PLoS ONE vs. Lower IF Field-specific Journal

[capnamerica]

Hello all,

I just wanted to get your thoughts on my situation. I'm looking to submit a manuscript for publication, and am torn on whether to submit it to PLoS ONE, which has an IF of 4.092, and the British Journal of Dermatology, which has an IF of 3.666. Which one would you recommend submitting to, and why?

Thanks.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[twright]

Hello all,

I just wanted to get your thoughts on my situation. I'm looking to submit a manuscript for publication, and am torn on whether to submit it to PLoS ONE, which has an IF of 4.092, and the British Journal of Dermatology, which has an IF of 3.666. Which one would you recommend submitting to, and why?

Thanks.

Really depends on your perspective.

If you are a faculty member with plenty of pubs just trying to get your research findings out there, then go with PLoS ONE. However, the review times at PLoS ONE have slowed down lately, so the speed advantage is no longer as compelling a rationale.

If you are a medical student wanting to put something on your CV for residency applications, it really doesn't matter. Anything with an IF 3-6 is going to be regarded as more or less equivalent. There are still some dinosaur faculty members who mistakenly regard PLoS ONE as a non-selective take-all-comers publication, so to minimize that (likely low) possibility you might consider going with the field journal.