1. Article Processing Charges (APC)
There is no fee for manuscript submission to journals published by the Society of Medical Education & Research (SMER). However, upon acceptance of a manuscript following peer review, an Article Processing Charge (APC) is applicable.
SMER operates under an open access publishing model, ensuring that all published content is freely and permanently accessible online immediately upon publication.
For detailed information on publication fees, please refer to the Author Guidelines section of the respective journal.
This fee contributes to the costs associated with the publication process, including editorial handling, DOI assignment, production services, and online dissemination of the article.
APC is charged only after a manuscript has been formally accepted for publication.
2. What the APC Covers
The Article Processing Charge supports the following publication services:
Assignment of Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Editorial workflow management and peer-review coordination
Professional copyediting and language refinement
Typesetting and formatting of accepted manuscripts
Proof preparation and quality assurance
Online hosting and open access availability
Article metadata preparation for indexing and discoverability
3. Payment Process
Following acceptance, the corresponding author will receive an official invoice containing detailed payment instructions.
The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring payment on behalf of all co-authors, either personally or through their affiliated institution or funding body.
Publication will proceed only after confirmation of receipt of payment.
4. Waiver & Discount Policy
To promote equitable access to scholarly publishing, SMER offers full and partial APC waivers based on internationally recognized country income classifications.
Authors must submit waiver requests during the manuscript submission process. Requests submitted after acceptance may not be considered.
For detailed information, please refer to the Author Guidelines section of the respective journal.
5. Refund Policy
Article Processing Charges are generally non-refundable once a manuscript has entered the production stage, including copyediting, typesetting, or online preparation.
Refund requests submitted prior to production may be considered under exceptional circumstances at the discretion of SMER Publications.
6. Currency & Taxes
All charges are stated in United States Dollars (USD). Any applicable bank charges, transaction fees, or local taxes are the responsibility of the author(s) or their institution.
7. Editorial Independence
Editorial decisions across all SMER journals are made independently of financial considerations. The ability of authors to pay APCs has no influence on the peer-review process or acceptance decisions.
All manuscripts are evaluated solely on the basis of academic merit, originality, scientific validity, and ethical compliance.
8. Policy Updates
SMER reserves the right to revise or update this Publishing Policy at any time in order to reflect changes in operational, financial, or industry standards. Any updates will apply prospectively to manuscripts submitted after the date of revision.
