TL;DR
You’ll find everything you need to publish in the International Journal of High School Research below: who can submit, how submission works, what it costs, and how long review takes. Submitting is free, and the $350 publication fee only comes due after your paper is accepted. Plan on three to six months from submission to publication. The hardest part isn’t the submission form. It’s getting your paper strong enough to pass peer review. Apply to Horizon to write yours one-on-one with a PhD mentor, with publication specialists who help you submit it to journals like this one.
The International Journal of High School Research at a glance
IJHSR is a peer-reviewed journal published by Terra Science and Education. Here is what its official pages say right now.
| Detail | What it means for you |
| Who runs it | Terra Science and Education, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Syracuse, New York. IJHSR has published since 2019. |
| Editor-in-Chief | Dr. Fehmi Damkaci. The full editorial board is listed by name and university. |
| Who can submit | High school students and their mentors from any country. |
| Journals | Three: Natural and Physical Sciences, Engineering and Computer Science, and Business and Social Sciences. |
| Article types | Research articles and review articles (literature reviews). |
| Peer review | After an editor screens your paper, it goes to two or more outside reviewers with expertise in your field. |
| Indexing | EBSCO and Google Scholar. |
| Reading published papers | Each issue page links straight to article PDFs, with no account needed. |
| Fees | $0 to submit. $350 to publish, charged only after acceptance. Fee scholarships are available. |
| Review time | About one to three months to acceptance, then two to three more months to publication. |
| Deadlines | None. Papers are accepted all year, and issues come out monthly. |
| Acceptance rate | Not published. |
Sources: IJHSR About page and IJHSR Submissions page.
What is the International Journal of High School Research?
The International Journal of High School Research is a peer-reviewed journal built only for high school researchers. Peer review means that, after an editor’s first check, experts in your subject read and judge your paper before it can be accepted. Submitting alone does not get you published.
IJHSR runs three journals: Natural and Physical Sciences, Engineering and Computer Science, and Business and Social Sciences. You pick the one that matches the main focus of your research. If your project crosses fields, IJHSR says to choose the journal that fits your central research question. If the editors think you picked the wrong one, they may move your paper to a better fit and tell you.
Its reviewers include university faculty, STEM professionals, postdoctoral researchers, and doctoral students. Published papers are indexed in EBSCO and Google Scholar, which makes them easier to find through library and academic search tools. Indexing helps people find your paper, but it does not tell you how selective a journal is.
IJHSR lists an online ISSN (2642-1054) and a print ISSN (2642-1046). After your paper is published, IJHSR mails you a printed copy of the journal.
Who can submit to IJHSR?
High school students and their mentors from any country can submit. IJHSR says students who have won awards at regional, national, or international science fairs are especially encouraged to turn that work into a paper. If you’ve competed at a fair, your project may already be most of the way there. Horizon’s list of research competitions for high school students covers where else that work can go.
IJHSR does not list a grade range, and it does not say whether recent graduates can still submit. If you’ve already finished high school, ask the editor through the Terra Journals App before you assume you’re eligible.
You can submit alone or with co-authors, and IJHSR doesn’t set a maximum number of authors. Anyone who made a real contribution to the design, the research, the data analysis, or the writing should be listed as an author. People who helped in small ways go in the acknowledgments.
Your mentor does not have to be an author. IJHSR says that unless your mentor asks to be included, they should be listed as a mentor rather than an author. If a mentor is listed, they must be identified as a supervisor, teacher, or mentor, and student authors are listed first. IJHSR does say you should have a mentor, teacher, or professional guiding you through publication, so plan to have one even if they’re not on the author list.
Settle your author list and author order before you submit. Once a paper is accepted, IJHSR won’t change either one.
What can you submit?
IJHSR accepts two types of papers.
- Research articles present original research and new data you collected yourself. Your paper should explain what you studied, how you studied it, what you found, and what your results add to what’s already known. The work can’t have been published anywhere else.
- Review articles, also called literature reviews, analyze research other people have already published. You compare studies, show where they agree and disagree, and point to questions nobody has answered yet. A list of paper summaries isn’t enough.
IJHSR accepts only two or three review articles per issue, so this route is much more competitive. If you’re writing a literature review, depth and synthesis matter more than the number of sources. Horizon’s guide on how to write a literature review in high school shows you how to group sources by theme and find a real gap.
What kind of research gets published?
