Q: Does a status change from “awaiting reviewer selection” to “awaiting editor decision” imply rejection?
I submitted a paper to a humanities journal, and the status changed from 'Awaiting Reviewer Selection' to 'Awaiting ED Decision'. Does this mean that the peer review process was never carried out? And does it indicate that my paper is likely to be rejected?
Answer: Dear author, I can see how the change of status from Awaiting reveiewer selection to awaiting ED decision can be worrisome. It depends on how much time has elapsed after your submission and between these steps. It is possible that the editors simply missed changing the status when it was sent out for peer review. Another possibility is that the editor decided to review the manuscript themselves. They may reject or suggest another journal if it was truly never sent out for peer review. This is known as a desk rejection. To be safe, it would be advisable to start looking at other journal options that may fit the scope of your article. Sometimes with a rejection, the editor will give you some suggestions on how to improve the manuscript - but often you will not get any explaination apart form the standard email that will state that their journal is very competitive or that your article will be a better fit somewhere else. Wish you the very best. We would love for you to write to us and let us know what the outcome was. Perhaps we can guide you in navigating the next steps in your publication journey.
