Submission Preparation Guidelines

BCPHR's Submission Preparation Guidelines

Please prepare your manuscript using the guidelines and submit through Scholastica. Learn more about the submmission process in Scholastica here

Note: Submissions that do not conform to these guidelines will be desk rejected. 

Step 1: Download Your Submission Type Template

Download the template that best fits your submission type by clicking on the appropriate button: 

Note: Templates provide instructions on how to prepare your cover letter and manuscript/media submission

Step 2: Ensure Your Paper Conforms to BCPHR's Guidelines

Document Format

Submissions must conform to the following:

  • Use at least 11 pt Times New Roman font
  • Submit your article file using Microsoft Word (i.e., .doc or .docx file)
  • Number all pages
  • Authors are responsible for securing rights as necessary to reproduce previously published images, tables, and figures and ensuring that they are credited appropriately where applicable
  • DO NOT submit manuscripts with line numbers
  • DO NOT submit PDFs or Google doc links

    Note: Poster submissions have some unique requirements. Please be sure to read the guidelines carefully.

Language

BCPHR requires non-discriminatory language to be used at all times. Defamatory language of any kind directed toward persons and/or institutions is not permitted. This includes any and all terms that are commonly considered sexist, heterosexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, and xenophobic.

Author Biographies

Author biographies are required upon submission and are requested at the end of the template. 

Figures

Figures should be configured as follows:  

  • Figures are to be placed on separate pages of the article file with legends placed below each figure
  • Figures should be at least 300 DPI, submitted as JPEG, PNG, EPS, or SVG files
  • You may submit videos or GIFs as well
  • Figures ideally should be submitted with a transparent background
  • Figures should be titled consecutively according to the order they appear in the text
  • Titles are to appear above the figure, in bold, Times New Roman, 12 point font
  • Legends are to appear directly after the image, single-spaced, in Times New Roman, 12 pt font
  • Titles and legends should NOT be part of the image, but inserted as text in the document, above and below the figure image, respectively
  • Text within figures should be single-spaced, in Times New Roman, 10 point font

Tables

Tables should be created in Word and configured as follows: 

  • Tables are to be placed at the end of the submission, as indicated in the template
  • Tables should be created using Word (please do not submit them as images)
  • Tables are to be numbered consecutively according to the order of citation in the text
  • Titles are to be set above the table in bold Times New Roman, 12 pt font
  • Table text and data are to be set in Times New Roman, 10 pt font, single space
  • Legends are to be included below in non-bold Times New Roman, 8 pt font, single-space
  • DO NOT submit tables as images

Images and Other Media

Images and other media that are not part of figures may be submitted as follows: 

  • Images should inserted on separate pages of the manuscript
  • Image files should be at least 300 DPI, submitted as JPEG, PNG, EPS, or SVG files
  • You may submit high resolution videos or GIFs as well. Please do embed these in the document; but submit them separately.
  • Images ideally should be submitted with a transparent background
  • Images should be titled consecutively according to the order they appear in the text
  • Titles are to appear above the figure, in bold, Times New Roman, 12 point font
  • Legends are to appear directly after the image, single-spaced, in Times New Roman, 12 pt font
  • Titles and legends should NOT be part of the image, but inserted as text in the document, above and below the figure image, respectively
  • Text within figures should be single-spaced, in Times New Roman, 10 point font

Photographs

  • BCPHR requires written permission or signed waiver forms for all images depicting individuals, except in the case of crowd scenes or when persons are not identifiable

  • If selected for publication, BCPHR will require copies of all permissions paperwork; photographs must be submitted as PNG or TIFF files of 300 DPI or higher

Style (References)

References: All references must be prepared and submitted according to the American Medical Association (AMA) Style Guide. (Visit the AMA Manual of Style online: amamanualofstyle.com. Click to download the guide or visit: tinyurl.com/AMACitationGuideBCPH.

Please do not confuse AMA style with APA. We do not use APA style (which features in-text citations).

AMA uses endnotes with superscript Arabic numerals outside periods and commas, but inside colons and semicolons. For example:

I like this paper.In the endnotes, the reference will appear as follows: 

  1. Compston A. Papers I liked. The Lancet. 2008;372(9648):1502-1517.

Authors are highly encouraged to utilize automated citation tools such as Zotero or Mendeley, which are free and user-friendly open-source reference software management systems. See the Submission Templates for sample references.

Disclosures

By submitting to BCPHR, the authors declare that:

  • They contributed to the creation of the submission and grant BCPHR permission to review and (if selected), publish their work

  • They do not have personal, commercial, academic, or financial interests that influence the research and opinions represented in the work submitted to BCPHR.

  • The submission is NOT under consideration by another publication and/or has not previously been published elsewhere

Step 3: Submit Your Paper Via Scholastica

To submit your article, please click here or the button below. 

Submit to Harvard Public Health Review

Emailed submission are NOT accepted.


Click here for Article Processing Fees.