IJHSR publishes across science, engineering, computer science, business, and social science, and it welcomes projects that cross fields. The January 2026 issue, for example, included a paper on using AI to improve threat detection for small businesses and one on coral reef restoration. Reading two or three recent papers in your field is the fastest way to see the level IJHSR expects. If you’re still picking a topic, Horizon’s lists of research topics for high school students and STEM research topics are good places to start.
IJHSR’s rules on AI
IJHSR allows AI only in limited support roles. Allowed uses include brainstorming ideas, grammar-only suggestions after you’ve written, finding possible statistical tests (you make the final choice), and formatting your bibliography. You cannot use AI to write your paper or any section of it, to produce your conclusions or interpretations, to collect or invent data, or to create citations you haven’t checked.
If you use AI for ideas, code, or picking statistical tools, you have to keep a prompt log. Any AI-generated code or graphics must be labeled and cited. IJHSR bases its policy on the Regeneron ISEF generative AI use table, which is worth reading before you start writing.
How to submit to the International Journal of High School Research: step by step
1. Choose your journal and article type
Decide whether you’re submitting a research article or a review article. Then pick Natural and Physical Sciences, Engineering and Computer Science, or Business and Social Sciences based on the main focus of your work.
2. Put your paper into the official template
Every paper must use IJHSR’s template. There’s one for research articles and one for review articles. IJHSR says papers that don’t follow its formatting rules can be rejected without review.
The template asks for Arial font, 10-point body text, single spacing, and no paragraph indents. Your paper can be at most 15 pages. If you’re not sure what every section of a research paper should do, Horizon’s guide to the key parts of a high school research paper breaks them down.
3. Check your citations and files
IJHSR requires ACS citation style, the system used in chemistry and many other sciences. In ACS style, you put a superscript number in your text, and each number matches an entry in a numbered reference list at the end. IJHSR won’t consider papers that use any other citation style. IJHSR links to this ACS style guide from Williams College, and Horizon’s guide on how to format citations in a research paper covers the basics.
Submit your paper as one document. Name it with your last name and first name if you’re the only author, or with all authors’ last names if there are several. Also upload every figure, graph, and formula separately as a PNG file of at least 300 dpi, named to match its caption and number.
4. Submit through the Terra Journals App
Create an account on the Terra Journals App and submit there. Don’t email your paper or your questions. IJHSR handles all communication about your paper through your app account.
5. Wait for the editorial check and peer review
The Editor-in-Chief first checks your formatting, citations, plagiarism, and AI use. Then the editor decides whether your research is scientifically sound and a fit for the journal. If it passes, your paper goes to two or more outside reviewers.
Reviewers can accept your paper, ask for revisions, or reject it. A request for revisions is a normal part of publishing, not a failure. You might be asked to explain your methods more clearly, strengthen your analysis, fix references, or tone down a conclusion. Horizon’s story on the ups and downs of publishing a research paper shows what that back-and-forth looks like.
6. Pay only if your paper is accepted
Once your paper is fully accepted, IJHSR asks for the publication fee. After you pay or receive a scholarship, your paper moves into copy editing. You approve the final version, and then it joins the queue for the next issue.
How much does it cost to publish in IJHSR?
Submitting to IJHSR is free. You pay the $350 publication fee only after your paper has passed review and been accepted, so paying is never what gets you in.
| Fee | Amount | When you pay | Notes |
| Submission | $0 | When you submit | No submission fee. |
| Publication | $350 | After acceptance | IJHSR’s standard student rate. It supports editorial and publishing work. |
| Fee scholarships | Reduced or full fee | After acceptance | US students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch can request one through the Terra Journals App. If other circumstances apply, you can explain your situation and ask. |
Source: IJHSR Submissions page and IJHSR About page.
IJHSR says it doesn’t want fees to stop any student from publishing. If $350 is a stretch and you don’t qualify for a scholarship, Horizon’s list of research grants for high school students may help you find funding for research costs.
One more thing to know: IJHSR won’t refund the fee if a paper is later retracted for plagiarism, unauthorized AI use, or other ethical problems.
What is IJHSR’s acceptance rate?
IJHSR doesn’t publish an acceptance rate. Any percentage you see on another website isn’t coming from the journal, so don’t plan around it.
What IJHSR does publish is a list of reasons papers get rejected. That’s more useful than a percentage, since it tells you exactly what to avoid:
- No original idea or meaningful contribution
- Shallow analysis in a review article
- Plagiarism or too much overlap with other work
- Made-up, altered, or manipulated data
- Serious ethical concerns
- References that are wrong, incomplete, or can’t be checked
- AI-written content or AI-made figures that weren’t disclosed
- Unclear writing or poor organization
- Methods that can’t be evaluated or repeated
- Conclusions the data doesn’t support
- Not following the formatting or submission rules
Your goal is to give the editor no easy reason to say no. Most items on that list are things a careful mentor would catch before you ever submit.
