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How to Avoid Predatory Publishers and Conferences

The Issue

Deceptive publishers (also commonly referred to as “predatory journals”) are for-profit entities that purport to publish high quality academic research, but who do not follow accepted scholarly publishing best practices. Their ultimate goal is to make money, not publish quality research. Being associated with a deceptive publisher can lead to financial loss as a result of inappropriate fees, or be harmful to your reputation and that of the University.

Similarly, non-reputable or deceptive conferences operate a scam by setting up fake conference websites designed to trick authors into believing that they are submitting their work to a legitimate established conference in the field. 

While there is no single criterion that points to whether or not a publication or conference is legitimate, consult the checklists provided in this guide when considering the most appropriate venue for your next publication or presentation.

In this way, you can protect your research reputation by making an informed decision when choosing where to disseminate your research.

For more information see: Predatory Journals & Conferences.