Policies

IUC University Press adopts a flexible, hybrid publishing model. Books may be published as Open Access, Print, Open Access e-Pub, or a combination of print and electronic formats.

• - Open Access: Books published under this model are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 4.0 International License. This license permits third parties to share and adapt the content, strictly excluding commercial purposes, provided that proper attribution is given to the original work.
• - Traditional (Non-Open Access): For works published outside of the Open Access model, all rights are reserved by IUC University Press. Content may not be reproduced or distributed without the publisher’s written permission.

IUC University Press applies a dual copyright policy:

• - Open Access Books: Authors/editors retain copyright and grant IUC University Press a non-exclusive license to publish under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license.
• - Traditional Books: All copyrights are exclusively transferred to IUC University Press. A completed "Copyright Agreement and Authorship Declaration" form, including mandatory ethical declarations, is required for all submissions.

IUC University Press maintains transparency regarding financial obligations to support editorial and production standards.

• - Fee Structure: All applicable fees—including Book Processing Charges (APC) for Open Access, printing costs, and digital formatting (e-Pub)—are published on our website. The formal peer-review process is strictly independent of financial considerations.
• - Communication: Following the preliminary internal screening and subsequent formal acceptance of the manuscript, the applicable processing charges will be communicated to the author(s)/editor(s). The final fee is determined based on the author(s)' selected publication model (Open Access or Traditional copyright) and the requested formats (print, online publication, or both).

Each submission undergoes a rigorous double-anonymized peer-review process.

• - Submissions are evaluated by at least two external, independent peer reviewers who are experts in their fields to ensure an unbiased assessment.
• - Reviewers must disclose any potential conflicts of interest to the Unit Publication Committee before accepting an invitation.
• - All communication between the Editorial Board and reviewers remains strictly confidential.

IUC University Press requires transparency and accountability regarding the use of AI tools:

• - Authorship: AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude) cannot be listed as authors or co-authors. Authorship is reserved solely for human contributors.
• - Transparency: If AI-assisted technologies are used for drafting, language editing, or data analysis, this must be explicitly disclosed in the "Cover Letter" and the "Methods" section.
• - Responsibility: The authors are solely responsible for the content, accuracy, and originality of the work. AI-generated "hallucinations" or unethical use (e.g., plagiarism, fabrication) are the full legal responsibility of the authors.
• - Editorial Right: IUC University Press reserves the right to request additional verification or reject manuscripts suspected of violating academic integrity through AI misuse.

All submissions must adhere to international ethical standards (e.g., Declaration of Helsinki, COPE, CSE).

• - Originality: Manuscripts must be original and not previously published. All chapters, books and/or manuscript will be subject to plagiarism checks.
• - Research Misconduct: IUC University Press maintains a zero-tolerance policy against self-plagiarism, data fabrication, and data falsification.
• - Human/Animal Subjects: Research involving human subjects, medical records, or animal protocols requires prior approval from an institutional review board (IRB) or ethics committee. Written informed consent must be documented for human participants.