International publication: Meaning and issues raised

First is the quantity. In the 2012-2013 school year, a total of 21 scientific works by the school staff were published in international publications. In the three previous school years 2009-2010, 2010-2011 and 2011-2012, the number of international publications by the school staff was 7, 11 and 18 respectively. Thus, the number of international publications this year is three times that of the 2009-2010 school year and nearly double that of the 2010-2011 school year.

Number of international publications of staff of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities.

Second is about quality. Of the 21 scientific works published internationally by the school's staff this year, 6 were published in journals listed in ISI and Scopus. The journals in the ISI (ISI = Institute of Scientific Information = Institute of Scientific Information) and Scopus are prestigious scientific journals with wide scientific influence. ISI was founded in 1960 and has now become a prestigious Institute, specializing in providing bibliographic data services. In particular, every year ISI publishes Journal Citation Reports, which statistics the "impact factor" of each journal. Currently, the total number of journals in the ISI catalog is 14,000. Meanwhile, Scopus is a database of abstracts and citations of articles published in scientific journals published by Elsevier Publishing House. This database includes 21,000 journal titles from more than 5,000 different publishers, including up to 20,000 peer-reviewed scientific journals in all natural fields. engineering, medicine and social sciences.

It is worth mentioning that up to now, Vietnam still does not have any journals listed by ISI and SCOPUS, while Singapore has 80 journals, Malaysia has 45, Thailand has 26, the Philippines has 12 and Indonesia has 8. To be listed by ISI and Scopus, journals must have high scientific quality and go through a rigorous evaluation process. For example, Scopus sets out a series of very objective and scientific criteria. The minimum criteria include that the articles must be peer-reviewed, have English abstracts, be published regularly, have a Roman reference section, be published ethically and, in particular, must be decided by an independent Content Advisory and Selection Board (CSAB). The maximum criteria also include the journal's policy, content quality, the journal's position and the ability to update online.

Having works published in journals listed by ISI and Scopus is of great significance because these are the most important indicators to assess the position and prestige of universities in the world. The more scientific works published in these journals, the higher the ranking of that university. Therefore, we understand why Vietnam does not have a single university in the top 500 universities in the world.

With 6 articles published in ISI and Scopus journals by the University staff in the 2012-2013 academic year, we can initially trust in our capacity. However, on the other hand, we are also aware of the importance of international publication and the challenges that are being posed. But one thing is certain: we must be determined, invest and have more measures for quality scientific research, contributing to the successful construction of an excellent research university in Vietnam.

Appendix: List of 6 works by staff of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in the 2012-2013 academic year published in ISI and Scopus journals: