How to get through a reputable journal

Writing articles for publication in reputable scientific journals is certainly different from writing opinion articles. The energy, time, and cost that are devoted to writing scientific articles are greater than writing opinion articles. The obligation to publish theses, and dissertations in scientific journals is a scourge for the people of the campus world. 

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This obligation becomes a heavy burden for lecturers. How not to be a burden, while universities require students to publish scientific publications while lecturers are not able to be role models on how to write scientific articles that can penetrate reputable journals. Let alone penetrate reputable scientific journals, simply publishing scientific articles in local journals is still not possible.

This paper tries to provide guidelines for the penetration strategy of reputable scientific journals, both nationally and internationally. The following tips and tricks should be considered when your articles want to be published on reputable scientific journals:

First, create a catchy title. When we write a journal article, the title is also a point of interest for the reader. Through the title, the reader can quickly find out the scope, study, formal object, material object, and even the problem raised in writing. Like an advertisement, the title of the article must arouse the interest of the reader to continue reading the content of the article. Likewise with journal article titles. Although not as bold as the title of opinion articles in newspapers or popular books, titles in journal articles still put forward their scientific and formal weight.  The title should describe the main topic or issue of the research. Journal article writers usually don't want to be bothered with title issues. Often the title of the research is the same as the title of the journal article. There is nothing wrong with this as long as the author is sure that the title of the research is interesting. Some journals require a maximum word count for titles. Titles in English should be less than or equal to 10 words, while in Indonesian the maximum is 12 words. The title of the journal article must reflect the content of the article in a complete, informative manner. This means that once read, the contents can be immediately understood, the meaning and meaning are understood. The title should also be up-to-date with the latest scientific developments. The title must consider the principle of benefit. That is, the presentation of articles is useful for readers both theoretically and practically.

Second, create a seductive abstract. Every scientific work in the form of theses, theses, dissertations, research reports, and journal articles always includes an abstract. As an advertisement, abstracts can be considered as a means of promoting scientific works. Abstract aims to provide information to the reader to decide whether he needs to read or not the entire contents of the scientific work. Remember, readers will not immediately read the contents of the scientific paper, but they will read the abstract first. When readers are interested in the abstract of the writing, then they will be interested in further reading the contents of the article.

Third, make a compelling introduction. This section describes the problems related to the research and at the same time presents the parameters used. The introduction may highlight controversial aspects to make it interesting. The introduction is our argument about a problem that "must" be solved. Therefore, the introduction can be in the form of criticism, it can also be a further elaboration of the title of the scientific article that we write. The magical introduction contains an introduction to why we do research, hypotheses, and research objectives. This section should not be confused with a literature review. In some journals, the literature review is separated separately. Reference to other studies related to the results is better postponed in the discussion. Usually, the number of words in the introduction is limited to about 250 words. In journal articles in English, the introduction is written in the present tense. Remember, the introduction function is an invitation to the reader to invest time reading the article. Limit it to matters directly related to the study being carried out and the distinctive contribution it makes.

Fourth, make a proper literature review. A literature review or more often known as a literature review is a description of theories, findings, and other research materials obtained from reference materials to be used as the basis for research activities to develop a clear framework of thought from the formulation of the problem to be studied. The literature review is part of an article that explores theories and concepts to support the research hypothesis. A literature review or literature review must be distinguished from a book review. A literature review surveys scientific articles such as journals or proceedings papers, books, laws and regulations, and other sources such as theses, theses, and dissertations related to certain issues or topics, research areas, or theories. The literature review provides exposure, conclusions, and critical evaluation of each survey material. The literature review contains reviews, summaries, and the author's thoughts on several library sources (articles, books, slides, information from the internet, etc.) about the topics discussed. A good literature review must be relevant, current, and adequate. Theoretical foundations, theoretical reviews, and literature reviews are some of the ways to conduct a literature review. When compiling a literature review, the author should consider the following in each assessment of the written material: a) Information related to the written material – Who is the name of the author, is the argument proposed by the author supported by evidence such as historical material, case studies, presentations, statistics or findings the latest scientific?; b) Objectivity – is the writing perspective prejudicial or balanced? is contradictory data used or is relevant information omitted to prove the written point?; c) How to Convince – What answers or explanations provide the most confidence or otherwise from the written material being assessed?; and d) Value – are the written arguments and conclusions convincing enough? Does the written material contribute significantly to understanding the topics discussed?

