An important role of a journal editor is to network and gather feedback from our customers and researchers so we can adjust our journals and offerings to better serve our community. Over the recent years, I have participated in numerous outreach activities, panel discussions, and publishing-related presentations of all sorts, and arranged courses on scholarly publishing at Stanford University and Rockefeller University. During such events, I am regularly asked by Early Career Researchers (ECRs), the following question: How can I get more experience with journal publishing? This question particularly resonates with me as I am a scientist by training who later transitioned to the scientific publishing industry.

Looking back at my PhD and postdoctoral days, I was trained on how to write a scientific manuscript and had the opportunity to conduct peer review in collaboration with my supervisor, but I wonder whether there was more to be done to help create opportunities for ECRs and to credit them for their contribution. After pondering on the question and analyzing what is being done at other journals, I suggested to one of my editors that we create a new tier to the editorial board of the journal specifically reserved for particularly promising PhD students and postdocs in the field of research covered in the journal. I thought of the Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological and Integrative Physiology (JEZ-A) as a suitable journal for such a program, as it was likely to benefit from a new perspective and it targets a relatively small community which allows efficient networking. To my delight, my editor was very receptive and supportive of the idea and in early 2018 we assembled a Junior Editorial Board (JEB) at JEZ-A.

Here is how we proceeded: the regular journal Editorial Board Members (EBMs) were asked for suggestions of candidates from their laboratory or their network. In addition, we reached out to the past recipients of the best student presentation awards at relevant scientific conferences in the field. As criteria for inclusion, we required the applicants to have a PhD or a minimum of five publications in the discipline. Candidates were asked to apply to the JEB by providing their curriculum vitae with a brief motivation letter.

Our initial round of outreach allowed the creation of a JEB comprising of six members which we are planning to expand in the near future. Each JEB Member (JEBM) was matched with a mentor: one of the Associate Editors or EBMs, based on the JEBM’s preference and area of expertise, so that they can conduct peer review in a collaborative manner. The collaborative peer review between the JEBM and mentor is done mostly over phone or email (i.e. outside of the journal editorial system) with the intention to include the JEBMs as reviewers within the editorial system once they have conducted approximately three to five reviews with their mentor. Until then, the mentor is responsible for submitting the reviewer’s report within the editorial system. In addition to participating in the peer review process at the journal, the JEBMs are asked to commission two manuscripts for the journal per year. The journal Editorial Office is responsible for monitoring the number of commissioned manuscripts per JEBM and to send the official invitation letters to the invited authors via the editorial system. JEBMs are also invited to promote the journal’s content on social media or at relevant scientific conferences. As perks, JEBMs’ names appear on the journal masthead and website and they receive complimentary online access to the journal. They are also given a welcome package comprising of a certificate and journal-branded marketing material.

We believe that setting up a JEB for JEZ-A offers numerous advantages: the program allows the creation of opportunities for ECRs where they are credited for their contribution and have the chance to get more experience with the peer review process and journal operations, while reinvigorating the image of the journal and of the editorial board and providing a deeper connection of the journal with the community. So far, the JEBMs have acquired one manuscript for the journal and conducted a number of reviews for the journal. It will be interesting to follow this experiment, monitor its success, and see whether such a program could be expanded to other relatively small journals targeting niche communities.