Peer review is a crucial part of scholarly communication, a system that would not work without good reviewers. Each year, researchers spend many hours conducting peer review, typically on an entirely voluntary basis. Reviewers devote a great deal of their time and effort to not only reading the submitted manuscript, but also consulting additional sources of information and providing thoughtful and constructive critique.
To help recognise the vital contribution our reviewers make to the publishing process and to lower barriers to open access publication, Open Biology and Biology Letters have introduced a reward scheme based on open access discounts. When you review an article, you will be eligible for one discount token (equivalent to £100/$140/€120) towards the Article Processing Charge (APC) cost of publishing an open access article in any Royal Society journal. Tokens can be ‘stacked’ for a bigger discount and combined with tokens from co-authors. A referee token will be available for each paper reviewed (review of original paper and revised paper counts as one review) subject to providing a satisfactory review and to terms and conditions (see below).
When your future article is accepted for publication, let us know how many vouchers you and your co-authors would like to use. We will then issue you with an appropriate discount code. When paying the APC you will be able to apply the code to get a discount.
Reviewers play a critical role in ensuring the quality and integrity of published research. By reviewing for a Royal Society journal you are actively participating in the research community. Our aim is to make reviewing as rewarding as possible for you. Find out more about reviewing for the Royal Society.