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Research Metrics Toolkit

Journal ranking lists

What

  • Journal ranking lists seek to rank selections of journals, often within discipline categories. The rank is usually determined by the journal impact indicator metrics, such as the JIF or SJR. The placement of a journal within a list is often used for evaluative purposes - eg. selecting to publish in a journal that appears in the first quartile of a list (Q1). Journal ranking lists can also be developed by a discipline community or representatives.

Why

  • To demonstrate the impact, rank, or prestige of a journal in the context of other journals in the same field

Applications

  • Academic promotions, grant applications, CV, when developing a publishing plan (researchers)
  • When evaluating a purchase or subscription (libraries)

Considerations

  • Ranking lists produced by publishers tend to only include journals that are indexed by their database

Common tools

  • Scimago Journal and Country Rank
  • Journal Citation Reports (SSCI and SCIE)
  • ABDC Journal Ranking List (Business Disciplines)
  • ERA 2023 (submitted journals list)

How to find journal rankings:

1. SCImago Journal & Country Rank
  1. Access the Scimago Journal and Country Rank website at http://www.scimagojr.com/
  2. Enter the journal title, ISSN, or publisher name in the search box and hit enter.
  3. Click on the title of the correct journal in the results list.
  4. The SJR can be found in the SJR graph box - hover your mouse over the graph to see the SJR value for each year.
  5. Additional journal metrics, such as journal H-Index, quartile rank within categories, and citing information is also available.
2. Journal Citation Reports - SCIE & SSCI (also known as ARWU list)
  1. Access Journal Citation Reports from the Library website.
  2. Locate the Master Search Box in the top left-hand corner, and begin typing the name of the journal.
  3. Select the journal from the suggestions drop-down menu.
  4. The Journal Impact Factor can be found in the Key Indicators table.
  5. Metrics for each year that the journal has been included in the Web of Science Core Collection database and a range of Impact Factor variations will be available.
3. ABDC Journal Quality List - Business and related disciplines
  1. Access the most recent version of the Australian Business Deans Council Journal Quality List from the ABDC website
  2. Search for journals online, including by Field of Research and by Journal Rating.
4. ERA Submission Journal List

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