Fifth, strong research methods. Another mandatory component that must be included in a journal article is the research method. This section is a summary of the research methodology in research reports or other scientific works such as theses, theses, or dissertations. This section can be divided into several subheadings to be more organized. In this section, there is generally no limit to the number of words or the length of writing, so we will be more flexible in explaining the material and methodology used. Note that reviewers will place a lot of emphasis on examining these materials and methods. Because the validity and reliability of research results are determined by the use of materials and the methodological approach used. Therefore, we must write in full the types of materials and methodologies that we do in research so that reviewers can understand the procedures used in research. Also, this section should be written in detail so that others can repeat the experiment exactly as you did. In this section, we can present tables, schematics, or pictures to clarify and summarize the information to be written. Also, explain the statistical analysis procedures and techniques used when the research uses a quantitative approach. Meanwhile, research with a qualitative approach is sufficient to explain the data analysis collection techniques and the steps. If the article is written in English, then this section is written using past tense sentences. If we refer to the method from the results of other people's research, then we do not need to write it down in depth. The use of standard procedures can be referred only. It is enough to write that the "what" measurement uses the "who" method.

Sixth, systematic research findings. Start writing the results or research findings systematically. You can present and write results starting from the main result followed by supporting data or results or vice versa. The information you present must be neatly arranged sequentially and by the theoretical hierarchy. In presenting the results, express the results clearly and straightforwardly. If the article is written in English, use simple past tense sentences. Remember, long sentences will confuse the reader. For a simple presentation of data use tables. As for data that is complex and uses a lot of graphs. Also, pay attention not to present images from table data. Do not repeat the numbers that have been written in the table in the text. If you want to emphasize the results obtained, you should present them in the form of other numbers, for example in the form of percentages or differences. If you want to show the number in question, just refer to the table containing the number. In general, international journals do not want statistical language (such as treatment, significantly different to be written in the results. The word affects has two meanings that can go down or up. Correlation analysis cannot state which are the dependent and independent variables, as in regression. The use of the word influence also sometimes must be observed whether directly or not. The discussion needs to be written in clear language and does not use sentences that are too long. In the discussion, two tenses are usually used to distinguish which research results are being reported and which are the results from literature references. The research results are written in the past tense while the reference results are in the present tense. In the discussion section, what needs to be discussed is whether the results obtained are by the hypothesis or not. The literature citation in the discussion should not be too long. Extract and write the results of other people's research in their language. Don't quote people's opinions in inappropriate places. Collections of similar research can be referred to in groups. The presentation of the discussion should also have a systematic flow, do not discuss an aspect repeatedly. Use a systematic frame of mind so that the discussion will end at a point that will support your conclusions. The research implications (theoretical and application) need to be emphasized in the discussion. If there are suggestions and criticisms about the research, they can be expressed in the discussion. The discussion should not be too speculative. Usually, the discussion will be closed with a conclusion.

Seventh, draw conclusions that inspire. The conclusion is the final part of the journal article. In some journals, conclusions are combined with recommendations. Readers who use the skimming method will usually focus on this part of the conclusion. Therefore, the conclusion should also inspire and provide hope for further research. A good conclusion must pay attention to the following: a) In concluding, do not speculate; b) Conclusion contains answers to research problems and hypotheses; c) Conclusions must be based on the facts of the research results; d) Written concisely that contains sufficient information so that the reader knows that you have proven your hypothesis and know the strengths and weaknesses of your method; e) The conclusion must also include other notes, such as deficiencies found in the research method, the possibility of further research, the potentials of your method can be included; and f) If conclusions must be juxtaposed with recommendations, then in this section the theoretical and practical recommendations must be disclosed.

Eighth, follow the targeted journal article template. Each journal has different policies and standards for writing articles. It is important to study the aims, scope, and criteria of articles from the journals that we are aiming at carefully so that they are right on target and do not waste time and energy.