Eligibility: All undergraduate students currently enrolled in an accredited college or university are welcome to submit content for review. If you completed a paper while you were an undergraduate but have since graduated, you are still eligible for submission to journal issues within one year of your graduation date. For example, if you completed a senior thesis and graduated with your undergraduate degree in May 2024, you are eligible to submit that thesis for consideration in the 2024 journal (published in Spring 2025).

Anonymity: To be consistent with our anonymous review process, please submit one version of your paper without identifying information. This includes your name, school, acknowledgments, and advisor(s).

AI Policy: We allow the use of AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT, Claude, Google Gemini, etc.). However, we require transparent use. Authors must disclose and describe any use of AI when submitting their paper.

Code: To encourage replicability and allow us to answer questions during the review process, we encourage authors to submit any code they used to develop their paper.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What does the review process look like?

Papers are subject to a rigorous peer review process by our team of peer reviewers, comprising diverse interests in economic academia.

For each semester, our review process is as follows:

Desk Rejection: through the semester, applications are screened as they are received by the Head of Peer Review. If they are not of sufficient quality, they do not proceed to Round 1 of review.

Round 1: at least 3 additional reviewers are assigned a full review of the paper, after which all peer reviewers discuss it. 

Round 2: top papers are selected for review and reviewed more thoroughly.

Round 3: papers are selected for publication and revisions to implement before publishing are requested. 

Although we have a fixed submission deadline, we encourage you to submit as early as possible to allow for more careful consideration of your work—submissions are evaluated in the order they are received.

We review submissions in two cycles—the Spring and Fall semesters of a calendar year. Once submissions are reviewed and edited for publication, we release our annual journal every May.

What distinguishes accepted papers?

Accepted papers are diverse in subject matter and method. Some key baseline features we look for are: 

• The author uses a method that is appropriate for the data/situation at hand.

• The author employs a credible causal identification strategy when making causal claims, substantiating any and all identifying assumptions.

• The author performs economics/mathematics that is sound.

• The paper did not have plagiarism concerns. This includes appropriately attributing images and data.

• The author performs an analysis that adds something new to existing literature.

• If the paper is empirical, there are robustness checks. We encourage you to submit your paper even if you are doubtful of whether it will be accepted. Please note that whether your paper was accepted is not a definitive statement on the quality of your work. You should feel proud to have completed such an intensive research project!

I have an extenuating circumstance; may I submit soon after the deadline?

Unfortunately, our Peer Review team operates under a strict timeline, and we cannot review any papers past the deadline. If you are unable to make this deadline, we encourage you to apply in the next cycle.

Are high school students eligible to submit as long as their research is conducted under the guidance of a research mentor?

Unfortunately, even if your paper is of undergraduate quality, we do not accept papers from students who were not undergraduates at the time the paper was written.

Do you accept co-authored papers?

Yes. Please include all authors’ signatures on the submission form.

May I submit an economic article rather than a paper, for publication on the website?

Unfortunately, we no longer accept submissions for op-eds, essays, or articles for consideration.

Are manuscripts reviewed on a rolling basis?

While we review applications as they come in, we always encourage students to submit their manuscripts as soon as they are ready, to give us adequate time to review it. Please see About the Journal for more information on our review process.

How long does it take from submission to publication, if accepted?

Papers of a calendar year are published in May the following year. For example, papers submitted and accepted in Spring and Fall of 2025 will be published May 2026.

Would it be possible for me to withdraw my submission in the future?

Yes, you are always free to withdraw your submission. Our copyright policy attributes all work to the author, so you have full control over our use of your work.

What is the difference between submitting in the Spring and Fall semesters?

We do not have quotas for the number of articles we accept per semester; a particularly strong Spring semester will have more acceptances than the Fall semester, for example. Of course, given that we are a student-run publication, we cannot guarantee that reviewers between semesters are identical. Please apply in the semester that fits your timeline best.

My paper is neither empirical nor theoretical but is still an economics paper. Is it eligible for submission?

We accept all economics papers, most of which are empirical or theoretical. If you are unsure of whether your paper qualifies, do not hesitate to email us to confirm.