Manuscript Format

All manuscripts shall follow a defined format unless determined otherwise by the Journal Editorial Board. Articles accepted by ShahidiHub International Journals for review should have the following basic sections: Title, Abstract, Introduction, Methodology, Literature Review, Results & Discussion, Conclusion, Reference List/Bibliography.

Submission Format:

  • All manuscripts should be submitted as Microsoft Word Documents, in Times New Roman (12 points font for text)

  • Headings (in the Body of the paper)- First Level Heading (Bold, Font size 14); Second Level Heading (Bold, Italicized, 12 points font); Third Level Heading (Italicized, 12 points font).

  • The manuscripts should be spaced at 1.5. Tables and figures which should be set at 1pt font size.

  • Figures and tables should be at their appropriate place within the text, rather than placed at the end of the manuscript.

The authors will be advised to edit any manual not conforming to these guidelines.

To avoid unnecessary errors, the authors are strongly advised to use the "spell-check" and "grammar-check" functions of the word processor, and Grammarly.

Length of Article(s)- All articles for ShahidiHub International Journals should not exceed 20 pages including references and appendices.

Title Page (14 points font, centered)- It should contain the following:

  • It should contain the title of the article which should be precise, clear, and problematized.

  • Capitalize the first letter of each word in the title, except for conjunctions, articles (i.e. ‘in,’ ‘for,’ ‘by,’ ‘about.’

  • Below the title of the paper, are the name(S) of author(s), place of work and addresses (phone and email), using 12 points font.

Abstract (Font size 12)- The abstract should have the following parts:

  • The statement of the problem.
  • The purpose and significance of the study.
  • A sentence or two on methodology.
  • It should not exceed 250-300 words.
  • It should indicate the scope of your paper.
  • A statement on what the study achieves.
  • It should be followed immediately by 6-8 “Key Terms:” separated by a comma” (,).

What should not be included in Abstract: References/Quotations/numbers/percentages.

Introduction- It should contain the following:

  • It should clearly describe the statement of the problem under investigation.
  • It should end with an overview of what is to be discussed/expected.
  • The thesis/synopsis/summary statement of the paper.

Methodology- It should contain the following:

  • The research design/approach
  • All methods of data collection
  • Sampling procedure,
  • Sample sizes
  • Data analysis procedure.
  • Basically, this section briefly provides the approach used to arrive at your results.

Literature Review- Below is what to expect in the literature review section:

  • Situates your study within past scholarly activity.
  • Key, influential, relevant, and recent figures/studies/sources within the specific area you are looking at should be highlighted.
  • Enables you to identify a gap in scholarship where you can make an input.
  • The Literature Review should strictly be related to the objectives of the study.

Results/ Findings of the Study-

  • This section should only capture relevant outcomes of the study.
  • Table and figures should be clearly named/titled and numbered in sequence and should reflect the same in the text by number (Table 1, etc.).

Discussion Section

  • This part discusses the significance of the study and the results and then compares using relevant reference with the previous work.
  • The discussions should interact with both the literature review and the findings.

Conclusion

This is a summary of the major arguments/results of the paper.

 

References/Bibliography

All references/works used should be properly cited in this section.

Recommendation (optional)- the author may want to recommend areas of further study

Appendices (if any)- Should come after references and should be titled and correspond to the numbering in the text.

 

                                 Referencing/Citation/ Formatting Style for the Various Journals

  • A reference should give your editor/reader enough information to locate the article/book concerned.
  • It should conform to the recommended referencing style.

Referencing/Citation/ Formatting Style for: ShahidiHub International Journal of Education Studies, and ShahidiHub International Journal of Business and Development Studies.

Follow the Chicago Manual of Style (17th Edition)- author-Date format

For details Consult:

Turabian, Kate L., Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers. 8th edition. Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and Publishing. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013.

Referencing/ Citation/ Formatting Style for: ShahidiHub International Journal of Theology and Religious Studies

Follow the Chicago Manual of Style (17th Edition)- Full note, with Ibid.

For details Consult:

Turabian, Kate L., Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers. 8th edition. Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and Publishing. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013.

For guidelines on the abbreviation of Bible books, Greek and Hebrew fonts, consult the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) handbook Style- or visit: http://www.sbl-site.org/educational/biblicalfonts.aspx 

 

                                                       OTHER (OPTIONAL) SECTIONS OF THE PAPER

Abbreviations: This comes after the abstract, immediately after the “Key Terms.” The author might want to highlight abbreviations that are used throughout the paper (excluding references of Bible books)

Recommendation Section: This comes after the Conclusion of the paper, and before the Reference List/ Bibliography. The author may recommend areas for further study. 

 

Acknowledgement Section- (This section comes immediately after the Recommendation/ Conclusion section). The author may wish to thank key persons who helped with the study or preparation of the paper. This includes technical assistance provided by any person to the authors.

 

Funding Sources- (This section comes immediately after Acknowledgement section, but before the Reference List/Bibliography Section). It discloses the sources of funding that supported the project. It includes the funding agency and the grant number i.e., “This work was partially/fully funded by the Ministry of Education of Kenya, through the Higher Education program, Research grant number…”

 

Conflict of Interest- All authors and co-authors need to disclose a conflict of interest (in the email) if any, while submitting their article (e.g. employment, editorial, advisory, affiliation)

 

Key Format/Writing Issues to Note

  • Authors are to ensure that they construct complete, clear, and unrepetitive sentences.
  • Authors should maintain consistency within the manuscript in matters such as hyphenation, citations (either footnotes or endnotes), and spelling.
  • Acronyms should be explained very clearly when they first appear in the text.