TL;DR

• Inquiries Journal publishes undergraduate and high school research across disciplines.

• Submissions are free and accepted on a rolling basis year-round.

• Papers must be original, unpublished work formatted to journal guidelines.

• Peer review is double-blind; expect feedback regardless of outcome.

• Acceptance is competitive; a strong abstract and clean formatting matter.

You finished your research paper. Now you want it published somewhere real. Not a school newsletter. Not a class portfolio. A peer-reviewed journal that colleges and scholarship committees will recognise.

Inquiries Journal is one of the few publications that genuinely welcomes student researchers. It publishes work from undergraduates and advanced high school students across social sciences, humanities, natural sciences, and more. If you have a completed paper and you are asking how to submit to Inquiries Journal, this guide walks through every step.

The process is more straightforward than most students expect. The preparation is where most submissions succeed or fail.

What Is Inquiries Journal and Who Can Submit?

Inquiries Journal is a free, open-access, multidisciplinary academic journal that publishes original research by student authors. It accepts submissions from undergraduate students and, in some cases, advanced secondary students. The journal covers fields including psychology, sociology, political science, history, literature, biology, and economics. There is no submission fee.

The journal was founded to give student researchers a legitimate publishing venue. Work published in Inquiries Journal is publicly accessible online, citable, and indexed. That matters when you are building a research profile for college applications or early academic work.

Inquiries Journal uses a double-blind peer review process, meaning reviewers do not know your name and you do not know theirs. This is the same standard used by professional academic journals. Your paper is evaluated on its merits, not your institution or background.

One important clarification: Inquiries Journal is not a predatory journal. It does not charge fees to publish, and it does not guarantee acceptance. Rejection is common, and that is a sign the review process is genuine.

How to Submit to Inquiries Journal: Step by Step

Submitting to Inquiries Journal follows a clear sequence. Complete each step before moving to the next. Skipping preparation steps is the most common reason submissions are returned without review.

1. Read the author guidelines. Inquiries Journal publishes its submission requirements on its official website at inquiriesjournal.com. Guidelines cover formatting, length, citation style, and file type. Read them before you touch your manuscript.

2. Prepare your manuscript. Papers are typically submitted as Word documents. Remove all identifying information from the manuscript itself, including your name, institution, and any acknowledgements. This protects the blind review process.

3. Write a strong abstract. Your abstract should be 150 to 250 words. It must state your research question, your method, your key findings, and your conclusion. Reviewers read the abstract first. A weak abstract signals a weak paper, even if the body is solid.

4. Check your citations. Inquiries Journal accepts multiple citation styles depending on your discipline. Psychology papers typically use APA. History and humanities papers often use Chicago. Confirm the correct style for your field in the author guidelines and apply it consistently throughout.

5. Create an account and submit through the portal. Submissions are made through the online portal on the Inquiries Journal website. You will create an author account, fill in your paper details, upload your manuscript, and submit. Keep a copy of your confirmation email.

6. Wait for the editorial decision. Review timelines vary. The journal does not publish a fixed decision window, but student journals of this type typically take between six and sixteen weeks. Do not submit the same paper to another peer-reviewed journal while it is under review at Inquiries Journal. Simultaneous submission violates standard academic publishing ethics, as outlined by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

If you want to understand the full submission pipeline before you begin, the guide on how to submit a research paper to a peer-reviewed journal covers the broader process in detail.

What Makes a Strong Submission to Inquiries Journal?

A strong submission has a clear research question, a defensible method, and conclusions that follow from the evidence. Reviewers are looking for academic rigour, not perfect prose. A paper that answers a narrow question well will outperform a broad paper with vague conclusions every time.

Several specific factors distinguish competitive submissions. First, originality. Inquiries Journal will not publish a literature review that summarises existing work without adding new analysis. Your paper must contribute something, even if that contribution is modest. A small original survey, a new reading of a primary source, or a replication study with a different population all count.

Second, structure. Academic papers follow a predictable structure for a reason. Introduction, literature review, methodology, results, discussion, conclusion. Deviating from this without a strong reason creates friction for reviewers. Follow the structure your discipline expects.

Third, honest scope. Do not overclaim. If your study had twenty participants, do not write as if your findings apply to all teenagers everywhere. Reviewers will flag this immediately. Acknowledge your limitations in the discussion section. It shows maturity, not weakness.

If you are still in the drafting stage and want structured feedback before you submit, joining the Publication Compass waitlist gives you early access to an AI platform built specifically to help student researchers prepare manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals.

