Journal profile · EDUCATION, SPECIAL
Exceptionality
ISSN 0936-2835 · eISSN 1532-7035 · Taylor & Francis
Exceptionality: CAS Zone 4 · Education (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.84; JCR Q2 (journal website); subscription journal; APC charged, amount not published; review about 103 days (submission to first decision, publisher); acceptance rate 17% (journal website); 18 articles in 2025; indexed in SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Exceptionality is published by Taylor & Francis and is in Zone 4 of Education in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Disability Education and Employment, Family and Disability Support Research and Behavioral and Psychological Studies, together about 34.7% of its articles. Its main subfields are Education. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The purpose of Exceptionality is to provide a forum for presentation of current research and professional scholarship in special education. Areas of scholarship published in the journal include quantitative, qualitative, and single-subject research designs examining students and persons with exceptionalities, as well as reviews of the literature, discussion pieces, invited works, position papers, theoretical papers, policy analyses, and research syntheses. Appropriate data-based papers include basic, experimental, applied, naturalistic, ethnographic, and historical investigations. Papers that describe assessment, diagnosis, placement, teacher education, and service delivery practices will also be included. Manuscripts accepted for publication will represent a cross section of all areas of special education and exceptionality and will attempt to further the knowledge base and improve services to individuals with disabilities and gifted and talented behavior. Peer Review Policy: All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal by the editors, and if found suitable for further consideration, Research Articles and Review Articles are then subject to double anonymous peer review by at least two independent expert reviewers. Comment pieces are by invitation only and are subject to review by the Editor in Chief. The journal reserves the right to reject submissions after editorial screening should the submission not meet certain minimum requirements. Readership: Education researchers, education professionals interested in students at risk, developmental and school psychologists, neuropsychologists, medical personnel involved with students and persons with exceptionalities, social workers, teachers, and higher education students in education.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): EDUCATION, SPECIAL
Editor-in-chief Paige C. PullenPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Disability Education and EmploymentSocial Sciences13.5%
- Family and Disability Support ResearchPsychology10.8%
- Behavioral and Psychological StudiesPsychology10.4%
- Autism Spectrum Disorder ResearchNeuroscience7.1%
- Collaborative Teaching and InclusionSocial Sciences6%
- Reading and Literacy DevelopmentPsychology5.7%
- Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skillsMathematics4.9%
- Parental Involvement in EducationSocial Sciences4.3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Education Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Education | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Education, Special | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Education Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Education | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Education, Special | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Education Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Education | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Education, Special | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- JCR Q2 · best quartile · 2025
- CiteScore Q2 · 2025
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
SSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
Web of SciencePsycINFOERICCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: ProQuest, OCLC, EBSCOhost, Academic Search Alumni Edition, Academic Search Complete, Academic Search Elite, Academic Search Premier, Academic Search Ultimate, Book Review Digest Plus (H.W. Wilson), Current Abstracts, Education Abstracts (H.W. Wilson), Education Full Text (H.W. Wilson), Education Index (Online), Education Research Complete, Education Research Index, Education Source, OmniFile Full Text Mega (H.W. Wilson), Professional Development Collection, TOC Premier (Table of Contents), Elsevier BV, E-psyche, ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Exceptional Child Education Resources (Online), Ovid, ProQuest Education Database, Health Research Premium Collection, Professional, ProQuest Central, ProQuest 5000
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
- 1.84LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.9Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.8Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 3.3LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 3.3Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.68LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.68Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.43LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 1.43Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 64OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 387OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.03OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 5.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 1.61%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 18LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 81,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 729 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 9 | 1 | 2 |
| 2025 | 18 | 0 | 27 |
| 2024 | 32 | 9 | 150 |
| 2023 | 14 | 0 | 97 |
| 2022 | 14 | 2 | 82 |
| 2021 | 19 | 0 | 175 |
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
- Acceptance rate (publisher)
- 17%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision
- 103 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
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
Subscription journalLetPub
A subscription journal: articles are read by subscription or purchase, and authors usually pay no publication charge.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
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)
Article types accepted3
- comment piecesComment pieces are by invitation only and are subject to review by the Editor in Chief.Length not stated
- research articlesResearch Articles and Review Articles are then subject to double anonymous peer review by at least two independent expert reviewers.Length not stated
- review articlesResearch Articles and Review Articles are then subject to double anonymous peer review by at least two independent expert reviewers.Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access, Peer review
- Open access Open access
Exceptionality is a hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research. Why choose open access? Increase the discoverability and readersh…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal by the editors, and if found suitable for further consideration, Research Articles and Review Articles are then subject to double anonymous peer review by at least two independent expert reviewers. Model summary
All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal by the editors, and if found suitable for further consideration, Research Articles and Review Articles are then subject to double anonymous peer review by at least two independent expert reviewers.
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
- Taylor & Francis
- ISSN
- 0936-2835
- Electronic ISSN
- 1532-7035
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 34, Issue 3 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Exceptionality
What CAS zone is Exceptionality in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Exceptionality is in Zone 4 of Education, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Education, Special. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Education. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Exceptionality?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.84; CiteScore 3.3, h-index 64.
How long does peer review take at Exceptionality?
The publisher reports about 103 days (submission to first decision); first decisions include desk rejections; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 17%. 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 JCR quartile is Exceptionality in?
The journal's website gives JCR Q2 (best quartile). JCR quartiles are Clarivate's to confirm and a different system from the CAS zones; in the CAS ranking the journal is in Zone 4 of Education.
Which databases index Exceptionality?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Exceptionality is indexed in SSCI and Scopus. The journal's website also lists Web of Science, PsycINFO, ERIC and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Exceptionality open access, and what is the APC?
Exceptionality is a subscription journal. APC charged, amount not published.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; 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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .