Does IJRTI Follow Scopus & Web of Science Standards? The Honest Answer
- A Question Worth Asking Before You Submit
- Clear Disclosure First: IJRTI's Current Indexing Status
- What "Following Scopus/WoS Standards" Actually Means
- Standards Checklist vs. IJRTI's Practice
- Why Standards-Following ≠ Indexing
- What Actually Determines Scopus/WoS Inclusion
- Why This Distinction Matters for Your Career Decisions
- IJRTI's Position, Honestly Stated
- How to Independently Verify Any Journal's Indexing Status
- Frequently Asked Questions
A Question Worth Asking Before You Submit
"Does this journal follow Scopus and Web of Science standards?" and "Is this journal indexed in Scopus and Web of Science?" sound like the same question. They are not, and conflating them is one of the most common — and most consequential — mistakes authors make when choosing where to publish. This article separates the two clearly, using IJRTI as a concrete, honestly-disclosed example.
Clear Disclosure First: IJRTI's Current Indexing Status
IJRTI is indexed in Google Scholar, is registered with CrossRef for DOI issuance, and is listed under the UGC CARE framework as a Transparent Peer-Reviewed Refereed Journal — all of which are real, verifiable, and distinct from Scopus/Web of Science indexing.
What "Following Scopus/WoS Standards" Actually Means
Scopus and Web of Science do not just index any journal that applies — they expect the journals they accept to already demonstrate a baseline of editorial rigor. That baseline is largely made up of practices any well-run journal can and should follow, independent of whether it is actually indexed:
- A genuine, documented double-blind peer review process
- A disclosed, verifiable editorial board with real institutional affiliations
- Consistent, on-schedule publication history
- A clear plagiarism/similarity screening policy and threshold
- Ethics compliance aligned with COPE guidelines
- A valid, active ISSN
IJRTI applies every one of these practices as a matter of internal editorial policy — which is what "following Scopus/Web of Science-style standards" means in practice. It describes the rigor of the process, not a claim of formal inclusion in either database.
Standards Checklist vs. IJRTI's Practice
| Editorial Rigor Standard | IJRTI's Practice |
|---|---|
| Double-blind peer review | Yes — minimum 2 independent reviewers per manuscript |
| Disclosed editorial board | Yes — published with institutional affiliations |
| Regular publication schedule | Yes — monthly, without gap, since 2016 |
| Plagiarism screening & threshold | Yes — Turnitin/iThenticate, 15% threshold |
| COPE ethics compliance | Yes — authorship, conflict-of-interest, misconduct policy |
| Valid ISSN | Yes — 2456-3315 |
| Formal Scopus/WoS index inclusion | No — not currently indexed |
Why Standards-Following ≠ Indexing
A journal can meet every editorial rigor benchmark above and still not be indexed in Scopus or Web of Science, because indexing is not automatically granted for meeting a quality bar — it is a separate, formal gatekeeping process run entirely by two commercial entities: Elsevier (Scopus) and Clarivate (Web of Science).
What Actually Determines Scopus/WoS Inclusion
Beyond editorial rigor, Scopus and Web of Science evaluate factors that are largely outside any single journal's direct control in the short term:
| Additional Factor | Why It Matters for Indexing |
|---|---|
| Multi-year citation pattern | Both indices look for sustained citation activity over several years, not just editorial quality |
| International editorial board diversity | A specific composition requirement beyond simply having a disclosed board |
| Formal application & review cycle | Requires a submission process to the indexing body itself, with its own timeline and acceptance rate |
| Ongoing compliance monitoring | Indexed journals are periodically re-evaluated and can be removed (delisted) for quality drift |
Why This Distinction Matters for Your Career Decisions
If your institution's promotion criteria, PhD requirements, or grant conditions specifically mandate Scopus or Web of Science indexing, no amount of "standards-following" language substitutes for that formal requirement. This is precisely why IJRTI discloses its indexing status directly rather than using ambiguous marketing phrases like "Scopus-standard" without clarifying what that does and does not mean.
- If you need UGC CARE compliance specifically — IJRTI is listed and verifiable.
- If you need Google Scholar discoverability — IJRTI is indexed and citable there.
- If you need formal Scopus or Web of Science indexing specifically — IJRTI does not currently meet that requirement, and you should choose a journal that does.
IJRTI's Position, Honestly Stated
IJRTI applies Scopus/Web of Science-style editorial rigor as an internal operating standard because it produces better research outcomes and more credible peer review, regardless of indexing outcome — not as a way to imply an indexing status it does not have. This page exists specifically so that distinction is never left ambiguous.
How to Independently Verify Any Journal's Indexing Status
- Search the journal on the official Scopus Source List (Elsevier) to confirm Scopus indexing.
- Search the Clarivate Master Journal List to confirm Web of Science indexing.
- Search DOAJ.org directly to confirm Directory of Open Access Journals listing.
- Never rely solely on a journal's own website claim — cross-check against the indexing body's own public database every time, for IJRTI or any other journal.