The NIH Manuscript Submission system allows authors and principle investigators to submit
manuscripts for archiving in PubMed Central.
The submission process begins with logging in to the NIHMS system, which has multiple
login routes.
Guidance on logging in is available in the Help menu's FAQ and Tutorials.
Once you log in to the system you land on the My Manuscripts page, which contains a
list of submissions with which you are associated, grouped by the categories on the left.
Needs Your Attention means that these manuscripts are awaiting your action.
In Process lists manuscripts awaiting action by NIHMS staff or another party.
Available to Claim lists manuscripts where you are a Submitter, PI, or Verified Author,
and have been waiting for Reviewer attention for 4 weeks or longer.
Awaiting Citation Data lists manuscripts that have undergone Final Approval, but processing
is incomplete because final citations are needed
Manuscripts Under Embargo have completed the submission process, but the embargoes have
not yet expired, prohibiting them from being made available in PubMed Central.
Finally, Available in PMC is exactly what it says, the submission is complete and available.
You can view and edit your account settings by clicking on your name.
Also, notice the page-specific help link next to My Manuscripts.
Additional help links are located throughout the NIHMS system.
To begin a new submission, click the Submit New Manuscript button.
On your first time through the submission wizard, a walkthrough will appear to guide
you through each step of the process.
You will first be asked to input the manuscript and journal titles via one of four methods.
You can search PubMed for the manuscript's corresponding pubmed record, and import the
title information from there.
Note that you can use the same search terms that you would use on PubMed’s website.
Use the DOI button to search for the title and import it from CrossRef.
And if the citation is already in My Bibliography, and you are logged in through the associated
account, use the My Bibliography button.
These three methods will fill in the fields on the right, so you can confirm the titles
before proceeding.
The fourth option is to enter the information manually.
Note that the Journal Title field will auto suggest as you type.
In the next step, you will associate funding support.
This section is required only if you are an author or PI serving as the Reviewer for the
submission. If not, the Reviewer can associate funding later, when approving the submission
for processing.
If you have funding already associated with your account, for example, you are the PI
of an award, you can use the My Funding button to select from those awards without having
to run a search.
Otherwise, click the Search Funding button to search by the awardee’s name and/or the
award number.
Be sure to check the box next to the added award before searching for the next award.
Then click the Add button to link the selected award to your submission.
The next step is to upload files. All files associated with the accepted manuscript are
required, including all parts referenced or called out in the text.
This includes the title page with author and affiliation information, the main text of
the manuscript, references, figures, tables, videos, appendices, and supplementary material.
To upload a file, either drag and drop from your computer, or click on "browse your computer".
Be sure to include a unique and descriptive label for each figure, table, video, or supplemental
file in the area below the thumbnail.
You can add additional files as needed, and even rearrange them by dragging them around
to different file type sections.
When finished, click the check box certifying that you have included all required files,
then proceed to the next section.
In the Reviewer and Release Delay section, you either assign the submission to an author
or PI for review, in which case he or she will receive detailed instructions via email,
or, if you are the author or PI and wish to approve the submission yourself, set the embargo
and click the Next button.
When approving the submission yourself, you will also be asked to read and accept the
Submission Statement, a legal document that confirms that you have the necessary authorization
to provide the files you submitted for Public Access and that your submission does not otherwise
violate any agreements you have made with the publisher.
If after reviewing the Submission Statement you need to adjust the submission in any way,
use the Return to Submission button and go to the appropriate section to make the changes.
Upon agreeing to the Submission Statement, you will see a summary of the submission,
and a graphic illustration of where you are in the process and what is to come.
If you are the Reviewer of your own submission, the next step is NIHMS Conversion, where the
manuscript undergoes internal review and formatting for PubMed Central.
When conversion is complete, you will receive an email notification. And the next steps
are the focus of the video, NIH Manuscript Submission (NIHMS): Review and Final Approval,
which is linked at the end of this video.
Just a reminder, we have tutorials, linked in the Help menu, for each step in the process.
And you can also get help by writing to:
nihms-help@ncbi.nlm.nih.gov