Journal profile · ART
Museum Worlds
ISSN 2049-6729 · eISSN 2049-6737 · Berghahn Books · United States
Museum Worlds: CAS Zone 3 · Arts (2025 upgraded edition); diamond open access (no APC); no APC; review about 16 weeks (community reports); 25 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Museum Worlds is published by Berghahn Books and is in Zone 3 of Arts in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Museums and Cultural Heritage, Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation and Anthropological Studies and Insights, together about 57.6% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Museum Worlds: Advances in Research is a multidisciplinary, refereed, annual journal that publishes work that significantly advances knowledge of global trends, case studies, and theory relevant to museum practice and scholarship around the world. Responding to the need for a rigorous, in-depth review of current work in its field, Museum Worlds: Advances in Research contributes to the ongoing formation of Museum Studies as an academic and practical area of research that is rapidly expanding and alive with potential, opportunity, and challenge that parallels the rapid growth of museums in just about every part of the world. Museum Worlds aims to trace and comment on major regional, theoretical, methodological, and topical themes and debates, and to encourage comparison of museum theories, practices, and developments in different global settings. Each issue includes a conversation piece on a current topic, as well as peer-reviewed scholarly articles and review articles, book and exhibition reviews, and news on developments in museum studies and related curricula in different parts of the world. Drawing on the expertise and networks of a global Editorial Board of senior scholars and museum practitioners, the journal both challenges and develops the core concepts that link different disciplinary perspectives on museums by bringing new voices into ongoing debates and discussions. Articles are of exceptional quality and general interest from around the world.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): ART
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Museums and Cultural HeritageArts and Humanities31.9%
- Cultural Heritage Management and PreservationArts and Humanities19.3%
- Anthropological Studies and InsightsSocial Sciences6.4%
- Conservation Techniques and StudiesArts and Humanities4.8%
- Cultural Industries and Urban DevelopmentSocial Sciences4.6%
- Archaeological Research and ProtectionEarth and Planetary Sciences3.4%
- Memory, Trauma, and CommemorationPsychology2.8%
- Geographies of human-animal interactionsSocial Sciences2.8%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Arts Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Arts | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Art | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Arts Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Arts | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Art | 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
Web of ScienceERIH PLUSPublisher website
Other: CABI Abstracts (CABI)
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
- 1LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.25LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.82LetPub ·
- h-index
- 14OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 19OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.66OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 0%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 84.62%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 19LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 236 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 25 | 25 | 6 |
| 2024 | 19 | 19 | 23 |
| 2023 | 20 | 20 | 30 |
| 2022 | 22 | 22 | 45 |
| 2021 | 16 | 16 | 14 |
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 16 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 18 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, CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| LetPub | No APC | 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 prepare1 items from the author guidelines
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
Article types accepted8, with length limits
- conversationsConversations: 4,000 to 6,000 wordsLength not stated
- news, exhibitions, and conferencesNews, exhibitions, and conferences: up to 500 words per itemLength not stated
- research articlesResearch articles and articles that critically review and position the state of a particular subfield should be approximately 7,000 words (including notes and r…Length not stated
- reviewh articles and articles that critically review and position the state of a particular subfield should be approximately 7,000 words (including notes and referenc…main text ≤ 7,000 words
- review articleds. Conversations: 4,000 to 6,000 words Review articles (books or exhibitions): 3,000 words Short reviews (books or exhibitions): 800 words News, exhibmain text ≤ 3,000 words
- review articles (books or exhibitions)Review articles (books or exhibitions): 3,000 wordsLength not stated
- short reviews (books or exhibitions)Short reviews (books or exhibitions): 800 wordsLength not stated
- teaching in museum studiesTeaching in Museum Studies: 3,000 to 5,000 words in total for section (shorter items welcome)Length not stated
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteLicense & copyright, Open access, Peer review
- License & copyright License Agreement
Default license is CC BY-NC-ND; other licenses available on request. Model summary
As part of the Berghahn Open Anthro initiative, articles in this journal are published open access under a Creative Commons license. As a contributor to a Berghahn Books Journal, you are responsible for completing, signing, and returning one of the signed license agreements for each author with your submitted article. Submit forms to copyright@berghahnjournals.com. By default Authors will use the …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access
Open access under a Creative Commons license as part of the Berghahn Open Anthro initiative. Model summary
As part of the Berghahn Open Anthro initiative, articles in this journal are published open access under a Creative Commons license.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review
Double-blind peer review for most materials. Model summary
The editors certify that all materials, with the possible exception of editorial introductions, book and exhibition reviews, and some types of commentary, have been subjected to double-blind peer review by qualified scholars in the field.
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
- Berghahn Books
- Country or region
- United States
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2049-6729
- Electronic ISSN
- 2049-6737
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 13, Issue 1 (2025)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- 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 Museum Worlds
What CAS zone is Museum Worlds in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Museum Worlds is in Zone 3 of Arts, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Art. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Arts. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
How long does peer review take at Museum Worlds?
Authors report an average review time of about 16 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.
Which databases index Museum Worlds?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Museum Worlds is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists Web of Science and ERIH PLUS; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Museum Worlds open access, and what is the APC?
Museum Worlds 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: .