Q: Why is there so much uncertainty regarding my manuscript?

Detailed Question -

I submitted a manuscript and received a major revision request. I replied to the comments. Two days later, the status was Required Reviews Completed. However, one hour later, the status changed to Under Review. Why is there so much uncertainty?

2 Answers to this question
Answer:

Usually in a "major revision" the Editor sends back the revised manuscript to the reviewer again and the reviewer has to recheck it and verify if all the concerns raised by him /her have been addressed.

Since it is a time consuming process, its not possible to complete the reviews in 2 days. I guess it was some fault in the Editorial system which displayed the wrong status and  as a result it has been rightly corrected to "Under Review" one hour later.

Usually reviewers get 2 months to check a major revision. So I think you will need to wait a little longer.

Hope this helps.

Comment

Answer:

To add to Amit’s response, apart from a glitch, the change could have also been done to an input or manual error, either by the editorial team or the Associate Editor (AE). However, they seem to have realized the error later, and changed it quickly. So, the present ‘Under Review’ status means that your revised manuscript is going through a re-check to see if the earlier comments have been addressed. If so, the reviewers will convey their response to the AE, who will then make a decision and convey that to the Editor-in-Chief (EIC), who will make the final decision. Hopefully, this clears any uncertainty about the next stages as well. :-)

For more insights into changes such as these, you may go through these similar queries by other researchers:

And for insights into journal statuses as a whole, you may consider investing in this rather considerately titled handbook > Keep calm and wait: A guide to understanding journal statuses

Hope all this helps. All the best for the next stages!

Comment