The Journal of Dental Education is a distinguished monthly journal published continuously since 1936. It provides coverage of a wide variety of scientific and educational research in dental and allied dental education. Internationally recognized as the premier journal for academic dentistry, the JDE publishes articles on such topics as innovative testing methodologies, curriculum reform, faculty development, the impact on oral health research of recent findings in such areas as genetics and the brain, dental and allied dental admissions, professional and educational ethics, and systematic reviews of clinical trials regarding oral, dental, and craniofacial diseases and disorders. The JDE is one of only a few scholarly journals that are publishing the most important work being done in dental and allied dental education and research today.
The Editor welcomes submissions that report research and address issues in the following areas:
1) Critical Issues in Dental Education;
2) Milieu in Dental Schools and Practice;
3) Educational Methodologies;
4) Evidence-Based Dentistry;
5) Faculty Development;
6) Transfer of Advances in Sciences into Dental Education;
7) International Perspectives on Dental Education; and
8) From the Students’ Corner.
Authors from outside North America are welcome to submit articles in any of these eight areas, as well as the International Perspectives section, which is dedicated to work that is primarily relevant to the author’s geographic area. Students are also welcome to submit articles in any of the eight areas and are especially encouraged to submit to the From the Students’ Corner section, which is open to an extremely wide range of subject matter. Authors who wish to submit manuscripts in areas beyond these eight should check with the Editor first.
All manuscripts must be written in English and submitted exclusively to the Journal of Dental Education in order to be considered for publication.
Preparing Manuscripts for Submission
The JDE only considers manuscripts submitted electronically, prepared in MS Word. Authors are urged to follow the “Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals.” These requirements, developed by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors and now in their fifth edition (1997), can be found in the New England Journal of Medicine 1997;336:309-15 and on that journal’s website.
The following summarizes these requirements as well as specific JDE procedures. Note that these requirements pertain specifically to the initial submission of manuscripts. When an article has been or is close to being accepted, the editor will provide its author with the “Production Guide for JDE Authors,” which should be followed in preparing the final version of the article for printing.
Document Preparation. Create the document on pages with margins of at least 1 inch (25 mm). Use double-spacing throughout, including title page, abstract, text, acknowledgments, references, tables, and legends for illustrations, and number pages consecutively. Begin each of the following sections on separate pages: title page, abstract and key words, text, acknowledgments, references, individual tables, and legends. Do not embed tables and figures in the body of the text. If figures or other illustrations are unusually large files, submit them as separate documents.
Title Page. The title page should carry: 1) the title of the article, which should be concise but informative; 2) first name, middle initial, and last name of each author, with highest academic degrees; 3) each author or coauthor’s job title, department, and institution; 4) disclaimers if any; 5) name, address, phone, fax, and email of author responsible for correspondence about the manuscript and requests for reprints; and 6) the source(s) in the form of grants, equipment, drugs, etc. See articles in the issue for examples.
Abstract and Key Words. The second page should carry the title and an abstract of no more than 150-200 words. The abstract should state the purposes of the study or investigation, basic procedures, main findings, and principal conclusions. Subheads should not be used in the abstract. Below the abstract, provide—and identify as such—three to ten key words or short phrases that will assist indexers in cross-indexing the article and that may be published with the abstract. Use terms from the Medical Subject Headings listed in Index Medicus.
Text. The body of the manuscript should be divided into sections preceded by appropriate subheads. Major subheads should be typed in capital letters at the left-hand margin. Secondary subheads should appear at the left-hand margin and be typed in upper and lower case and put in bold face. Tertiary subheads should be typed in upper and lower case and be underlined.
References. Number references consecutively in the order in which they are first mentioned in the text. Identify references by Arabic numerals, and place them as superscript numerals within the sentence. Do not link the references to their numbers as footnotes or endnotes. References cited only in tables or legends to figures should appear as a source note to the table or figure.
Follow the style of these general examples, which are based on the formats used in Index Medicus. Titles of journals should be abbreviated according to the Index Medicus style. If there are more than six authors, list the first six and use et al.
Book
1. Avery JK. Essentials of oral histology and embryology: a clinical approach. 2nd ed. St. Louis: Mosby, 2000.
Chapter in an Edited Volume
2. Inglehart MR, Filstrup SL, Wandera A. Oral health and quality of life in children. In: Inglehart MR, Bragramian RA, eds. Oral health-related quality of life. Chicago: Quintessence Publishing Co., 2002:79-88.
Article in a Journal
3. Seale NS, Casamassimo PS. U.S. predoctoral education in pediatric dentistry: its impact on access to dental care. J Dent Educ 2003;67(1):23-9.
Report
4. Commission on Dental Education. Accreditation standards for dental education programs. Chicago: American Dental Association, 2002.
Tables. All tables must have a title and at least two columns. Arrange column headings so that their relation to the data is clear. Indicate explanatory notes to items in the table with reference marks (*, †). Cite each table in the text in the order in which it is to appear. Identify tables with Arabic numerals (e.g., Table 1).
