Predatory journals are those which charge fees without proper editorial and publishing services. In order to help you, library and learning support offer quite a lot of guidance on spotting predatory journals and conferences.
Familiarising oneself with journal rankings and bibliometrics is also a good way of recognising good-quality journals.
Remember that BU library subscribes to Web of Science and Scopus, two of the most important citation databases. These can be accessed through our alphabetical list of databases. Web of Science and Scopus index some of the most quality journals.
Scimago is another good source of information to confirm the quality of a journal. This resource contains additional indices of journals.
In case of doubt regarding a journal, please contact your faculty library team.
Fake conferences are not fake news: beware predatory conferences










Geography and Environmental Studies academics – would you like to get more involved in preparing our next REF submission?
Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) 2026: Register to Support our PGRs
Expressions of Interest invited for Research Ethics Roles starting in 2026/27
ESRC Festival of Social Science 2026: Application Deadline Extended to Thursday 25 June 2026
Reminder: Register for the ESRC Festival of Social Science 2026 Information Session
ECR Funding Open Call: Research Culture & Community Grant – Apply now
ECR Funding Open Call: Research Culture & Community Grant – Application Deadline Friday 12 December
MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025 Call
ERC Advanced Grant 2025 Webinar
Update on UKRO services
European research project exploring use of ‘virtual twins’ to better manage metabolic associated fatty liver disease