Submission Settings in OJS: Metadata, Components, Checklist and Author Guidelines

The submission settings decide what authors see and what they must send when they submit to your journal. Getting them right saves editors a lot of back-and-forth later. You’ll find them under Settings → Workflow → Submission (journal manager access needed).

Turning submissions off

You can stop new submissions for the whole journal, for example between volumes, or for a single section from Settings → Journal → Sections. Authors then see a notice instead of the submission form.

Metadata

Choose which details are collected about each article, and whether authors fill them in or editors add them later:

• Keywords and subjects: help readers and search engines.
• References: switch on if you register references with Crossref.
• Supporting agencies (funders) and the data availability statement (3.4 and later).
• Coverage, rights, source, type, language and disciplines, if your field uses them.

Ask authors only for what you’ll actually use. Each extra required field is one more reason a submission stalls.

Components (file types)

Components are the kinds of files authors can upload: article text, figures, data sets, transcripts and so on. Keep the list short and clear. Files marked as supplementary or dependent are handled differently from the main text when you publish, so check those flags.

Submission checklist

A list of things authors must confirm before they submit, such as the file format, the reference style or that the work isn’t under review elsewhere. Short, specific items work best: “References follow APA 7th edition” is better than “Formatting is correct”.

Author guidelines

Your guidelines appear on the journal’s public site and during submission. Include the scope, article types and word limits, the reference style, how to anonymise files for review, any charges, and the licence. Link to a template file if you have one.

Notification email

Add an address that receives a copy of every new-submission notice, useful when the managing editor shouldn’t miss anything.

Menu names move a little between OJS 3.3, 3.4 and 3.5, and some themes and plugins add their own options. If a setting isn’t where this guide says, check PKP’s Learning OJS guide for your version. This guide is independent and not endorsed by PKP.

Want your workflow set up by people who do it every week? See our OJS services.

Questions

Where are the submission settings in OJS?

Settings → Workflow → Submission, with tabs for metadata, components, the checklist and author guidelines (names vary slightly by version).

How do I stop submissions in OJS?

Disable submissions for the journal in the submission settings, or for one section under Settings → Journal → Sections.

Should authors enter references in OJS?

Yes, if you register DOIs with Crossref and want reference linking and citation tracking.