Journal profile
Critical Literary Studies
ISSN 2676-699X · University of Kurdistan · Iran, Islamic Republic of
Critical Literary Studies: impact factor 0.11 (journal website); fully open access; APC charged, amount not published; review about 50 weeks (community reports); acceptance rate 34% (journal website); 8 articles a year.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Critical Literary Studies is the leading academic and professional journal of Iran and the Middle East in the area of English Literature and contemporary cultural studies. This means playing a creative role in the academic discourse by disseminating research on a global scale, and an ability to combine quality and innovation. CLS aims at reporting high-quality theoretical and original research contributions for the benefit of academic researchers in the field of Literature, Literary Criticism, and Cultural Studies. The journal consists of both researchers in specific fields and multidisciplinary researchers of long-standing and emerging knowledge. The scope includes theories and practices in Literary Criticism and Theory, Literary Movements, Schools, and Genres, Critical Approaches and Concepts, Comparative Literature, Cultural Studies, and Practical Reading of Literary and Cultural Texts. CLS focuses on comparative literature with an interdisciplinary nature. The journal welcomes research works concerning English literature on one hand and the literature in Persian, Kurdish, Turkish, and Arabic on the other hand. Additionally, interdisciplinarity is of central interest to the papers published by the CLS journal. The journal is published in both print and online versions.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Editor-in-chief Jalal Sokhanvar EnglishPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named Iran 24, United Kingdom 3, Türkiye 3, United States 2, Iraq 2 (37 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
DOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Portal of Scientific Journals of the Iranian Ministry of SRT, ISC, SID, MLA, Google Scholar, National Library and Archives of Iranian Scholarly Journals, Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies, Civilica, Magiran, TEI, Directory of Research Journals Indexing, Scribd, AcademiaPublisher website
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 0.11Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 0OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 0OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0OpenAlex ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 0%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year (publisher)
- 8Publisher website ·
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 50 weeksLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 34%Publisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 50 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | IRR 12,000,000 | No | CC BY-NC-SA | |
| LetPub | IRR 4,000,000 | No | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare7 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- 180–200 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 5
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 6,000 words
- Reference style
- MLA
- Templates
- Word
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Cover letter
- Required
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Plagiarism, Preprints
- Authorship
Title: max 12 words Model summary
Main title should not be more than 12 words (Font: Times New Roman; Size: 12 pt.).
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics
This journal is following Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and complies with the highest ethical standards in accordance with ethical laws Model summary
This journal is following Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and complies with the highest ethical standards in accordance with ethical laws
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright
Appendix after references and notes Model summary
The appendix comes after the references and the notes.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access
Language: English only Model summary
CLS only accepts manuscripts written in English.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Works Cited: MLA method (hanging) Model summary
CLS follows MLA method of Works Citation (hanging).
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Plagiarism
Length: 5000-6000 words including abstract and references Model summary
Papers between minimum of 5000 words and maximum of 6000 words including abstract and references are preferred.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints
Footnotes: avoid; use endnotes Model summary
Please avoid using footnotes. Change footnotes to endnotes.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- University of Kurdistan
- Country or region
- Iran, Islamic Republic of
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2676-699X
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 8, Issue 2 (2025)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Critical Literary Studies
What is the impact factor of Critical Literary Studies?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 0.11; this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; h-index 0.
How long does peer review take at Critical Literary Studies?
Authors report an average review time of about 50 weeks; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 34%. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Critical Literary Studies?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 180–200 words; Keywords: ≥ 5; Manuscript length: ≤ 6,000 words; Reference style: MLA; Templates: Word; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; Cover letter: Required. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Critical Literary Studies based?
Of the 37 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Iran (24), United Kingdom (3) and Türkiye (3). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Critical Literary Studies?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Critical Literary Studies is indexed in DOAJ.
Is Critical Literary Studies open access, and what is the APC?
Critical Literary Studies is a fully open-access journal. APC charged, amount not published.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .