Vacancy Announcement

Deputy Editor, International Journal of Maternal and Child Health and AIDS

Publisher: Global Health and Education Projects, Inc.
Journal: International Journal of Maternal and Child Health and AIDS
Position Type: Part-time / Honorarium-based
Appointment: Initial three-month trial period, with continuation based on performance and mutual agreement

About the Journal

The International Journal of Maternal and Child Health and AIDS (mchandaids.org) is a peer-reviewed scholarly journal published by Global Health and Education Projects, Inc., Maryland, USA. The journal is committed to publishing high-quality research, reviews, commentaries, policy analyses, and other scholarly contributions that advance knowledge in maternal health, adolescent health, reproductive health, child health, public health, and global health.

GHEP seeks to strengthen the journal’s editorial leadership, expand its scholarly visibility, attract high-quality submissions, and advance the journal’s inclusion in leading indexing and abstracting platforms.

Position Summary

GHEP is seeking a highly qualified and experienced Deputy Editor to provide senior editorial leadership for the journal. The Deputy Editor will work closely with the Editor-in-Chief, editorial board, reviewers, authors, and GHEP’s publishing leadership to strengthen the journal’s editorial quality, peer-review standards, indexing readiness, and long-term scholarly reputation.

The successful candidate will help lead the editorial direction of the journal, oversee manuscript processing, support the initiation of special collections and supplements, and play a central role in preparing the journal for indexing in leading scholarly databases. The selected candidate will be supported by a high-functioning editorial back office with full operations.

Key Responsibilities

Editorial Leadership

The Deputy Editor will help shape and implement the editorial direction of the journal. Responsibilities will include:

• Supporting the development and execution of the journal’s editorial strategy;
• Identifying priority subject areas and emerging themes within the journal’s scope;
• Advising on editorial policies, peer review standards, publication ethics, and journal development;
• Supporting the recruitment and engagement of qualified editorial board members, guest editors, and peer reviewers; and
• Promoting high editorial standards consistent with recognized scholarly publishing practices.

Manuscript Oversight

The Deputy Editor will be expected to process at least 40-50 manuscripts per calendar year, including original research articles, reviews, short research communication, systematic reviews, field reports/studies, commentaries, and other scholarly submissions.

Responsibilities may include:

• Conducting initial editorial assessments;
• Assigning manuscripts to appropriate reviewers or editors;
• Monitoring peer review progress and reviewer quality;
• Making or recommending editorial decisions consistent with journal policy;
• Ensuring timely, fair, rigorous, and transparent editorial handling; and
• Supporting authors in meeting the journal’s scholarly, ethical, and reporting standards.

Special Collections and Supplements

The Deputy Editor will lead and support the development of special collections, thematic issues, and supplements aligned with the journal’s scope and strategic priorities. This may include proposing topics, identifying guest editors or contributors, developing calls for papers, coordinating editorial timelines, and ensuring that all special collections and supplements meet the journal’s standards for editorial independence, peer review integrity, transparency, and scholarly quality.

Indexing and Journal Development

The Deputy Editor will play a leading role in advancing the journal’s readiness for inclusion in major indexing and abstracting platforms, including:

• Scopus
• Web of Science / Clarivate
• PubMed Central/PubMed/Medline
• Directory of Open Access Journals
• Other relevant scholarly databases and indexing services

This work will include helping to strengthen the journal’s editorial policies, publication ethics framework, peer review documentation, article quality, citation visibility, publication regularity, website content, and compliance with indexing requirements.

Promotion and Scholarly Engagement

The Deputy Editor will help increase the visibility and reputation of the journal by encouraging high-quality submissions, promoting the journal through academic and professional networks, supporting partnerships with researchers and institutions, and helping position the journal as a credible venue for maternal, adolescent, reproductive, public health, and global health scholarship.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

Candidates should have:

• A doctoral degree (MD/MBBS, PhD, DrPH, DVM), or equivalent senior professional qualification in public health, medicine, epidemiology, maternal and child health, adolescent health, reproductive health, global health, health policy, or a closely related field;
• A decent record of scholarly publication in peer-reviewed journals;
• Demonstrated experience with academic publishing, peer review, or editorial decision-making;
• Excellent written communication, analytical, and editorial judgment;
• Familiarity with publication ethics, conflicts of interest, research reporting standards, and editorial best practices;
• Ability to work independently, meet deadlines, and manage editorial responsibilities reliably;
• Strong professional networks in relevant academic, clinical, public health, or global health communities; and
• Entrepreneurial and openness to learn.

Preferred Qualifications

Preference will be given to candidates with:

• Prior experience as an editor, associate editor, deputy editor, guest editor, or editorial board member of a scholarly journal;
• Experience or willingness to learn how to support journal development and indexing;
• Familiarity with indexing standards for Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed Central, and DOAJ;
• Experience leading special issues, supplements, commissioned content, or thematic collections;
• Expertise in maternal health, adolescent health, reproductive health, child health, public health, or global health; and
• Experience working with open access journals or nonprofit scholarly publishers.

Time Commitment

This is a part-time editorial leadership role. The workload will vary depending on submission volume, special collection activity, indexing work, and journal development priorities. The Deputy Editor should be able to process at least 50 manuscripts annually and participate in periodic editorial leadership meetings.

Compensation

An honorarium and other compensation will be provided. The amount will be discussed with shortlisted candidates and will be based on qualifications, editorial experience, expected scope of work, and level of responsibility.

Trial Period

The appointment will begin with a three-month trial period. During this period, GHEP and the Deputy Editor will assess editorial workflow, responsiveness, performance, strategic fit, and overall suitability for the role.

Application Materials

Interested candidates should submit:

• A cover letter outlining relevant editorial experience and interest in the journal;
• A current curriculum vitae or Resume;
• A brief statement describing how they would help strengthen the journal’s editorial quality, indexing readiness, and scholarly visibility;
• Names and contact information for two professional references; and
• Qualified candidates will be invited to an in-person or virtual live interview.

Equal Opportunity Statement

GHEP welcomes applications from qualified candidates across geographic regions, disciplines, and professional backgrounds. We are committed to building an inclusive editorial leadership team that reflects the global and multidisciplinary nature of maternal, adolescent, public health, and global health scholarship.

Submission

Interested candidates should submit their confidential applications to the following:

Managing Editor
Attention: Deputy Editor
GHEP, Inc.,
Riverdale, MD 20737, USA
[email protected]