Exploring the role of student-run journals in shaping academic identity

Purpose Student-led journals have a long history, yet they have received little attention in academic publishing and higher education research. This study aims to fill this gap and enrich the analysis of student-led publications from a novel point of view: the role of journals in shaping the academic identity of graduate students through a collaborative autoethnographic study. Design/methodology/approach The authors explore their personal experiences as student editors of Current Issues in Education (CIE) produced at Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College (MLFTC) at Arizona State University (ASU). The data were collected by first writing a personal narrative about their experiences serving on CIE’s editorial board. To support their notes, they drew from their memories and informal conversations with other student editors and reviewers, as well as advisors. They also drew upon some of CIE’s internal documents, such as editorial meeting minutes. Findings This study aligns with Inouye and McAlpine's (2019) systematic review of academic identity development for doctoral students, highlighting editorial work’s relevance to developing academic identity, particularly related to reflective thinking, authorial identity, confidence and learning through critique. Participating in the publication landscape through academic journals allows students to develop their authorial voice and collective identity as academics. Research limitations/implications It is authors’ hope that this autoethnography provides a unique perspective for doctoral programs to consider how students can shape their scholarly identity outside of formal classroom learning. More pointedly, this study could be considered a useful resource for those institutions that run student-journals or plan to do so. The authors’ experiences could inform the policies that frame the day-to-day editorial practices, such as the peer review procedures. Originality/value This study demonstrates how student journals, as third spaces, provide opportunities for constructive interactions that contribute to the construction of academic identity and offer a platform for student engagement in scholarly publishing processes, ultimately boosting their confidence as writers and sense of belonging to academia.