About the Journal

Presentation and History

The "University and Society" Journal (RUS) is a scientific electronic publication of the University of Cienfuegos "Carlos Rafael Rodríguez", Cuba. It was born in 2008, on the eve of the institution's thirtieth anniversary.

Since its founding, the journal has evolved both technically and aesthetically on two occasions, adapting to Web 2.0 standards and the open access paradigm, in order to maintain a modern, robust, and accessible platform for the global scientific community.

Focus and Scope

To foster academic exchange in areas of social, humanistic, economic, technical sciences, and others, from an interdisciplinary and integrative perspective at the national and international levels.

Editorial Policy

University and Society integrates a community of experts, teachers, researchers, and professionals, fostering collaborative spaces for knowledge management and social innovation. Its mission is the free publication and dissemination of scientific results and the generalization of experiences from academic and research institutions.

Content Profile:

The journal dedicates 80% or more of each edition to original articles of scientific or technical research and a remaining 20% to content on scientific dissemination and innovation.

The University and Society journal is an Open Access publication. All its content is published free of charge under the Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 International License. To learn the full terms of this license, as well as copyright policies, visit our specific Policy page.

3. Comprehensive Editorial Process

The journal guarantees quality, transparency, and agility through a systematized editorial process, managed via the Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform. The complete flow unfolds in the following phases:

Phase 1: Submission and Admissibility Review

  • Submission: Authors must register and submit their manuscript exclusively through the OJS platform. They accept the mandatory declarations of: originality, authorship, exclusivity (no simultaneous submission), absence of conflicts of interest, and the authorization to publish the work under the Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 International License.

  • Initial Editorial Review: The editorial team conducts a preliminary assessment of thematic relevance, compliance with guidelines, and formal structure.

  • Originality Check: All submissions are analyzed with the Turnitin semantic similarity software.

  • Decision (Maximum timeframe: 1 month): The author is notified if the work: a) Proceeds to peer review, b) is Rejected due to major formal/thematic deficiencies, or c) requires Pre-submission Corrections to be admitted for evaluation.

Phase 2: External Evaluation

The journal employs an Open Peer Review evaluation process.

  • Reviewer Selection: The editor assigns the manuscript to a minimum of two external evaluators expert in the subject matter, prioritizing academics from other national and international institutions.

  • Open Model: In line with the Open Science philosophy, the Open Peer Review model is implemented, where authors and reviewers know each other, promoting constructive dialogue.

  • Evaluation Criteria: Reviewers evaluate using a standardized form the originality, methodological rigor, clarity, results, and relevance of references. Finally, they provide an assessment to the editorial committee. (Maximum timeframe 3 months)

Phase 3: Editorial Decision and Version Revision

  • Judgment: The editor makes a decision based on the consolidated reviewer reports: Acceptance, Acceptance with Modifications (Major/Minor), or Rejection. In case of discrepancy, a third reviewer is consulted.

  • Communication: Authors receive a unified document with the result and all observations.

  • Review of Corrected Versions: Authors submit the modified version, which is verified by the editors or original reviewers to confirm that the observations were addressed. (Maximum timeframe 1 month)

Phase 4: Technical Editing, Layout, and Publication

  • Style Editing and Layout: The accepted manuscript enters the technical editing phase to standardize style and layout it according to the journal's template.

  • Galley Proofs: PDF galley proofs are sent to the corresponding author for a final review, limited to detecting typographical or formatting errors.

  • Final Publication: The article is published in the corresponding issue on the website, in HTML and PDF formats.

  • Certification and Dissemination: Upon request, publication certificates are issued. The content is automatically disseminated to indexing databases and academic search engines.

  • Maximum timeframe 2 months.

Agility Commitment: The journal stands out for offering an agile and transparent process, focusing on providing greater accessibility to documents and greater visibility to authors, eliminating traditional barriers of scientific publication.

Dispute Resolution

The University and Society journal adheres to international editorial best practices. In case of disputes arising between authors during the editorial process (e.g., regarding external evaluation, editorial management, as well as authorship, contribution, data, or manuscript content), the journal will promote confidential and respectful dialogue through official channels between the involved parties as a first step. If the dispute persists, the journal may offer neutral editorial mediation or, if necessary, temporarily suspend the manuscript evaluation until the parties resolve the conflict. Authors are advised to document their contributions from the beginning. Ultimately, the journal reserves the right to reject the submission if the dispute compromises the academic integrity of the work. For this, we follow the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Editorial Process Timelines

The editorial process can take a period of 6 to 9 months depending on the agility of the evaluation processes and the authors' response to comments and corrections.

4. Editorial Ethics and Good Practices

The editorial team of University and Society is committed to scientific integrity and subscribes to the international standards defined by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). We have established detailed commitments for authors, reviewers, and editors, covering originality, conflicts of interest, confidentiality, objectivity, and error correction mechanisms.

The full description of these commitments and the procedures for handling complaints is available in our Editorial Ethics and Good Practices Policy section.

5. Indexing, Visibility, and Digital Preservation

Recognition and Indexing:
The journal holds the Cuban National Registry of Serial Publications (RNSP: 2190) and is indexed in prominent international directories and databases, ensuring its high level of visibility and positioning:

  • Latindex

  • Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)

  • Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO)

  • Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI) from Web of Science

  • Directory of Research Journals Indexing (DRJI)

Digital Preservation:
University and Society, under the custody of the Universo Sur Publishing House, complies with the University of Cienfuegos' Computer Security Policies. A rigorous digital preservation protocol is implemented, including daily content backups (saves), guaranteeing the permanence and permanent access to the scientific archive.

For more specific information on submission guidelines, manuscript submission, or direct contact, please visit our Policies, Instructions for Authors, and Contact pages available on the official website.