How long does IJHSR’s review process take?
IJHSR says it usually takes one to three months to reach acceptance, and two to three more months to publish. Its own FAQ puts the whole process at three to six months.
| Stage | Typical time |
| Editorial check, peer review, and revisions, up to acceptance | About one to three months |
| Fee, copy editing, and placement in an issue | About two to three more months |
| Total, from submission to publication | About three to six months |
Your timeline depends on how strong your paper is, how fast reviewers respond, and how fast you send back revisions. There are no submission deadlines, and issues come out monthly.
If you want the paper published before a college application deadline, submit at least six months ahead. Writing the paper takes time too, often longer than students expect. Horizon’s guide on how long it takes to write a research paper helps you plan, and why starting research early pays off explains why it pays to start sooner than you think.
Is the International Journal of High School Research legit?
IJHSR shows most of the signs of an established student journal. Its publisher is a registered nonprofit, it has published since 2019, and it names its Editor-in-Chief and its editorial board with their universities. It sends papers to two or more outside reviewers, and it publishes a clear list of reasons it rejects papers.
It also lists online and print ISSNs, is indexed in EBSCO and Google Scholar, checks every paper for plagiarism and AI use, and charges only after acceptance, with scholarships for students who need them. Charging only after acceptance also means you never pay for a rejection.
There are a few things IJHSR doesn’t tell you. It doesn’t publish an acceptance rate, and it doesn’t say whether reviewers know who wrote the paper. It’s also a journal for high school research, not a professional journal for established scientists. Treat a publication here as proof you finished a real research project and passed outside review, not as a substitute for the quality of the research itself.
When you size up any student journal, look for:
- A clearly described review process
- Named editors or reviewers with relevant expertise
- Fees you can see up front
- Signs that papers actually get rejected, not accepted the moment you pay
Horizon’s list of research journals for high school students applies the same checks to other journals.
Tips for getting your paper accepted
- Use the right template from the start. Formatting is checked first, before anyone reads your science.
- Make your contribution obvious. Your abstract should say what you studied, what you found, and what it adds. Lack of originality is the first rejection reason IJHSR lists.
- Make your methods repeatable. Explain what you did clearly enough that another researcher could do it again.
- Check every source yourself. Use ACS style and make sure each reference exists and says what you claim it says.
- Follow the AI policy exactly. Keep your prompt log, disclose allowed AI use, and never let AI write your analysis or conclusions.
- Get an expert to read it before an editor does. A mentor will spot weak methods, unsupported claims, and citation problems early. IJHSR itself recommends having one.
For the full path from idea to published paper, read Horizon’s 10 steps to publishing research in high school.
Other journals to consider
IJHSR isn’t your only choice. The best fit depends on your subject, the kind of research you did, whether your mentor has to be an author, and what you’re willing to pay. Match your paper to a journal’s actual rules, not to how impressive its name sounds.
| Journal | Fields | Fees | Best for |
| International Journal of High School Research | Natural and physical sciences, engineering and computer science, business and social sciences | $0 to submit, $350 after acceptance | Original research and in-depth literature reviews by high school students |
| Journal of Student Research, High School Edition | Multidisciplinary | $50 at submission, $299 after the review decision, plus a service fee | Students who want double-blind faculty review across a wide range of subjects |
| Journal of Emerging Investigators | Scientific research | $49 submission fee, no publication fee | Middle and high school students, 13 or older, doing original science with a senior mentor |
| The Concord Review | History | Sole-authored history papers, usually 5,000 to 10,000 words or more | |
| Horizon Academic Research Journal | Research by Horizon students | No fee listed | Horizon students; Horizon says it accepts only 10% of submissions |
Sources: IJHSR Submissions, JSR High School Edition How to Submit, JEI Author Eligibility, The Concord Review Submissions, and Horizon Students.
The Journal of Emerging Investigators is the biggest contrast with IJHSR. JEI requires at least two authors, a student and a senior mentor, with the mentor listed last, while IJHSR doesn’t require a mentor on the author list at all. Horizon has partnered with JEI, including a session where JEI’s managing editors walked Horizon students through peer review and drafting a publishable paper. The Concord Review is much narrower, taking only sole-authored history papers finished before you complete secondary school.
Looking for a journal in a specific field? Horizon has lists of biology journals and economics journals that accept high school papers. You can also present your work at research conferences for high school students, and Horizon’s guide to turning your paper into a competition submission shows how one paper can go to several places.
