Author Guidelines – PREPARE@u

Length of Manuscript

Manuscripts, Documents or Dissertations should not exceed 3000 words in length and should not carry more than 5 illustrations/ photographs.

The language of the Archive is English. The mode of presentation should be in third person.

Lengthy mathematical proofs and derivations and extensive test data are discouraged. If absolutely essential, they should be given as an appendix.

Manuscript Submission

Submission of Manuscripts, Documents or Dissertations implies: that the work described has not been published before; that its publication has been approved by all co-authors, if any, as well as by the responsible authorities – tacitly or explicitly – at the institute where the work has been carried out. The archive will not be held legally responsible should there be any claims for compensation.

Permissions

Authors wishing to include figures, tables, or text passages that have already been published elsewhere are required to obtain permission from the copyright owner(s) for both the print and online format and to include evidence that such permission has been granted when submitting their papers. Any material received without such evidence will be assumed to originate from the authors.

Online Submission

Please tap the Menu “Submit” and upload Manuscripts and Documents/ Dissertations files following the instructions given on the screen.

Please ensure that you provide all relevant editable source files. Failing to submit these source files might cause unnecessary delays in the review and production process.

Fundamental Errors

Authors have an obligation to correct mistakes once they discover a significant error or inaccuracy in their published article. The author(s) is/are requested to contact the archive and explain in what sense the error is impacting the article. A decision on how to correct the literature will depend on the nature of the error. This may be a correction or retraction. The retraction note should provide transparency which parts of the article are impacted by the error.

Role of the Corresponding Author

One author is assigned as Corresponding Author and acts on behalf of all co-authors and ensures that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately addressed.

The Corresponding Author is responsible for the following requirements:

ensuring that all listed authors have approved the manuscript before submission, including the names and order of authors;

managing all communication between the Archive and all co-authors, before and after publication;*

providing transparency on re-use of material and mention any unpublished material (for example manuscripts in press) included in the manuscript in a cover letter to the Editor;

making sure disclosures, declarations and transparency on data statements from all authors are included in the manuscript as appropriate (see above).

The requirement of managing all communication between the Archive and all co-authors during submission and proofing may be delegated to a Contact or Submitting Author. In this case please make sure the Corresponding Author is clearly indicated in the manuscript.

Authorship issues or disputes

In the case of an authorship dispute after inclusion in archive, the Archive will not be in a position to investigate or adjudicate. Authors will be asked to resolve the dispute themselves. If they are unable the Archive reserves the right to withdraw a manuscript from the platform.

Confidentiality

Authors should treat all communication with the Archive as confidential unless explicit consent has been received to share information.