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| IJUST @ Dal's editors: Tim Juckes, Mike Wong, Mateo Yorke and Alison Martin. (Danny Abriel Photo) |
Dalhousie’s future scientists won’t have to earn PhDs before they can publish in a reviewed journal, thanks to the team behind the Journal of Undergraduate Science Today at Dalhousie, aka JUST @ Dal. Editors are currently working on the inaugural publication and plan to hold a reception to officially launch the new journal early in the fall term.
Modelled on the highly successful McGill Science Undergraduate Research Journal (mSURJ), JUST @ Dal will provide a much-needed venue for undergraduate students to hone their science writing skills, witness the editorial review process at work and publish original research articles in a quality academic journal.
Thanks to a dedicated team of students and faculty, along with generous support from a range of funding bodies including the President’s Office, the Dalhousie Science Society, and the Faculty of Science, JUST @ Dal has gone from an innovative idea to a soon-to-be-published academic journal—with its own website (http://just.science.dal.ca) and a newly recruited team of student editors.
“We now have a full editorial board,” says Mateo Yorke, JUST @ Dal's managing editor, “and we are now accepting abstracts from the undergraduate university population.”
The journal began in April 2008, when Mr. Yorke, who with editor-in-chief Tanya Bilsbury, approached Dr. Tim Juckes to be faculty advisor for an undergraduate psychology journal. Assistant editor Mike Wong, who had been planning to establish an undergraduate neuroscience journal, joined, along with fellow neuroscience student Alison Martin (design editor). Over time, the project evolved into a science-wide journal that will showcase undergraduate research and writing at Dalhousie.
With most of the hard work in establishing the idea for the journal and acquiring funding out of the way, the JUST @ Dal team are now urging undergraduate students to send in abstracts for articles they would like to see published.
Further information can be found at the website, or by e-mailing just@dal.ca