The Tower Undergraduate Research Journal Welcomes Students' Research Efforts

Georgia Tech’s undergraduate research journal, The Tower, is back after a dormant period. Current Editor-in-Chief, Clinton Smith has sought out a new crop of undergraduate and graduate students, along with faculty members, to review submissions and refresh the journal’s look. The Tower aims to continue highlighting students’ research efforts for years to come. 

Here is a breakdown of the submission process and what we can expect from The Tower in the future:

Submissions are reviewed on a rolling basis with one deadline per semester. The current deadline for the Spring 2021 semester is April 19. There are two submission categories, which include Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) summaries and a research report. The UROP summaries are 300-600-word summaries of research, including preliminary results. The research report submission should follow the same guidelines as published articles in scientific journals: Abstract, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, References, and Figures. In the submission page, students are instructed to submit an abstract, research paper, and the name of the faculty advisor overseeing the project among other submission criteria. 

After they receive a submission, the submissions and review team seeks out undergraduate students, grad students, and faculty involved in the same or intersecting area of research. There are currently two students in the submissions and review team, and with their efforts, each entry has an average of at least six reviewers. The team sends a rubric to each reviewer and, after careful consideration, will notify the applicant of their submission status. This holistic process takes a couple of months for each submission. 

The upcoming issue will include news, interviews, abstracts, and articles among other sections yet to be announced. The staff is also in the process of pitching ideas for interviews, spotlights, and features to be added to the journal. Smith is aiming to have a diverse pool of submissions from different majors to reflect the research community on campus. In previous years, the journal has received submissions from biomedical engineering, mechanical engineering, computer science, and economics, but are hoping to attract students from all majors. 

The journal will be published on an annual basis with its comeback issue planned for Spring 2022. Print and online versions of the next issue will be distributed on campus. 

To read more about The Tower submission guidelines, visit hsoc.gatech.edu/news/item/639622/submit-tower-undergraduate-research-journal

To submit your research, visit docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfDdWjeH0SEkuHbTcdivacoKnzKjA2Qv3wTousuHWbSnKk72Q/viewform