How Horizon helps you get a paper ready to submit
Look back at IJHSR’s rejection list. Most of it is about how the research was done and written up: weak methods, thin analysis, shaky citations, ignored formatting rules. Those are exactly the things an experienced researcher catches. Horizon is built to get you past those problems before an editor ever sees your paper.
Here’s what you get in Horizon Labs:
- One-on-one sessions with a PhD or postdoctoral scholar in your subject, over about 16 weeks
- 15 sessions with your mentor, plus 4 with a writing coach and 4 with a publication specialist
- Support for up to three rounds of submissions to selective high school or college-level journals
- A full research paper you own, with full authorship rights
If you’d rather learn in a small group, Horizon Seminars put you with 3 to 6 students and a university professor over the summer, and they include the same writing coach and publication specialist sessions.
Horizon students have published in journals including the Journal of Student Research, Letters in Mathematical Physics, Astronomy and Computing, and the Stanford Journal of Science, Technology and Society. You can see their papers on Horizon’s student page. Horizon can’t promise any journal will accept your work, and no honest program can. What it does is give you a mentor who knows what reviewers look for, and a team that helps you pick the right journal and handle revisions.
Horizon is selective. About 26% of applicants get in, and it accepts students in grades 9 to 12. Labs cohorts run throughout the year, so you don’t have to wait for summer to start.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. After an editor screens your paper, IJHSR sends it to two or more outside reviewers with expertise in your field. Its reviewers include university faculty, STEM professionals, postdoctoral researchers, and doctoral students.
Submitting is free, but publishing costs $350, charged only after acceptance. US students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch can request a reduced or full scholarship, and other students can explain their situation and ask.
No. ijhsr.org belongs to the International Journal of Health Sciences and Research, a different journal. The high school journal’s official site is ijhsr.terrajournals.org.
IJHSR’s official pages don’t list an impact factor. Judge it by its review process, its named editors, and its fees instead.
Yes. IJHSR accepts review articles that critically pull together published research instead of presenting new data. It takes only two or three per issue, though, so reviews face tougher competition than research articles.
Yes, if you write it up as a full paper in IJHSR’s template. IJHSR says students with regional, national, or international science fair awards are especially encouraged to submit.
Only for limited support, like brainstorming or grammar-only edits. IJHSR bans AI-written sections, AI-generated conclusions or data, and unverified AI citations, and it requires prompt logs and disclosure for some uses.
High school journals like IJHSR are built for student researchers, with reviewers who expect student-level projects and give feedback to help you learn. University-level journals publish work by professional researchers and are usually much harder to get into. Some Horizon students have published in both kinds.
Your mentor doesn’t have to be a co-author, but IJHSR says you should have a mentor, teacher, or professional guiding you through publication. If you don’t have one, Horizon pairs you one-on-one with a PhD mentor and a publication specialist. You can also look at other summer research mentorship programs or other ways to find research opportunities in high school.
A publication shows you finished a serious project and passed outside review, but the journal’s name alone won’t decide how admissions officers see you. Read what you can actually do with a high school research paper for the bigger picture.
Go get your research published
If your paper is finished, stop rewriting it and submit. Pick the right IJHSR journal, move your paper into the template, check every citation and figure, and upload it through the Terra Journals App. Give yourself time for revisions, since submission is the start of the process, not the end.
Don’t have a paper yet, or worried yours isn’t strong enough to get through review? Horizon’s Winter 2026 cohort starts December 14, and the priority deadline is October 18 (final deadline November 22). Tuition is $6,950, with need-based aid for families earning under $75,000 a year and merit scholarships for top applicants. Apply to Horizon to write your paper with a PhD mentor, or join an info session to see how it works first.
And if college applications are on your mind, a well-done paper with your name on it gives you something specific to talk about, which matters far more than the journal’s name.
Resources
More from Horizon
- Horizon programs
- Horizon student publications
- How to publish research in high school
- Research journals for high school students
- How to write a literature review in high school
- How to format citations in a high school research paper
- Why starting research early is one of the best decisions you can make
- 14 grants for high school students’ research
- 14 research programs for complete beginners
- Horizon’s partnership with the Journal of Emerging Investigators
- Horizon Academic Research Journal
Official IJHSR resources
- IJHSR homepage
- IJHSR About page and editorial board
- IJHSR submission guidelines and FAQ
- Terra Journals App
- Research article template and review article template
- Regeneron ISEF generative AI use table
Image source: Horizon Academic Research Program