Date: Saturday, June 28, 2025
Hello! I am Bianca Montrosse-Moorhead, a Professor of Evaluation at the University of Connecticut and current Co-Editor-in-Chief for New Directions for Evaluation (NDE). One of the goals Sarah Mason and I have as NDE Co-Editors is to make the NDE production process more transparent. I’m excited to share a rad resource and hot tips for becoming a NDE Guest Editor.
Download this PDF of the NDE Guest Editor process. Now, let’s walk through the process…
Hot Tip #1: All NDE issues are thematically focused and guest edited. Since NDE’s 1978 debut, each issue has been focused on a single theme. Browse issue themes and see who the Guest Editors were on the journal’s website.
Hot Tip #2: Beginning the journey to becoming a Guest Editor is easy. Contact the NDE Co-Editors (nde@eval.org) to request a pre-proposal meeting. NDE Co-Editors will typically request a 1 page pre-proposal be sent before the meeting. The informal conversation can determine if an idea is appropriate for the journal, and help you craft a strong special issue proposal.
Hot Tip #3: Initial Editorial Review happens after submitting a full proposal for a special issue. Every prospective Guest Editor (or team of 2-4 individuals) must write and submit a single-spaced proposal using the NDE proposal format. The NDE Co-Editors review each proposal before peer review begins. Incomplete proposals or those not complying with the proposal format are returned for revision.
Hot Tip #4: Full proposals for special issues are externally peer reviewed. The entire special issue proposal is peer reviewed by editorial board members or experts whose work aligns with the topic. This external peer review process is rigorous with clear criteria. Each external reviewer is asked to provide comments on and ratings of the proposal. Reviewer recommendations result in one of three NDE Co-Editor decisions: accept, revise and resubmit, or reject. Those who receive a ‘revise and resubmit’ decision continue to go through the peer review process until an accept or reject decision is made. For accepted proposals, the NDE Co-Editors work with the Issue Guest Editors to develop a timeline for special issue submission and share guidelines to which special issues must adhere.
The American Evaluation Association is hosting New Directions for Evaluation (NDE). The contributions all this week to AEA365 come from the NDE team. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this AEA365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the AEA365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an AEA365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to AEA365@eval.org. AEA365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluators. The views and opinions expressed on the AEA365 blog are solely those of the original authors and other contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of the American Evaluation Association, and/or any/all contributors to this site.