A profound editing experience with English-speaking experts: Elsevier Language Services to learn more!

Academic papers can be challenging to write, especially for non-native English-speaking authors, since it requires the use of a specific kind of language. Consulting a professional language editor, such as those at Elsevier Language Services (ELS), can help improve your manuscript and boost your chances of publication.

Here are some key benefits of using a professional service, like ELS, to edit your manuscript:

The expertise of an editor

Editors have a deep understanding of academic language conventions and the publishing landscape. Therefore, they can significantly improve a manuscript’s spelling, grammar, and sentence structure. Moreover, most ELS editors have PhDs¹. They are familiar with technical language and abbreviations in their field of expertise. Therefore, they can also help improve the clarity of ideas expressed in manuscripts. 

Consider the following sentences²:

• The pt. presented with several microfractures in the femur
• The patient underwent PT for three months before readmission

The same abbreviation (PT) was used in both sentences, but it stands for ‘patient’ in the first and ‘physical therapy’ in the second. An editor with field expertise can accurately identify the intended meaning in such cases. Further, a professional editor’s niche expertise means that they understand the best practices³ and crucial requirements for publication in leading journals. This could increase your chances of successful publication.

Instantly eliminate common errors

Experienced editors are familiar with recurrent mistakes in manuscripts and are proficient at spotting them. 

For example, incorrect use of the hyphen (-) is common in scientific writing. Consider the following sentences, one in which hyphen is necessary and the other where it is not⁴:

• The 65-mg pellets were dropped into the ferrous sulfate solution
• Pellets, each weighing 65 mg were dropped into the ferrous sulfate solution

A professional, such as those who work with ELS, would be more aware of these issues and can help you quickly rid your manuscript of common errors, saving you a great deal of time and effort⁵.

Attention to nuances of language

Elsevier’s professional English-speaking editors can go deeper into the text, understand the author’s ideas and opinions, and provide suggestions that are more in line with the author’s personal preference. At the same time, our doctoral dissertation editing service lets you choose between British English or American English styles to meet publication requirements.

Consider these sentences⁶:

• We mixed the solutions with a glass rod
• We mixed the solutions with an adhesive

In the first sentence, the glass rod was used to only stir a mixture of solutions. In the second, an adhesive was added to the solutions. Understanding the nuances of language used is essential for comprehending the differences here.

Improve your language skills

Consulting with editors at ELS can do more than polish your current manuscript. Elsevier’s editors provide insightful and comprehensive suggestions that can help improve your academic writing and professional communication skills in the long term. Therefore, ELS lets you continuously improve your chances of publication and increase the impact of research globally.*

Guaranteed protection for your data

While AI-based editing may be prone to data breaches⁷, you can be confident that your manuscript is safe with professional editing services. All editors at ELS sign a confidentiality agreement to ensure that your unpublished research is protected¹. 

Just like every research project is unique, so is every manuscript. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to language editing. Consulting an experienced language editing service like ELS can provide you with a tailor-made solution for your specific needs to maximize your chance of publication and the impact of the paper afterwards. The language editors at ELS are some of the most experienced in the industry. We have been helping researchers get published for over 140 years and would love to work with you! Read more about Elsevier Language Services.

We have some exciting news to share with you. The new and improved website of ELS is now online. It comes with a user-friendly interface and a more intuitive content layout. With improved ease of navigation, our website now guarantees researchers the ultimate browsing experience. So, enjoy our first-class language services through a world-class online platform!

Check out the ELS website’s makeover and latest features!

*Some features of the Elsevier Language Services mentioned here may be exclusive to the premium version.

References

1. Elsevier Language Services. (n.d.). Language editing services. Webshop.elsevier.com. https://webshop.elsevier.com/language-editing-services/language-editing/.
2. Kim, Y. (2011). Using UMLS lexical resources to disambiguate abbreviations in clinical text. PubMed Central (PMC). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3243121/
3. Elsevier. (n.d.). Publishing ethics. Elsevier.com. https://www.elsevier.com/about/policies/publishing-ethics
4. LibGuides: Scientific Writing: Common grammar mistakes explained. (n.d.). Guides.mclibrary.duke.edu. https://guides.mclibrary.duke.edu/scientificwriting/mistakes
5. Vadrevu, A. (2019). How your language editing service can help you improve your writing skills. Editage.com. https://www.editage.com/insights/how-your-language-editing-service-can-help-you-improve-your-writing-skills.
6. Guo, J. (2021, November 24). Google’s new artificial intelligence can’t understand these sentences. Can you? Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/05/18/googles-new-artificial-intelligence-cant-understand-these-sentences-can-you/.
7. Dwivedi, Y. K., Kshetri, N., Hughes, L., Slade, E. L., Jeyaraj, A., Kar, A. K., Baabdullah, A. M., Koohang, A., Raghavan, V., Ahuja, M., Albanna, H., Albashrawi, M. A., Al-Busaidi, A. S., Balakrishnan, J., Barlette, Y., Basu, S., Bose, I., Brooks, L., Buhalis, D., . . . Wright, R. (2023). Opinion Paper: “So what if ChatGPT wrote it?” Multidisciplinary perspectives on opportunities, challenges and implications of generative conversational AI for research, practice and policy. International Journal of Information Management, 71, 102642. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2023.102642.