                Read relevant posts from our blog                <svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"vf-section-header__icon | vf-icon vf-icon-arrow--inline-end\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n                    <path d=\"M0 12c0 6.627 5.373 12 12 12s12-5.373 12-12S18.627 0 12 0C5.376.008.008 5.376 0 12zm13.707-5.209l4.5 4.5a1 1 0 010 1.414l-4.5 4.5a1 1 0 01-1.414-1.414l2.366-2.367a.25.25 0 00-.177-.424H6a1 1 0 010-2h8.482a.25.25 0 00.177-.427l-2.366-2.368a1 1 0 011.414-1.414z\" fill=\"\" fill-rule=\"nonzero\"><\/path>\n                <\/svg>\n            <\/a>\n        <\/h2>\n            <\/div>\n    \n<div class=\"vf-grid vf-grid__col-3 | vf-content\">\n\n    \n            \n<article class=\"vf-summary vf-summary--news\" style=\"display: block; display: unset;\">\n  \n  <span class=\"vf-summary__date\" title=\"2018-11-28T11:30:12+00:00\"\n    datetime=\"2018-11-28T11:30:12+00:00\">28 November 2018  <\/span>\n    \n  <h3 class=\"vf-summary__title\">\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/blog\/2018\/11\/career-profile-anne-nielsen-senior-editor-embo-press\/\" class=\"vf-summary__link\">Career Profile: Anne Nielsen, Senior Editor, EMBO Press<\/a>\n  <\/h3>\n    <p class=\"vf-summary__text\">\n    Anne Nielsen tells us about her role as a scientific editor at The EMBO Journal, including how she made the transtition from a postdoc to EMBO.  <\/p>\n    <\/span>\n      \n<\/article>\n\n<!--\/vf-summary-->\n    \n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"vf-divider\">\n\n\n\n<div class=\"vf-grid | vf-grid__col-3\"><div class=\"vf-grid__col--span-3\"><!--[vf\/content]-->\n<div class=\"vf-content\">\n\n<div class=\"vf-section-header | vf-u-margin__bottom--400\">\n  <h2 class=\"vf-section-header__heading\" \n      >\n      \n          <a class=\"vf-section-header__heading vf-section-header__heading--is-link\"\n                  target=\"_blank\"\n         href=\"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/info-resources\/exploration\/\">\n        Return to our Career information and exploration page        <svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"vf-section-header__icon | vf-icon vf-icon-arrow--inline-end\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n          <path d=\"M0 12c0 6.627 5.373 12 12 12s12-5.373 12-12S18.627 0 12 0C5.376.008.008 5.376 0 12zm13.707-5.209l4.5 4.5a1 1 0 010 1.414l-4.5 4.5a1 1 0 01-1.414-1.414l2.366-2.367a.25.25 0 00-.177-.424H6a1 1 0 010-2h8.482a.25.25 0 00.177-.427l-2.366-2.368a1 1 0 011.414-1.414z\" fill=\"\" fill-rule=\"nonzero\"><\/path>\n        <\/svg>\n      <\/a>\n      <\/h2>\n\n  \n  <\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"parent":8552,"menu_order":10,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template-title-left-aligned.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"embl_taxonomy":[],"class_list":["post-13741","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"embl_taxonomy_terms":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13741","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13741"}],"version-history":[{"count":36,"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13741\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28863,"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13741\/revisions\/28863"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8552"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13741"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"embl_taxonomy","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.embl.org\/about\/info\/embl-fellows-career-service\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/embl_taxonomy?post=13741"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}