New Editorial Board
Now in its tenth year, the makeup of the University of Florida’s Journal of Undergraduate Research will undergo a major change in the process of publishing the best academic work from UF’s undergraduates and creating one of the nation’s best undergraduate journals.
Starting this summer, JUR will be helmed by an editorial board made up of both graduate and undergraduates from across the academic spectrum of the University of Florida.
This board will be responsible for selecting what student papers will be included in the journal, on the basis of the rigor of the research, the importance and significance of the paper, and the overall quality of the work.
Creed Greer, editor of JUR, says that membership on the editorial board is a prestigious position. “We consider it an honor to be part of the editorial board,” Greer says. “The students who are involved are aware of this and we want potential future members to know this also.”
The new editorial board, which is about half graduate and half undergraduate, will function like the multitude of professional journals nationwide that feature the research and writing of academics. The key to maintaining the high standards of UF’s JUR, Greer says, is the peer-review process, wherein together the editorial board reviews potentially publishable papers, provides feedback for minor revisions, and decides on what will be included in each issue of the journal.
“We wanted to institute a peer-review process, so that the journal would be respected as the scholarly publication that it is.”
Yet the new editorial board is not just about retaining JUR’s reputation as a top-tier journal; it serves as a learning tool in itself.
“The journal also has a clear pedagogical function,” Greer says. “It teaches both graduate and undergraduate students how to work as scholars.”
The students on the editorial board read within their fields, ensuring that there is thorough insight into the content of the journal. This allows specialization as well as communication across the University of Florida’s many academic disciplines and fields of study.
“For the graduate student, this is an opportunity to begin what will be a vital part in building their academic resume,” Greer says. “For the undergraduate, this is a great opportunity to see what this part of academia is all about.”
- Christopher Garland
