AAT Article Submission - General Information

AAT showcases member articles and opinion pieces that are directed to practicing advisors and advising administrators. Submissions are reviewed and selected by members of the Review Committee, and articles are printed as space is available.

Authors should strive to represent a balanced perspective on their chosen topic. The ideal submission is educational in nature, positive in tone, and focused on particular aspects of academic advising. 

• In addition to general articles, AAT also includes Vantage Point and Sponsored articles.
  • Vantage Point pieces are a type of article which features the unique story of one of the myriad of advisors (or advising teams) who makes up our diverse association. Advisors come from a wide variety of backgrounds, advise diverse student populations, and work in vastly different settings. In short, every advisor (and advising team) has an individual vantage point!
  • Sponsored articles are articles sponsored by an association unit, such as an Advising Community or Committee. Authors of sponsored articles are noted as such in the author byline. Authors must be current members of NACADA and the association unit they are representing in their article and must be approved by the unit Chair.
• Articles should be approximately 1500 words in length, not counting the title or reference citations.
• References to other resources such as books, articles, websites, etc. that provide background must be appropriately cited using the guidelines of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th edition. Footnotes will not be accepted. Improperly citing or failing to cite quotations and references is plagiarism and disqualifies a submission from publication.
• Commercial messages and promotions will not be accepted; submissions must be both product- and vendor-neutral.

Commitment to Inclusion

In accordance with NACADA guidelines as recommended by the association’s Publications Advisory Board, all Academic Advising Today articles must be written using inclusive language that values and supports the diverse communities within advising and higher education. In our work toward a shared goal of diversity, equity, and inclusion, as academic advisors, scholar-practitioners, and scholars, NACADA members and AAT’s Editorial Team recognize that language, identity, and power matter when creating inclusive articles. We adhere to the bias-free language guidelines included in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th edition, and we strive to make this publication an equitable platform for authors, reviewers, and readers.

Authorship

Named authors should be those who contributed substantial content to the article throughout the process to include but not limited to drafting, critical revising, etc. “Honorary authorship” is not permitted in NACADA publications; however, third parties who added to the content but do not qualify as authors may be acknowledged in an acknowledgements section. Coauthors should collaboratively come to agreement on author order and correct author order should be listed on all submitted work. (Find guidance regarding author order in APA 7^th Edition, section 1.22.) Lead authors are responsible for ensuring that all appropriate authors are included in the submitted manuscript. Additionally, all listed authors are accountable for the content of the manuscript, must agree to submit the manuscript for publication, and must approve the final version before publication.

Writing Tips for AAT

• AAT articles are generally written in third person (Advisors… They...).
  • First person perspective ("I" for an individual author or "We" for multiple authors) may sometimes be warranted, most often in the case of Vantage Point pieces.
    • Individual authors should not employ the "royal" we as subject (assuming membership: we need to conduct more research) or our as a possessive.
    • Second person (you) should only be used in dialogue or when quoting verbatim from others. Submissions written in second person will not be accepted.
• Authors should use active voice whenever possible because it generally makes for concise and meaningful text.
• Avoid writing about the writing ("In this article, the authors will address..."). When absolutely necessary to provide structure, use present tense ("The following section addresses...").
• Use numerals in series only when placing items in rank order; if all listed items carry equal weight, use bullets.
• Use the serial comma ("peer, professional, and graduate students").

Formatting

• For additional formatting guidance, please refer to the APA, 7th Edition manual.

Submission Process

• Articles should be submitted through the "Submit an Article" link found in the right margin of this webpage.
• In submitting the article, the author(s) agree(s) to the following stipulations:
  • The author(s) guarantee(s) that the article is original and accurate and does not infringe on any copyright or proprietary right of others. In the event of such claim, action or proceeding instituted against the author as a result of an alleged violation of such right, NACADA will be held harmless. Authors are responsible for ensuring proper citation of sources that are included in and support the submitted content. Should allegations arise that question whether or not work was appropriately cited, these will be handled by the editor(s)/authors(s) and NACADA will be held harmless.
  • The author(s) also grant(s) and assign(s) to NACADA full and exclusive rights to publish the article. The author(s) grant(s) NACADA the right to print and reprint the article. NACADA, in turn, grants the article author(s) ‘not for profit’ use of the article on the author’s home campus. The author(s) agree(s) to obtain NACADA permission prior to using the article in other situations.
  • Articles that were printed elsewhere cannot be reprinted in Academic Advising Today without written permission from the original printing source. Republication of previously published content and self-plagiarism are considered on a case-by-case basis. General guidance for self-plagiarism may be found in section 8.3 of the APA 7^th Edition manual. In the event of republication of previously published work and/or self-plagiarism, authors should disclose to the NACADA managing editor how much of the content is new and how much was previously published and/or self-plagiarized.
  • Authors will conduct themselves in a professional and respectful manner toward NACADA staff at all times. Abusive treatment or bullying of NACADA staff by any means, including via electronic communication, will not be tolerated. NACADA reserves the right to discontinue engagement with individuals who do not adhere to these practices, which could result in a discontinuation of the publication project.
  • At the completion of the editing process, and prior to publication, authors will be required to sign an Author Agreement Form (find in right-hand column of this webpage). Author(s) are responsible for ensuring the accuracy of their content. Should the author(s) discover a significant error in their work, they should notify the managing editor immediately.

Article Submission Deadlines

• March edition - submissions must be received by December 1 for consideration
• June edition - submissions must be received by March 15 for consideration
• September edition - submissions must be received by June 15 for consideration
• December edition - submissions must be received by September 1 for consideration

Please note: Submission review is ongoing and priority is given according to date of submission. Depending on the number of submissions, later submissions may need to be held over for consideration for the next edition.

Timelines

• The following table shows the timeline for each issue of AAT. Please note that the dates are subject to change as needed

• Following each deadline, authors are notified of:
  • Conditional acceptance - The author will be connected with the AAT Copy Editor to begin the editing process, which generally takes about 8 weeks. If the process is successful and agreement on a final version is reached, the article will be published.
  • Non-acceptance with suggestions for revision - Reviewers consider the piece to have potential for publication, but revision by the author is needed before the piece could go to the AAT Copy Editor. Authors are encouraged to revise and resubmit for the next deadline.
  • Rejection - Reviewers do not consider the submission appropriate for this publication.

Publication Acknowledgement

Publication of AAT articles is announced to all NACADA members in the Monthly Member Highlights. Additionally, a letter of recognition from the Executive Director is sent to the author(s)' administrator(s) of choice. When the article is accepted for publication, the author(s) will be asked to provide the name and email address of the campus administrator(s) who should receive this letter.

Use of Professional Titles

Academic Advising Today references and publishes many outstanding advising professionals who hold a Ph.D. in fields not directly related to their advising work and/or who do not hold a Ph.D. because it is not the terminal degree in their discipline. Therefore, when titles are required, we find “Mr.” and “Ms.” most appropriate and egalitarian for our audience.

Also, as noted by the Kansas State University Style Guide, in general, Dr. should not be used before a name of someone who has a Ph.D. or other doctoral degree. To establish someone’s credentials, the preferred form is to use a phrase. Use of Ph.D. should be avoided unless necessary to establish credentials. It is acceptable to use Dr. on first reference as a formal title before the name of a physician or an individual who is a doctor of dental surgery, doctor of medicine, doctor of optometry or doctor of osteopathic medicine.

Examples:
    Susie Smith, professor of chemistry
    John Doe, who has a doctorate in biology

Submit an Article