Illustrations. Illustrations should not exceed 8 ½ x 11 inches, and all lettering should be at least 1 ½ mm high. Cite each figure in the text in the order in which it is to appear (e.g., Figure 1). Figures should not be used where tables are more economical. If your figures include scientific images in which fine detail is important, please call attention to this point to both the Editor and Managing Editor so that special procedures may be followed. If your article is accepted for publication, we may request illustrations in hard copy rather than electronic format. If you are asked to do so, submit two clear, unmounted glossy photographs or original line drawings of each figure (do not submit negatives), and place the name of the author and the figure number on the back of each illustration.
Human Subjects. It is the author’s responsibility to obtain approval or exempt status from his or her institution’s Human Subjects Institutional Review Board or Committee for studies involving human subjects. After securing approval from the required board or committee, the author will have a signed human consent form on every subject in the study. Failure to meet these two requirements is likely to place the manuscript under consideration in jeopardy and lead to a rejection.
Submission and Production Procedures
Manuscripts should be submitted as an MS Word attachment via email to the Editor, Dr. L. Jackson Brown, at jbrown7520@verizon.net. There is no charge for submission. The Editor’s office will acknowledge receipt of the submission by email.
Review Process. Manuscripts will be peer-reviewed by individuals, selected by the Editor, who have expertise and experience pertinent to the topic of the article. The journal follows a blind peer review process, with close to 200 individuals serving as reviewers. The Editor and/or Associate Editor also review all manuscripts. The review process can take up to three months. Currently, approximately 55 percent of manuscripts are accepted, 30 percent are rejected, and the remaining submissions are returned to their authors with encouragement to revise and resubmit. If a manuscript is not accepted, the author will receive the reviewers’ comments, but manuscript copies will not be returned.
Preparing the Final Manuscript. If the manuscript is accepted or provisionally accepted, an edited version will be returned to the author with the reviewers’ comments for the author’s approval, possible rewriting, and retyping. At that time, the Editor will also provide the author with the “Production Guide for JDE Authors,” which outlines the style and formatting requirements of this journal. After the author has made the requested changes, the manuscript is returned for final review and editing to the Editor. If acceptable, the Editor then sends the manuscript to the Managing Editor, Lynn Whittaker, who copyedits it and prepares it for printing.
Copyright Transfer. Also on acceptance or provisional acceptance of the manuscript for publication, the Editor will provide the author will a copyright transfer form. This form specifies that the work is original and that the author holds all rights in the article and is transferring them to the journal for paper and online publication. If the article is coauthored, all authors must sign the copyright transfer form.
Page Proof Review. Authors will receive page proofs of their articles by fax, along with instructions for marking and returning it to the Managing Editor, who also reads the proof. You will have three to five business days to review the proofs and return them.
The JDE staff attempts to make sure that the entire publication cycle, from time of notification of acceptance of an article until its appearance in a published issue, is no more than three months.
Reprints
Authors of articles to be published will receive a reprint order form with their page proofs. Authors who wish to order reprints are urged to order them at the same time the issue is being printed for the most timely and efficient service; however, reprint orders may be taken at any time after publication of the issue. The price of reprints varies with the page count of the article and the quantity of reprints ordered. Reprint orders should be submitted to Merideth Menken, Senior Director of Publications and Communications.
Following the launch of the online version of the JDE in the summer of 2004, copies of individual articles may also be acquired online, whether by the authors themselves or by other readers.
The JDE permits photocopying of articles for the noncommercial purpose of educational and scientific advancement. Requests for permission to photocopy articles should be directed to Merideth Menken, Senior Director for Publications and Communications.
Key Contact Information
Manuscripts. Address all manuscripts to be considered for publication to Dr. L. Jackson Brown, Editor, Journal of Dental Education. Manuscripts should be emailed as an MS Word file attachment to jbrown7520@verizon.net.
Proofs and Reprint Orders. Return proofs and all information concerning final publication to Lynn Whittaker, Managing Editor, American Dental Education Association, 1400 K Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005; WhittakerL@ADEA.org.
Advertising and Copyright Permissions. Address all correspondence relating to advertising, copyright, and other matters of business to Merideth Menken, Senior Director of Publications and Communications, ADEA, 1400 K Street, NW, Suite 1100, Washington, DC 20005; 202-289-7201, ext. 173, phone; 202-289-7204 fax; MenkenM@ADEA.org.
Book and Software Reviews. If you are interested in reviewing books for the journal, contact the Book Review Coordinator: Dr. Stephen L. Silberman, Director, Mississippi Area Health Education Centers and Professor and Director, Public Health Dentistry, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2500 North State St., Jackson, MS 39216-4505; ssilberman@sod.umsmed.edu. If you are interested in reviewing software for the journal, contact the Software Review Coordinator: Dr. Titus Schleyer, Director, Center for Dental Informatics, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, 3501 Terrace St., Pittsburgh, PA 15261; 412-648-8886 phone; 412-648-9960 fax; titus@pitt.edu.
