Science & medical research paper editing and English proofreading

Frequently asked questions

1. Why are your editors PhD candidates, and not PhD's?

   It is a well known fact in academia that graduate students perform the great majority of the research and manuscript preparation at Universities while Principal Investigators and other Ph.D.'s are responsible for writing grants, collaborating with other researchers, and supervising their labs. Because of this fact, graduate students tend to be just as knowledgeable of the writing conventions of their respective fields as their PhD supervisors. However, graduate students are willing to work for much lower compensation while putting in more time for careful editing, resulting in lower costs and superior quality work. We pass along our lower costs to our customers in the form of significantly lower prices. Graduate students also have much more flexible schedules, which results in faster turnaround times.

2. Do I need to submit my document for a quote?

   No. At AJE, we pride ourselves on our professional service offered at low prices and quick turnaround times. When you use our service, you know exactly how much it is going to cost depending on your document length and how soon you need the edited document. We are able to offer fixed prices based on our extensive experience with the typical submission. For more information, see our Pricing page.

3. For the turnaround time, do you count holidays, weekend days, Saturday and Sunday or only regular business days?

   We count all calendar days (not business days) for the turnaround time so weekend days (Saturday & Sunday) and holidays are included. For example, if you submit a paper on Thursday at 7:00 PM with a 3-day turnaround, your paper would be ready by Sunday at 7:00 PM. You may view our entire pricing table with turnaround time options by going to our pricing page.

4. What types of document formats do you accept?

   We accept Microsoft Word, RTF, and text documents. If your document is in another format, you may cut and paste your text into a Microsoft Word document for submission. For example, if you have a LaTex document, cut and paste the source code into Word and our Editors will ignore the LaTex formatting code.

5. How do I submit my document?

   The submission process is quick and simple. First, click on "Getting Started" or "New Customers" to create an account and determine your user name and password (Existing customers, please login). Next, login with your user name and password. To make a submission, select "New Submission" or "Get Started >>" and follow the steps to upload your document, tell us about any special instructions, and select your type of payment. All new customers are given a $20 Welcome coupon and will have the option to use this coupon during the payment process.

6. What kind of submissions do you accept?

   Our typical submission is a journal article manuscript that will eventually be sent out to an academic journal for review and publication. We are also experienced with dissertations, research grant proposals, and book chapters. If your submission does not fall into one of these categories, we can still edit your document if it is in Microsoft Word format.

7. What will your edits look like?

   All editing is done using the Microsoft Word Track Changes feature under the "Tools" menu. After your document is edited, you have the option to accept or reject the changes we suggest. Comments from your Editor will be highlighted in yellow and bracketed. More information on Track Changes is available on the Microsoft Office site at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/assistance/HP052416341033.aspx

8. Who will be able to see my document after I submit it for editing?

   After submission, your document will be assigned by a Managing Editor to an Editor with expertise in your field. This Editor will read your submission and make the appropriate edits. The same Managing Editor will review the edits and release the document to you along with the appropriate changes. You will then be able to download your edited submission. Both Editors and Managing Editors have signed a strict Confidentiality Agreement to keep your submission completely safe and confidential.

9. Why do I have to log in to submit my document?

   When you log in, you are taken to a secure, encrypted area of the website to ensure that your manuscript and personal information is safe. Nobody can access this area of the site except for you and only an AJE Managing Editor and your submission Editor will be able to see your manuscript once you upload it from your secure account page.

10. I used up my $20 off Welcome coupon on my first submission, how can I generate new coupons?

    Tell your colleagues about AJE, and if your colleague uses AJE, you will get a $40 off Referral coupon!

11. I have a $10 off coupon and a $20 off coupon, what can I do with them?

    Coupons do not expire and can be used independently or combined for a total of $30 off your submission. You may also transfer some of these types of coupons to colleagues. Log in and see your coupon center for more details.

12. How do tables, figures, and references count toward the word count? How is the word count of my submission determined?

    To find the total word count in a Microsoft Word document, first take out the list of contributors and references, then from the 'review' menu, click on 'word count'. References are not counted when determining your word count, however, our editors will edit the figure legends and text in tables when included with your submission. We will edit your entire document (except references) unless you give us special instructions stating otherwise. The word count will be verified by the assigned editor and you will be contacted via email if there is a discrepancy which changes the price (increase or decrease).

13. Do you guarantee publication of my research if I use your service?

    While experience and numerous research studies have consistently shown that manuscripts containing fewer English language mistakes are more likely to be accepted for publication, we cannot edit your manuscript for research content, this is the responsibility of your peer reviewers. Therefore, we cannot make any guarantees regarding the publication of your research.

14. What forms of payment do you accept?

    We accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, Diners Club, and JCB through our secure website. We also accept Purchase Orders (Bank transfers) and payments through PayPal.

15. How much will your service cost in my country's currency?

    Our posted prices are in U.S. dollars, so the actual price to you will depend on the exchange rate that day. You will automatically be charged by your credit card company in your home currency based on the exchange rate set by your credit card provider and subject to international market conditions. For an estimate of updated exchange rates, please visit http://www.xe.com.

16. How do I know when my document is ready?

    We guarantee that your document will be ready by the deadline you requested, although we will often have it finished earlier. When the document is ready, you will be sent an e-mail to remind you to visit your AJE account to download your fully edited document. When you log in, you will see a link to download your finished document from our secure server.

17. Do you fix formatting mistakes within my submission?

    At this time our service does not include making changes to the formatting of your document. We do not accept requests to format your document to fit specific journal formatting requirements. While you may occasionally see formatting changes made to your submission using Track Changes, these are often made inadvertently by Editors in the process of correcting other mistakes such as spelling and grammar.

18. Is there a discount to proofread a revised paper that AJE previously edited?

    Yes, AJE offers a 20% reedit discount on submissions that were previously edited by us. More information regarding reedits.