Journal profile · Arts and Humanities-Arts and Humanities (all)
Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory
ISSN 2457-8827 · Babes Bolyai University · Romania
Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory: CAS Zone 3 · Literature (2025 upgraded edition); diamond open access (no APC); no APC; review about 7 weeks (community reports); 18 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory is published by Babes Bolyai University and is in Zone 3 of Literature in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Translation Studies and Practices, Ecocriticism and Environmental Literature and Comparative and World Literature, together about 23% of its articles. Its main subfields are Literature and Literary Theory. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory (MJCST) is an open-access, peer-review, online publication for academic research, published twice a year by the Faculty of Letters, Babes-Bolyai University of Cluj, Romania. It promotes free-access for academic work and it welcomes authors who want to share their research and resources with their peers. It encourages, recognizes and rewards intellectual excellence in interdisciplinary and intermedial approaches of literary culture, visual culture and theory. The journal welcomes papers in English (or, for regionally oriented topics, Romanian) from the following domains: comparative studies, including digital and posthuman studies; literary studies, cultural studies, including social and gender studies; media and film studies, literary criticism and theory, cultural poetics. All articles must explore metacritic, reflexive dimensions of the issues covered, whether aiming for theoretical or methodological conclusions, or focused on pragmatic, applicative or analytic issues. The journal discourages unsystematic work, lacking in argumentative cohesion and conceptual clarity. No publication fees are requested.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Arts and Humanities-Arts and Humanities (all)
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Translation Studies and PracticesArts and Humanities7.8%
- Ecocriticism and Environmental LiteratureArts and Humanities7.8%
- Comparative and World LiteratureArts and Humanities7.4%
- European Cultural and National IdentitySocial Sciences7%
- Postcolonial and Cultural Literary StudiesArts and Humanities6.6%
- Contemporary Literature and CriticismArts and Humanities6.3%
- Geographies of human-animal interactionsSocial Sciences5.9%
- Posthumanist Ethics and ActivismSocial Sciences4.3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Literature Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Literature | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Literature | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Literature Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Literature | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Literature | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
ERIH PLUSPublisher website
Other: CEEOL, NSD-DBH, WorldCat, Proquest, ANVUR (Italy)
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
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 0.9LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.14LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.14LetPub ·
- h-index
- 7OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 3OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.34OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 0%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 80.28%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 18LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 242 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 10 | 10 | 0 |
| 2025 | 18 | 18 | 7 |
| 2024 | 25 | 25 | 11 |
| 2023 | 29 | 29 | 21 |
| 2022 | 25 | 25 | 38 |
| 2021 | 37 | 37 | 31 |
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 7 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 7 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
Diamond open access (no APC)DOAJ
Every article is open access and authors pay no article processing charge.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | No APC | No | CC BY | |
| LetPub | No APC | No | — | |
| Publisher website | No APC | — | — |
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
- 150 words
- Keywords
- ≥ 5
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 7,000 words
- Reference style
- MLA
Article types accepted3, with length limits
- articlesArticles should have 5000 to 7000 words, including: 150-word abstract, 5-7 key words, list of references (only cited works will be included here), 150-word auth…Length not stated
- book reviewed here), 150-word author's bioprofile. Book reviews should have 2000 to 3000 words. Please always attach to your submission email a portrait pmain text ≤ 3,000 words
- book reviewsBook reviews should have 2000 to 3000 words.Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websitePublication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Plagiarism
- Publication ethics
Follows COPE guidelines on transparency and best practice in scholarly publishing. Model summary
The journal follows the guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE, https://publicationethics.org/resources/guidelines/principles-transparency-and-best-practice-scholarly-publishing) and its principles of transparency and best practice in scholarly publication
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright Statement
Authors grant the journal right to publish/reproduce; authors retain copyright. Model summary
When accepting our offer to publish, the authors grant Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theorythe right to publish, reproduce and communicate their work in whatever form the Editorial Board deems fit. The author still retains copyright of their work and may publish or authorise others to publish the entire work or any part thereof. Articles can accordingly be translated or reprinted …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access Policy
Open access policy Model summary
The journal is available online, and is free to anyone who wishes to use its articles and resources. The journal aspires to the same standards as established print journals, and sees the internet as a valuable medium for the dissemination of high-quality rigorous work. The authors have copyright of their own work. Articles can accordingly be translated or reprinted in another format such as a book…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review and Selection Process
All texts published in the journal are double-blind peer reviewed. All texts are reviewed by two experts and the review process is expected to take 2-4 months at most. We ask authors not to submit their articles elsewhere during this time, and to notify us should they subsequently decide to withdraw their work owing to unavoidable delays on our part. Please see the Author Guidelines in the For aut…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Plagiarism Malpractice and plagiarism
The journal has no tolerance for any violation of publication ethics and it will sanction any form of malpractice. The authors are expected to submit entirely original works and to give full acknowledgement of their sources and of previous work by other authors. All submitted texts will be run through an anti-plagiarism soft before reviewing. Identification of plagiarism attempts will automaticall…
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
- Babes Bolyai University
- Country or region
- Romania
- Language
- English, Romanian
- ISSN
- 2457-8827
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory
What CAS zone is Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory is in Zone 3 of Literature, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Literature. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Literature. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
How long does peer review take at Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory?
Authors report an average review time of about 7 weeks. 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 Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: 150 words; Keywords: ≥ 5; Manuscript length: ≤ 7,000 words; Reference style: MLA. 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.
Which databases index Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists ERIH PLUS; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory open access, and what is the APC?
Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory is a diamond open-access journal (no APC). It charges no article processing charge.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, DOAJ, Publisher website; 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: .