Which Undergraduate Research Journals Accept Papers Without a Sponsor?

AI Thread Summary
The discussion centers on the challenges faced by student researchers in publishing their work, particularly regarding the requirement for a faculty sponsor in academic journals. One participant shared their experience of having two papers, one rejected due to the absence of a sponsor, despite the work being entirely their own. They expressed frustration with the prevalent sponsor policies that hinder independent student submissions. Another contributor recounted their journey of seeking feedback from a professor, which ultimately led to an opportunity to assist in research, highlighting the potential benefits of reaching out to faculty members for guidance and support. The conversation emphasizes the importance of mentorship and the need for journals to be more accessible to student researchers.
~Death~
Messages
45
Reaction score
0
I've written 2 papers one was more or less an expository on a difficult topic in group theory and the other one I just finished writing is a paper that introduces the basic concepts in elementary measure theory and then gives an original result from it. I submitted the first one to a journal but was rejected the next day because I don't have a sponsor. The journal only required 1/3 of student authorship which means 2/3 of the paper was done by the sponsor whereas my paper was 100% student work. I think it's unfair that these journals are supposed to promote student research and make it impossible or people like me who are doing all the work on their own to submit a paper. I've searched dozens of journals and they all have this sponsor policy, but I was wondering if anyone knows of one where that's not the case or has any advice. The whole thing is pretty frustrating considering the work I put into each paper.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
I've thought about this issue a lot over the past year and a half. I had this sort of elementary work that I was doing in my free time and it snowballed into something that to me was worthy of a submission to a journal -- except I couldn't find one that would even look at it. I went to one of my Professors and it took a few months, but he finally looked at my work. He thought it needed extensive polishing if it were to be even considered and in the end I scrapped the paper totally. But.. He took a liking to my work and manner and made an offer to me to help him with his research, which I jumped at.

I assume you don't have a professor to go to (b/c you didn't already) so maybe my little story won't help.. I guess it comes down to the fact that good things can come out of nowhere.
 
Maybe contact a mathematics professor that does research at a nearby institute? I'm sure any [nice] professor would be willing to help an undergraduate that's done original research.
 
Hey, I am Andreas from Germany. I am currently 35 years old and I want to relearn math and physics. This is not one of these regular questions when it comes to this matter. So... I am very realistic about it. I know that there are severe contraints when it comes to selfstudy compared to a regular school and/or university (structure, peers, teachers, learning groups, tests, access to papers and so on) . I will never get a job in this field and I will never be taken serious by "real"...
Yesterday, 9/5/2025, when I was surfing, I found an article The Schwarzschild solution contains three problems, which can be easily solved - Journal of King Saud University - Science ABUNDANCE ESTIMATION IN AN ARID ENVIRONMENT https://jksus.org/the-schwarzschild-solution-contains-three-problems-which-can-be-easily-solved/ that has the derivation of a line element as a corrected version of the Schwarzschild solution to Einstein’s field equation. This article's date received is 2022-11-15...
Back
Top