SDME Structure and Responsibilities

1. Editorial Executive Board

The Editorial Executive Board consists of the Editor-in-Chief, Associate Editors, Executive Editors  under the leadership of the Editor-in-Chief. The Editorial Executive Board is responsible for the overall academic, editorial, and operational performance of the journal.

Editor-in-Chief: Professor Payam Khazaeli

The Editor-in-Chief has ultimate responsibility for the publication, academic quality, and ethical standards of articles published in SDME. He establishes the journal’s editorial vision, policies, and priorities in the field of medical education and ensures the timely publication of each issue containing high-quality and relevant scholarly contributions.

The Editor-in-Chief oversees the peer-review and editorial decision-making processes and ensures that published articles contribute meaningfully to medical education research, theory, practice, and policy.

Associate Editor: Dr. Sara Shafian

The Associate Editor conducts prompt preliminary assessments of submitted manuscripts to determine their relevance, originality, methodological quality, and suitability for the scope of SDME.

She assists the Editor-in-Chief in identifying qualified and experienced external reviewers, evaluating peer-review reports, communicating editorial recommendations, and ensuring that manuscripts undergo a fair, rigorous, and timely review process.

Executive Editors: Zahra Geranmayeh and Farzaneh Mohammadi

The Executive Editors directly supervise the day-to-day editorial and publication activities of the journal and report to the Editor-in-Chief.

Their responsibilities include:

• Coordinating the editorial workflow from submission to publication;
• Monitoring the progress of manuscripts and peer-review procedures;
• Suggesting initiatives for improving the quality, visibility, and impact of the journal;
• Addressing technical and administrative issues;
• Ensuring that editorial staff meet established deadlines;
• Responding to questions from authors, reviewers, editors, and other stakeholders;
• Coordinating communication among authors, reviewers, editors, the online submission-system manager, and the journal office;
• Supporting the preparation and timely publication of regular and special issues;
• Ensuring that editorial and publication procedures comply with accepted standards of research and publication ethics.

2. SDME Editorial Board

This section describes the membership, eligibility criteria, and responsibilities of members of the SDME Editorial Board.

The Editorial Board is an important source of academic advice and support for the journal’s editorial policies and development. It contributes to maintaining the scientific quality, relevance, and integrity of SDME and supports the Editor-in-Chief in evaluating and selecting manuscripts for publication in the field of medical education.

The scope of SDME may include, but is not limited to:

• Medical education research and scholarship;
• Undergraduate, postgraduate, and continuing medical education;
• Curriculum design, development, and evaluation;
• Teaching and learning methods in medical and health-professions education;
• Clinical education and workplace-based learning;
• Assessment and evaluation of learners, programs, and educational outcomes;
• Simulation-based education and skills training;
• Faculty development and educator professionalism;
• Interprofessional education;
• Educational leadership, management, and policy;
• Digital learning, e-learning, and educational technology;
• Learning environments, student well-being, and professional identity formation;
• Admission, selection, accreditation, and quality improvement in medical education;
• Innovation and evidence-based practices in health-professions education.

Membership

Members of the Editorial Board will be appointed by the Editor-in-Chief and confirmed by the Editorial Board. The appointment will be for a renewable two-year term.

Applications are welcomed from individuals who can demonstrate at least five years of relevant academic, research, teaching, peer-review, or scholarly publishing experience in medical education or closely related areas. Applicants should have an established record of contributing to medical education research, scholarship, teaching, curriculum development, assessment, educational leadership, or related academic activities.

Applications that meet the minimum requirements will be referred to the Editor-in-Chief for further evaluation. The Editor-in-Chief may apply additional criteria at his discretion, taking into account the applicant’s expertise, academic achievements, geographical representation, professional background, and the current needs of the Editorial Board.

Applications must include appropriate supporting documentation. A curriculum vitae will generally be sufficient. All submitted documents must be in English. Successful applicants will be notified by the Managing Editor. The review and decision-making process will generally take approximately one month.

Eligibility Criteria

Key qualities sought in members of the SDME Editorial Board include:

• Holding a doctoral degree or an equivalent advanced academic qualification in medical education, health professions education, medicine, health sciences, education, or a closely related field;
• Having an established record of scholarship, including at least five peer-reviewed publications during the previous five years in medical education or a closely related discipline;
• Demonstrating expertise in one or more areas relevant to medical education, such as curriculum development, assessment, clinical teaching, simulation, educational technology, faculty development, interprofessional education, or educational leadership;
• Having a strong understanding of medical education research methods, including quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, or educational evaluation approaches;
• Being fluent in academic and professional English;
• Demonstrating the ability to work efficiently, accurately, and objectively within established deadlines;
• Holding an academic, teaching, research, clinical education, or educational leadership position at a university, medical school, hospital, or recognized academic organization;
• Having served as a reviewer for SDME for at least two years and having completed an adequate number of timely, constructive, and unbiased peer reviews;
• Demonstrating a commitment to confidentiality, research integrity, publication ethics, and responsible conduct in peer review;
• Making a significant contribution in areas of expertise required by the Editorial Board;
• Demonstrating an interest in advancing evidence-informed medical education and improving the quality of health-professions training.

Responsibilities

Members of the SDME Editorial Board are expected to:

• Work closely with the Editor-in-Chief to develop the journal’s editorial vision, policies, processes, and practices in the field of medical education;
• Provide expert advice on the relevance, originality, methodological quality, and educational significance of submitted manuscripts;
• Maintain strict confidentiality regarding manuscripts, reviewers, authors, and editorial decisions;
• Demonstrate objectivity, fairness, and independence throughout the peer-review and editorial decision-making processes;
• Assist the Editor-in-Chief in identifying qualified and appropriate reviewers;
• Help evaluate peer-review reports and advise the Editor-in-Chief on decisions regarding the acceptance, revision, or rejection of manuscripts;
• Support the identification of emerging topics and priority areas in medical education for future publication;
• Suggest potential authors, reviewers, guest editors, and contributors with relevant expertise;
• Conduct or manage a minimum of six manuscript reviews per year in a timely, constructive, and professional manner;
• Recommend suitable reviewers to the Editor-in-Chief to support an efficient and high-quality peer-review process;
• Advise the Editor-in-Chief on the development, visibility, reputation, and internationalization of the journal;
• Encourage the submission of high-quality manuscripts from colleagues, researchers, educators, and professional networks;
• Promote evidence-based medical education research and scholarship through professional and academic networks;
• Contribute, when appropriate, guest editorials, commentaries, methodological papers, or educational perspectives;
• Serve as a guest editor for special issues or thematic collections related to important areas of medical education;
• Represent and promote SDME at conferences, academic meetings, workshops, and other relevant professional events;
• Support the dissemination of published articles among medical educators, researchers, clinicians, students, and educational policy-makers;
• Identify potential conflicts of interest and declare any personal, professional, or financial relationships that may affect editorial judgment;
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of the journal’s editorial quality, ethical standards, and impact in the field of medical education.

The list of SDME Editorial Board members can be found here.