Peer Review Process

After a manuscript is uploaded to the ARCENG (International Journal of Architecture and Engineering) system, it first undergoes editorial review and a plagiarism (similarity) report is obtained. The acceptable similarity rate is below 20%, and direct quotations from any single source should not exceed 3%. Manuscripts with high similarity rates will be returned to the author for revision.

Manuscripts must include the author(s)’ names, titles, affiliated institutions, departments, city information, and ORCID IDs. During the peer review submission, author names are removed by the editors to ensure a double-blind peer review process.

For studies involving human or animal subjects, or data collection through surveys, interviews, or observations, an Ethics Committee Approval is required. This approval must be documented within the manuscript, stating the approval number and the name of the ethics committee.

Submitted manuscripts are initially assessed by editors for compliance with writing guidelines, journal scope, and ethical standards. If corrections are needed, the manuscript is returned to the author. If no issues are detected, it is sent for peer review.

Manuscripts not complying with journal guidelines will be returned without peer review. Additionally, manuscripts lacking scientific content or not contributing to the field may be rejected after editorial evaluation.

Reviewer and author identities are kept confidential as required by the double-blind peer review system. Reviewers are given 30 days to complete their evaluations. If no report is received within this period, a new reviewer is assigned. The editor waits for reviewer reports and has the final authority to decide on the manuscript.

Reviewers evaluate manuscripts based on the following criteria:

  • Consistency between title and content

  • Scientific merit and originality

  • Appropriateness of language and expression

  • Treatment and scope of the subject

  • Integrity of the topic

  • Use of original and primary sources

  • Access to recent scientific studies and references

  • Contribution to the field

  • Mastery of field terminology

  • Clarity, style, comprehensibility, and fluency

  • Validity and reliability of the results

Reviewers may request to see the revised manuscript before publication. If this is stated in their report, the revised version is resent to the reviewer.

Reviewer decisions are reported to the editor under the following categories:

  • Accept

  • Minor revision

  • Major revision (resubmission required)

  • Reject

Authors may appeal reviewer comments with reasonable justifications and convincing evidence. Appeals are reviewed by the editorial board and, if deemed appropriate, the opinion of an additional reviewer(s) may be sought.

Reviewers provide one of the following recommendations: “accept”, “accept with minor revisions”, “major revisions required”, or “reject”. Authors are expected to respond to reviewers’ comments and submit revisions within approximately 15 days. Revised manuscripts may be sent back to reviewers for further evaluation.

Studies involving human or animal subjects and research collecting data through surveys or interviews must include ethical committee approval statements in the manuscript. Our journal adheres to COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) guidelines and maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward ethical violations.

Authors can track their manuscript’s status through the submission system. Reviewer and author identities are kept confidential. Authors wishing to withdraw their manuscripts must submit a written request to the editorial office.

The journal publishes articles under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) license and provides open access to all published content. There are no article processing charges (APCs) for authors.

Authors are required to submit their revisions within an average of 15 days. If revisions are not completed within this timeframe, the manuscript may be withdrawn from the process or resubmission may be requested.

Authors can track their manuscript status by logging into the system with their membership information. Since only one revision submission is allowed per evaluation round, authors should wait for all reviewer reports before making revisions.

Editors monitor the revisions submitted by authors and decide on acceptance, requesting further revision, or rejection accordingly.

If authors wish to withdraw their manuscript during the evaluation process, they must submit a formal written request to the editorial office. Withdrawal requests after acceptance are subject to editorial board approval.

During submission, a copyright transfer agreement is requested. However, the editorial board may require an additional signed copyright transfer document when deemed necessary.

Articles published in ARCENG may be used with proper citation to the journal. Any use without proper citation is subject to legal action, and all responsibility lies with the user.

If an error is detected in a published article, the editorial office must be notified for correction or retraction. The editorial board will take necessary actions in accordance with COPE guidelines.