Launch a Journal — Institutional

Overview

“We have three journals on three different systems, a library that wants everything in the repository, and a vice-rector who wants a governance structure she can defend to council.” Institutional launches are not one journal on one platform; they involve migration, integrations, several titles, formal governance and accountability.

Institutional includes everything in Professional and adds migration of existing content and users, integrations with institutional systems, support for multiple journals on one installation, a governance program for editors and boards, and a formal SLA with six months of operational support.

Who this is for: universities, research institutions and learned societies launching flagship journals or consolidating a portfolio, where the platform must fit institutional infrastructure and the governance must satisfy a council or board.

What’s Included

• Everything in Professional — OJS build, custom identity and frontend, configured workflow, extended policy suite, board governance setup, ISSN and DOI administration, preservation, first-issue and launch management, indexing roadmap
• Migration — content, users, issues and metadata from an existing OJS, another platform or structured exports, with DOI redirection preserved
• Integrations — institutional single sign-on, repository deposit, ORCID, Crossref, similarity checking, analytics and library systems as agreed at discovery
• Multiple journals — a multi-journal OJS installation with shared infrastructure and per-journal identity, workflow and policies
• Governance program — editorial structure, terms of reference for editors and boards, appointment and renewal procedures, conflict-of-interest rules and an annual review cycle, documented for institutional approval
• Service-level agreement — defined response and resolution times, escalation procedure and weekly progress reports during implementation
• Launch marketing plan, 4-hour editor and staff training, complete documentation package and six months of operational support

How It Works

What Stays With Your Editors

The journal’s editors keep final authority over reviewer selection, editorial assessment and acceptance, and the institution’s governance bodies approve the governance program and every board appointment. NeucitePress runs the build, migration, integration, policy and launch process and provides support under the SLA.

Important Limitations

• Hosting is separate: NeucitePress managed hosting at $600 per year after launch, or your own infrastructure.
• The price shown is NeucitePress’s professional fee. Fees charged by external organizations, including ISSN center fees, Crossref’s membership and per-DOI fees, and preservation network fees, are separate and passed through at cost.
• Indexing applications are not included; every database requires publishing history. The roadmap sets the dates. Inclusion is decided solely by each database.
• Support covers technical issues and operational guidance under the SLA; manuscript processing is the Managed Editorial Office. Support beyond six months at $500 per month.
• The number of journals, migration volume and integrations are scoped at discovery; the package covers a defined scope agreed in the proposal.

Common Questions

How is this different from Professional?
Professional launches one journal with a custom identity and workflow. Institutional adds migration, integrations, multiple journals, a governance program and an SLA with six months of support.

Can existing journals with DOIs be migrated without breaking links?
Yes. DOI metadata is updated at Crossref to resolve to the new URLs, and old URLs are redirected.

Does the governance program cover an existing editorial board?
Yes. It documents the structure, terms and procedures for existing and new boards; candidate search is the Editorial Board Renewal & Management service.

Every engagement can begin with the Journal Health Check.