Rekindling the Research Spirit

“You think I'd crumble? You think I'd lay down and die?

Oh no, not I, I will survive”- Gloria Gaynor

Wow! Can’t believe my last post is dated 20 December 2021. Goodness! Where have I been? So, it’s true time does fly.

I get many inquiries in my inbox concerning whether I have completed my studies.

And the answer is, that life just happens. Here comes Covid-19 with its fair share of woes. Lives disrupted. Incomes gone. Lives lost. Very many dampened spirits. Paradoxically, for some, especially those in the relevant businesses and careers, it is boom time. In my case, it disrupts my studies.

I went back to Kenya in July 2019 to collect data and decided I wasn’t in so much of a hurry to return. You know, spend more time with family and friends. So, once data collection is done, I prepare to return to campus, but it is not going to be.

Suddenly airports are shut, and folk are on lockdown, whether partial or full. My university goes fully online, including final oral defenses. I have no option but to begin data analysis and thesis writing. Soon after, my first draft is complete, and I send it to my supervisors. They take a reasonable time to provide me with feedback.

I embark on corrections, but this is where the stall really begins. I have submitted three articles to the recommended journals for publication. I hear the year I join Universiti Utara Malaysia is the year the bar is raised where we are required to publish only one article in any Scopus or Web of Science journal. Scopus is said to be the world’s largest abstract and citation database of peer-reviewed literature (high-quality scientific journals, conference proceedings, and books). The database covers comprehensive literature in the fields of medicine, science, social sciences, technology, and arts and humanities.

Scopus journals are ranked or categorized into quartiles. A quartile is a class of scientific journals that represent the citation level identified by scientometric indicators. The Q-ranking of Scopus journals means each journal belongs to one of four quartiles, with the highest-ranked being Q1 and the lowest-ranked being Q4. The ranking is important because it separates the most reputable journals (which belong to Q1 and Q2) from the not-so-reputable. I think I should dedicate space in the future to talk about rating systems like Impact Factor and Scimago Journal Ranking.

Many a time have I heard my colleagues complain about how difficult it is to publish. However, there are those who make it to the finish line with five to six Q1-Q2 publications! I think my experience resonates with the former perspective. Remember I said I have submitted three articles to Scopus journals for publication? So far, I have had one desk rejection due to formatting issues. Another journal would still be reviewing my article today had I not withdrawn it. The last one is still being reviewed, 2 years down the line! In Kenya, we exclaim, “Wueh!” (By the way, last I checked, a Kenyan had petitioned Mr. Zuckerberg to find us an emoji for ‘Wueh!’)

Yippee! I get the email we all long for that says, “Congratulations! Your article has been accepted for publication.” Boy! am I not elated? Jubilated. Ecstatic. Sadly, my joy is short-lived. But stay with me and I will soon tell you why. So, with renewed vigor, believing that I have a Scopus publication to my name, I return to my thesis to undertake the corrections as directed by my supervisors. I am very obedient so follow their suggestions as best as I can. I don’t believe in too much back and forth. Do something once and do it very well. Hence, I am not surprised when they okay my second draft and ask me to prepare to submit my thesis for defense.

Enthusiastically, I write to my School and tell them I am ready to submit. However, I am crestfallen when I read their response: My article is no longer in the Scopus database! In simple terms, I am yet to fulfill one requirement: publish one article in Scopus or Web of Science before submitting the thesis for defense. But wait a minute. Every time I visit the Scopus database, I find it there, sitting pretty. What could have gone wrong?

Truth is, I instantly know what has happened. Earlier when I informed my supervisor that I had published, she had asked me which Scopus. I had said 4. And her response had been ‘pray.’ I guess I forgot to pray because here I am: ‘Scopusless’. Now Scopus updates its journals once a year where some journals are added, dropped, promoted, or demoted. And that’s exactly what has happened! My supervisor advises that going forward, I should aim for Scopus 3 and above.

I can’t lose hope. Not at this stage. You must understand that the process of writing and submitting articles for publication is not easy. Writing itself is tough, but even tougher is the submission process. Every journal has its own style and method of submission. All require that you follow their instructions to the letter. It becomes challenging transitioning from one journal to another. For example, one journal recommends the APA referencing style while another one has settled for the Chicago style. The two styles are different, especially if Chicago requires footnotes.

Besides, even before thinking of what to write, you must search extensively for the right journal. Some people get desk rejections because they were not keen on journal details. One of the critical things to consider is the scope of the journal. Secondly, it’s important to format it according to the journal’s requirements.

Of course, the most crucial thing after surviving a desk rejection is whether your article is scholarly. In other words, does it contribute to the body of knowledge in your specific area? Articles, unlike theses, are viewed as intellectual pieces that generate knowledge. Other reasons for trashing your work include a poorly written manuscript, flawed design, lack of novelty or relevance, lack of originality, language errors, and so on.

Sometimes, ‘small thoughts’ appear in my head making me wish I had reported a year earlier. I would have published two articles in peer-reviewed journals and not necessarily in Scopus or Web of Science. Mercifully, here I am after performing a reality check on myself. No one is going to let me defend my thesis however great I think it is. This is tough. But I will survive, as sung by Gloria Gaynor.

I have come too far to give up.