Common Reasons Inquiries Journal Submissions Are Rejected

Rejection from Inquiries Journal is not a signal to stop. It is information. Most first submissions to any peer-reviewed journal are rejected. Understanding why helps you revise and resubmit, or redirect to a better-fit journal.

The most common reasons for rejection at student journals include: a research question that is too broad to answer meaningfully, a methodology section that does not explain how data was collected or analysed, conclusions that go beyond what the evidence supports, and formatting that does not match the journal's published guidelines.

Plagiarism is an automatic rejection at any peer-reviewed journal. This includes self-plagiarism, which means submitting work you have already published elsewhere without disclosure. Inquiries Journal, like all reputable journals, uses plagiarism detection software.

If your paper is rejected with reviewer comments, read them carefully. Reviewer feedback from a double-blind process is genuinely valuable. It tells you exactly what a trained reader found unclear or unconvincing. Use those comments to revise before submitting elsewhere.

For context on other student journals that accept similar work, the guide to Journal of Student Research scope, requirements, and submission is worth reading alongside this one.

Should You Upload a Preprint Before Submitting to Inquiries Journal?

Uploading a preprint means posting your paper to a public server before formal peer review. It is common in some fields, particularly the sciences, but it carries risks for student researchers submitting to journals like Inquiries Journal. Check the journal's policy on prior posting before you upload anything publicly.

Some journals consider a publicly posted paper to be previously published and will reject it on those grounds. Others explicitly permit preprints. Inquiries Journal's author guidelines are the definitive source on this. Do not assume a policy applies without checking.

If you want a fuller explanation of what preprints are and how they affect your submission options, the post on what a preprint is and whether you should upload before submitting covers this in depth.

Other Student Journals Worth Knowing

Inquiries Journal is one option. It is a good one, but it may not be the right fit for every paper. Scope matters. If your paper is a hard science study, a journal focused on multidisciplinary social science may not be the strongest venue. If your paper is a history essay, a STEM-focused journal is the wrong destination entirely.

Several other peer-reviewed student journals accept work at a similar level. The Young Researcher journal's acceptance rate, fees, and submission process is a useful reference if your work sits in the sciences or social sciences. For STEM-focused research, the STEM Fellowship Journal's acceptance rate and submission guide is worth reviewing.

Matching your paper to the right journal improves your odds significantly. A well-matched submission to a lower-profile journal will outperform a mismatched submission to a more prestigious one.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Inquiries Journal free to submit to?

Yes. Inquiries Journal charges no submission fees and no publication fees. It is an open-access journal funded independently. You do not pay to submit, and you do not pay if your paper is accepted. Any journal that charges a fee to guarantee publication should be researched carefully before you submit.

How long does Inquiries Journal take to make a decision?

Inquiries Journal does not publish a fixed review timeline. Student journals of this type typically take between six and sixteen weeks to return a decision. During this period, do not submit the same paper to another peer-reviewed journal. Simultaneous submission violates the ethical standards set by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

Can high school students submit to Inquiries Journal?

Inquiries Journal primarily targets undergraduate researchers, but advanced high school students with original research have successfully published there. The key factor is the quality and originality of the work, not the author's grade level. If your paper meets the academic standards described in the author guidelines, it is worth submitting.

What citation style does Inquiries Journal use?

Inquiries Journal accepts multiple citation styles depending on the discipline. APA is standard for psychology and social sciences. Chicago is common for history and humanities. MLA is used in some literature submissions. Check the author guidelines for your specific field before formatting your references. Inconsistent citation is a common reason for desk rejection.

Can I submit the same paper to Inquiries Journal and another journal at the same time?

No. Simultaneous submission to multiple peer-reviewed journals is a violation of standard academic publishing ethics. While your paper is under review at Inquiries Journal, it must not be submitted elsewhere. If you withdraw your paper from Inquiries Journal, you may then submit it to another journal. COPE guidelines on this are clear and widely followed across academic publishing.

What to Do Next

Submitting to Inquiries Journal is a realistic goal for a student with an original, well-structured paper. The process is free, the review is genuine, and the feedback is useful whether or not you are accepted. Start with the author guidelines on the Inquiries Journal website. Prepare your manuscript carefully. Remove identifying information. Write a precise abstract. Submit through the portal and wait.

If your paper needs work before it is ready, that is normal. Most papers do. Getting structured feedback before you submit saves time and improves your chances. Publication Compass is an AI platform designed to help student researchers move from draft to submission-ready manuscript, including identifying the right journal for their work. For more guides on the research and publication process, visit the Publication Compass blog.