Benefits of a two-way editorial fellowship
Beyond the obvious benefits to Fellows in terms of career development and networking, a two-way editorial fellowship model also holds tremendous value for editors, journals (including publishers), professional societies, and the global scientific community (Fig. 1). For example, RCEF Fellows have made a number of scholarly contributions that benefit a wide range of researchers including: examining the demographics and career trajectories of Associate Editors (Poulson‐Ellestad et al. 2020); creating workshops to connect ECRs with journal editors (Deemer et al. 2020); describing ways to be a better peer reviewer (Falkenberg & Soranno 2018); and improving manuscript preparation through writing guides (Hotaling 2020) and organizing workshops. From a publisher’s perspective, “opportunities to integrate ECRs into publishing are valuable since the sustainability and success of journals heavily relies on the big and bold ideas voiced by the next generation of researchers” (Fiona Sarne, Wiley, pers. comm.). From a scientific society perspective, editorial fellowships distribute leadership beyond senior and mid-career scientists, involve ECRs in key discussions, and foster fun and creative discussions between editors, Fellows, and the society membership that build community (Mike Pace, former ASLO President, pers. comm.). At the global level, resources produced by ECRs directly benefit the scientific community but equally important is the behind-the-scenes role that ECRs can have in driving editorial change.
While all RCEF products have benefited multiple groups, some efforts have captured benefits that stretch from the Fellow to the global scientific community. For example, a practical guide to concise scientific writing (Fig. 2a; Hotaling 2020) emerged from a Fellow’s own early struggles with writing and manuscript preparation. This essay has been downloaded >50,000 times since June 2020. Such strong resonation with the scientific community, far beyond the typical reach of articles in Limnology & Oceanography Letters , has spurred the EIC to solicit similar articles targeting key scientific issues with wide relevance.
Another example is an early career publishing honor (Fig. 2b) which was conceived by RCEF Fellows during a discussion with the EIC at an annual publishing strategy meeting. The honor was created to address two needs for the journal identified by the EIC: increasing submissions to a still relatively new journal, and increasing the geographic and topical diversity of submissions. It also addressed a need that the Fellows identified: making open access publication more accessible to financially limited ECRs. Fellows developed a rubric to score applications based on criteria they deemed most important: (1) scientific novelty and interest, (2) potential to support under-represented groups (broadly defined), (3) journal fit, and (4) financial need. Beyond the benefits to awarded researchers, the program provided an opportunity for Fellows to think like editors by considering research beyond their own expertise, making difficult decisions, and providing feedback on manuscripts ahead of submission.