How can universities safeguard against predatory journals in the absence of the UGC CARE List?

The removal of the UGC CARE List raises valid concerns about the increasing threat of predatory journals targeting researchers, particularly in institutions that rely on external validation for journal quality. Universities and research institutions must proactively implement internal safeguards to ensure that faculty and students publish in ethical and reputable journals. Here’s how they can do it:

1. Develop an Internal Journal Vetting Committee

• Form a Research Publication Ethics Committee (RPEC) consisting of senior faculty, librarians, and subject experts to review and approve journals before faculty submit research.
• Create institutional guidelines to assess journals based on key parameters like impact factor, editorial board transparency, and peer review process.
• Maintain an approved journal list based on trusted sources like Scopus, Web of Science, DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals), and discipline-specific repositories.

2. Establish a Clear Vetting Criteria for Journals

Universities should define a standardized checklist for journal selection, including:

✅ Peer Review & Editorial Integrity: Verify if the journal follows a rigorous peer-review process and has a transparent editorial board.

✅ Indexing & Metrics: Ensure that the journal is indexed in Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, IEEE Xplore, or other recognized databases.

✅ Publisher Reputation: Check if the journal belongs to a reputed publisher (Elsevier, Springer, Wiley, Taylor & Francis, etc.) or a recognized university press.

✅ Publication Fees & Transparency: Identify if the journal has unreasonable article processing charges (APCs) or hidden costs.

✅ Predatory Journal Red Flags: Use tools like Beall’s List, Think.Check.Submit, and Cabell’s Blacklist to identify unethical publishers.

3. Implement Mandatory Training & Awareness Programs

• Conduct workshops on research ethics and predatory journal identification.
• Train faculty and PhD students on tools like Think. Check. Submit. for evaluating journals.
• Encourage the use of university library services for journal verification.

4. Strengthen Institutional Policies on Research Assessment

• Revise promotion and tenure policies to prioritize quality over quantity of publications.
• Encourage researchers to submit in high-impact factor journals rather than just publishing for career progression.
• Implement plagiarism checks and publication audits to ensure research integrity.

5. Encourage Open Science & Institutional Repositories

• Promote the use of open-access institutional repositories to archive research outputs.
• Support publication in gold-standard open-access journals indexed in DOAJ instead of paying fees to predatory publishers.

6. Collaborate with Other Universities & Research Bodies

• Establish cross-institutional panels to share journal verification databases and best practices.
• Work with regulatory bodies like AICTE, ICSSR, DBT, and DST to develop new journal assessment frameworks.

Conclusion

Even in the absence of the UGC CARE List, universities can safeguard against predatory journals by adopting a multi-pronged approach—internal vetting committees, strict journal selection criteria, research training, and ethical publication policies. The key is to shift the focus from publication volume to publication quality while ensuring academic integrity.