Following the editorial board decision of October 20, 2026, the Journal of Higher Education Policy and Leadership Studies (JHEPALS) will introduce an Article Processing Charge for manuscripts submitted on or after January 01, 2027. The APC supports the costs of sustaining the journal as a fully open-access publication, including platform maintenance, management of double-blind peer review, copyediting and production, DOI registration, long-term archiving, and indexing.
 

JHEPALS does not charge submission fees. The APC is payable only after a manuscript has been accepted following peer review and before online publication. Authors will receive payment instructions at the point of acceptance.
 

Transparency and editorial independence

• APCs apply only to accepted manuscripts; rejected manuscripts incur no charge.
• Manuscripts submitted before January 01, 2027, including those still under review on that date, remain under the journal's previous no-fee model.
• Editorial decisions are made solely on scholarly merit and are entirely independent of an author's ability to pay or any waiver request.
• Reviewers and editors have no access to payment or waiver information.

APC rates (effective January 01, 2027)

• Research Articles: €550
• Research Reflections: €550
• Colloquium: €400
• Interviews and Book Reviews: no charge

Rates are reviewed annually. Any change will be announced at least three months in advance and will apply only to manuscripts submitted after the effective date.
 

Waivers and discounts
JHEPALS is committed to ensuring that financial circumstances do not prevent researchers from publishing. The following are granted automatically on request at acceptance:

• Full waiver: corresponding authors based in countries classified as low-income or lower-middle-income by the World Bank.
• 50% discount: corresponding authors based in upper-middle-income countries; first authors who are registered doctoral students; and authors who have completed two or more reviews for JHEPALS in the preceding 24 months.
• Invited contributions and editorial content: no charge.

Authors in other circumstances of genuine hardship may apply for a partial or full waiver by emailing the editorial office at acceptance. Requests are handled by the editorial office and are not disclosed to editors or reviewers.
 

Payment and refunds
Invoices are issued in euros; a USD equivalent will be provided. Accepted payment methods are listed on the invoice. Applicable taxes are stated separately. If a manuscript is withdrawn by the author after payment but before publication, the APC is refunded in full; after publication, no refund is possible.