Editorial Review Structure

The Editorial Review structure is composed of the Editor-in-Chief and seven Executive Editors who work with a number of Associate Editors to oversee the review process for submitted manuscripts. Associate Editors select a various number of technical reviewers from a pool of more than 3,500 individuals from around the world to provide a detailed review of each manuscript. Technical reviewers come from different professional backgrounds and from all levels of industry and academia.

When a paper is submitted for peer review, it is assigned to technical reviewers based on their appropriate technical expertise and past performance as a reviewer. Reviewers are expected to complete reviews in a timely manner with constructive feedback to the author(s). Comprehensive, timely and informative reviews are very important to SPE’s peer-review process. Each review is scored by the Associate Editor to help identify excellent reviewers in the system.

Reviewers are required to have the following qualifications:

• Three years of industry or academic experience.
• At least three published papers in high quality journals.
• Broad understanding of current technologies in a specific discipline.
• Time and commitment to support the process (approximately 4–6 hours to perform a review).
• Technical reviewers are not required to be SPE members.

Become a Technical Reviewer

We seek experienced individuals from industry or academia who are willing to carefully read several papers per year to provide timely (within 14 days) and high-quality reviews. All persons associated with the editorial review process are also expected to have a broad general knowledge of the field of petroleum engineering and significant expertise in the area of their specified review.

• To Apply
• Confidentiality Guidelines (pdf)

Application Processing Time

New applications are processed quarterly. The application process requires volunteers to upload their resume/CV and current publication listing when completing the application. These applications are collected during a 3-month period and we allow 2 months for our committee to review the applications. The entire process will take between 3 and 6 months, depending on when the application is received. Approved applicants will be notified one month before their term begins.

SPE Peer-Reviewed Publications Awards

Every year, SPE recognizes volunteers who made an exceptional effort to ensure the technical excellence of its peer-reviewed journals. For their contributions, these individuals are awarded the SPE Outstanding Technical Reviewer Award and the SPE Outstanding Associate Editor Award annually in October.