1. Scope and Ethical Policy

The International Journal of Applied Operational Research (IJAOR) welcomes original research papers, case studies, and review articles within its defined Aims and Scope.

• Originality and Ethics: Submitted manuscripts must be original, unpublished, and not under consideration for publication elsewhere. Plagiarism, data fabrication, and redundant publication are strictly prohibited.
• Similarity Check: Authors are required to screen their manuscripts for plagiarism prior to submission using iThenticate or IranPaper (click) similarity reports, and the report must be provided upon request/submission.

2. Open Access Policy and Publication Fees

• IJAOR is a fully Open Access journal.
• Charges: Publishing in this journal is completely free of charge for authors. There are no submission fees, Article Processing Charges (APCs), or publication fees of any kind.

3. Copyright and Licensing

• License: Articles are published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license, allowing users to share, adapt, and build upon the work with proper attribution.
• Copyright: Authors retain the copyright of their published work and grant the journal the right of first publication.

4. Editorial Decision Criteria

Manuscripts are evaluated by the Handling Editor and independent peer reviewers based on the following criteria:

• Originality and significance of the contribution to operational research.
• Methodological rigor and accuracy of results/mathematical models.
• Clarity of presentation, organization, and adherence to journal formatting guidelines.

Based on the review reports, the Editor-in-Chief / Handling Editor makes one of the following decisions: Accept, Minor Revision, Major Revision, or Reject.

5. Appeals and Complaints Process

Authors who wish to appeal an editorial decision or file a formal complaint regarding the review process may submit a written appeal to the Editor-in-Chief. The appeal must clearly detail the scientific arguments and address the reviewers’ concerns. The Editorial Board will review the case independently and provide a final decision within 4 weeks.

6. Manuscript Preparation and Formatting

• File Format: Manuscripts should be prepared using Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx).
• Structure: A standard research paper should include: Title Page, Abstract, Keywords, Introduction, Literature Review/Methodology, Results/Discussion, Conclusion, and References.
• Title Page: Must include the manuscript title, author names, institutional affiliations, corresponding author’s email, and ORCID identifiers.
• Abstract & Keywords: Provide an abstract of 150 to 250 words summarizing the research problem, methodology, and key findings. Include 4 to 6 relevant keywords.
• Mathematical Notations: Use clear and standard mathematical notations. Variables must be in Italic, vectors/matrices in Bold, and standard operators in Roman. Number equations consecutively.
• Tables and Figures: Must be numbered, captioned, and cited sequentially in the text. Ensure high resolution for all figures.
• Citations and References:

  • References should be cited in the text by numbers in square brackets (e.g., [1], [2, 3], or [1–4]) corresponding to the order of their appearance in the text.

  • The reference list at the end of the paper must be numbered sequentially in the order in which they are first cited in the text (not alphabetically). Ensure that every reference cited in the text is present in the reference list (and vice versa).

7. Submission Guidelines

Submissions must be made electronically via the journal submission system (https://ijorlu.lahijan.iau.ir/). Ensure that all co-authors have approved the final manuscript and its submission.

8. Revision and Resubmission Process

When a manuscript is returned for revision (Minor or Major), authors must submit:

1. The Revised Manuscript: With all changes highlighted (using track changes or colored text).
2. Response to Reviewers: A detailed, point-by-point response letter explaining how each comment or criticism raised by the reviewers and the editor has been addressed, indicating the exact page/line numbers where changes were made.

9. Digital Preservation Policy

The journal employs digital archiving and preservation strategies to ensure the long-term availability and accessibility of all published scholarly content.