Journal profile
Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies
ISSN 2710-2572 · ERRCD Forum · South Africa
Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies: fully open access; APC about USD 650; review about 12 weeks (community reports); acceptance rate 26.79% (journal website); 15 articles in 2025.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies is published by ERRCD Forum. By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare, Education in Rural Contexts and Community and Sustainable Development, together about 25% of its articles. Its main subfields are Education. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
IJRCS provides an open access platform for academics and community development experts to publish their findings. IJRCS welcomes articles that provide discourse on rural development, policies and practices, and community-related studies from regional, provincial, community and global perspectives. Interdisciplinary debates on rural and community emancipation, focusing on social, educational, economic, political, environmental, local and urban influence, gender dominance and marginalisation, and resource allocation issues are also welcome. The predominant focus is to publish articles that contribute to the sustainable development of the disadvantaged towards emancipation and self-reliance. IJRCS invites empirical studies, conceptual and theoretical opinions, book reviews, reviews of relevant literature, short communications and commentaries. Refer to the author guidelines for detailed information on the "Types of Acceptable Articles." The journal accommodates all disciplines, including but not limited to the following perspectives: Rural development and people's emancipation Community development Urban and regional integration Economic and political perspectives Agricultural perspectives Social and educational perfectives Governance and administrative perspectives Sociological and psychological perspectives Health and well-being Social and political activism Management and communication Natural and human science Humanities and literature studies Gender issues Information and communications technology Indigenous narratives Sustainable development Definition of Terms ERRCDF defines "rural" as economically, socially, and politically disadvantaged locations, people or entities. ERRCDF defines "community" as the conglomerate of people, entities, locations, and organisations that share common or conflictual characteristics. Publication Frequency Prior to 2022, IJRCS published two issues annually under a continuous publication model. Between 2022 and 2024, the journal transitioned to publishing one issue per year while maintaining this model, allowing articles to be made available online on an article-by-article basis immediately upon acceptance and finalisation. As of January 2025, IJRCS has resumed publishing two issues annually, continuing with the continuous publication model. Articles finalised between January and June constitute Issue 1, while those finalised between July and December form Issue 2. This model combines the benefits of rapid research dissemina
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Editor-in-chief Bekithemba DubePublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named South Africa 11, United States 1, Canada 1, Nigeria 1 (14 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Poverty, Education, and Child WelfareSocial Sciences9.1%
- Education in Rural ContextsSocial Sciences9.1%
- Community and Sustainable DevelopmentSocial Sciences6.8%
- Teacher Education and Leadership StudiesSocial Sciences5.7%
- Homelessness and Social IssuesHealth Professions4.6%
- Community-based Tourism Development and SustainabilitySocial Sciences4.6%
- Local Economic Development and PlanningSocial Sciences4.6%
- Diverse Aspects of Tourism ResearchSocial Sciences3.4%
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
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
- h-index
- 5OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 0OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 1.39OpenAlex ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 0%LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 66 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 8 | 8 | 45 |
| 2025 | 15 | 15 | 41 |
| 2024 | 21 | 21 | 16 |
| 2023 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| 2022 | 6 | 6 | 4 |
| 2021 | 10 | 10 | 2 |
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 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
- 26.79%Publisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 12 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 | USD 650 | Yes | CC BY | |
| LetPub | ZAR 3,700 / USD 200 | No | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 650 | — | — |
Other charges and waivers (author guidelines)
- Submission fee
- USD 650
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 prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 7,000 words
- Reference style
- APA
- Templates
- Word
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteConflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, Peer review
- Conflicts of interest Disclosure and Conflict of Interest
It is the author's responsibility to disclose any conflicting, competing and financial interest that may influence the result, production and construe or result in liability. All official sources of financial support should be disclosed. The author must, therefore, notify the Editor-in-Chief should there be any conflicts of interest.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data Availability Statement
It is highly recommended that authors ensure the accessibility of their research data by either depositing it in a publicly accessible repository or providing it as supplementary material during the submission process. Authors are expected to disclose in their supplementary file if they have deposited their datasets into a public repository. If otherwise, authors should clearly outline the reason(…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Ethical Considerations
The issue of research ethics is important and must be keenly followed to protect the researcher, co-researchers, participants, respondents and every object and subject element involved in the study. In social sciences research, like other fields of study, adhering to ethical rules involving human beings, vulnerable populations, confidentiality, and anonymity, among others, should not be compromise…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review Process
The journal follows a double-blind peer-review policy, meaning that the identities of both the author(s) and reviewers remain anonymous to each other. Articles are subjected to a rigorous peer-review process after the assigned editor assesses their quality and relevance to the journal. At this stage, the editor may either reject or accept the article. If accepted, the article will be sent to two c…
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
- ERRCD Forum
- Country or region
- South Africa
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2710-2572
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 8, Issue 1 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗LetPub
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies
How long does peer review take at Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies?
Authors report an average review time of about 12 weeks; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 26.79% (2025). 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 Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Manuscript length: ≤ 7,000 words; Reference style: APA; Templates: Word. 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 Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies based?
Of the 14 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are South Africa (11), United States (1) and Canada (1). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies is indexed in DOAJ.
Is Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies open access, and what is the APC?
Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 650.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, DOAJ, 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 2026-08-30). Last updated: .