First call for the CEA-APQ Seal of Quality in Academic Publishing for individual monographs is now open

The first call for the CEA-APQ Seal of Quality in Academic Publishing for the evaluation of individual monographs is open from today until September 25.

All monographs published by public and private entities that present research results and that meet the nine requirements that have been established in terms of quality and information transparency (identification of the monograph, electronic availability and inclusion of metadata), quality of the editorial policy (availability of scientific or editorial committee and editorial policy of the publishing entity) and quality of the editorial and scientific evaluation process (instructions for the submission of manuscripts, information on the manuscript selection process, external evaluation reports and reasoned communication of the resolution of the publication of the work) can apply for this quality recognition.

Five titles per publisher
The Monitoring Committee has established a maximum of five titles per partner for this first pilot call. This measure has been adopted to ensure compliance with the deadlines foreseen in the call for proposals. 

Evaluation process
For the analysis of the documentation provided, five evaluation commissions have been established, one for each major area of knowledge: Sciences, Health Sciences, Engineering and Architecture, Social and Legal Sciences, and Arts and Humanities. 

The evaluation commissions for Sciences, Health Sciences, Engineering and Architecture will be made up of a minimum of three specialists in the area and one person with expertise in scientific publishing. 

The Social and Legal Sciences and Arts and Humanities committees will have double the number of members, given the foreseeable majority of monographs in these areas.

After the report issued by the Evaluation Commission, the Monitoring Commission, made up of representatives of ANECA, FECYT and UNE, will adopt the provisional and final resolutions.

The monographs that successfully pass the evaluation process will receive the CEA-APQ Monographs Quality Seal on a permanent basis.

Indication of quality 
It should be remembered that the CEA-APQ seal is recognized, since its creation in 2017, as an indication of quality of publications for the evaluation of the merits of research activity, recognition that is expressed in the evaluation criteria of the National Commission for the Evaluation of Research Activity, and in the evaluation criteria of ANECA for the six-year research periods and for the ACADEMIA program.

In the resolution of December 21, 2022, it appears as a criterion to be evaluated in ten of the eleven areas of knowledge.

Bases and guide
The rules of this first call, the evaluation guide, the application manual and the necessary templates for the application process are available at https://monografias.selloceaapq.es/.

CEA-APQ Collections Seal
The CEA-APQ Monographs Seal was created seven years after the Collections Seal, which recognizes the best practices in Spanish university publishing, promoting and stimulating quality in academic publishing and has become a sign of scientific quality recognized by research evaluation agencies and the university community.
Currently 63 collections have this seal, created and developed by UNE and endorsed by ANECA and FECYT.

Expansion of quality
With the creation of the CEA-APQ Monographs Seal and its first call for applications, a response was given to the demand of university and research center publishers grouped in UNE, who had been demanding a certification that would accredit the scientific quality of monographs published outside collections or that form part of collections that are not in a position to achieve the seal for collections and, in this way, the research activity of their authors could be recognized.