AUTHOR GUIDELINES

JUSTER: Jurnal Sains dan Terapan publishes research findings and other scholarly works in the fields of science and applied sciences. The journal is published three times a year, in January, May, and December.

AUTHORSHIP CRITERIA

JUSTER: Jurnal Sains dan Terapan applies the following four ICMJE authorship criteria. This policy supports transparency in authorship and contributions in accordance with the COPE Core Practices, while the four authorship criteria themselves are derived from ICMJE recommendations.

Every individual listed as an author must meet all four of the following criteria:

1. Substantial Contribution: Make a substantial contribution to the conception or design of the work, or to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data.

2. Intellectual Involvement in the Manuscript: Draft the manuscript or critically review it for important intellectual content.

3. Final Approval: Approve the version of the manuscript to be published.

4. Accountability: Agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work and ensure that any questions relating to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

All individuals who meet these criteria must be listed as authors. Contributors who meet the first criterion must be given the opportunity to participate in drafting or critically reviewing the manuscript and to provide final approval. Authors must understand the responsibilities of their co-authors and have confidence in the integrity of each author's contributions.

Unacceptable Authorship Practices: Gift authorship, honorary authorship, guest authorship, purchased authorship, and ghost authorship are prohibited. Academic position, seniority, general supervision, funding, administrative support, language editing, or grammar checking alone do not qualify an individual for authorship. Relevant contributions from individuals who do not meet the authorship criteria may be acknowledged, provided that written permission has been obtained from the individuals concerned.

Author Approval and Changes in Authorship: The author group must agree on the list of authors, the order of authorship, and the corresponding author before manuscript submission. Requests to add or remove an author or change the order of authors after submission must be accompanied by a justification and written approval from all authors, including anyone being added or removed. Such changes also require editorial approval. If a change is approved after publication, an appropriate correction must be issued. Unresolved disputes may result in the suspension of the editorial process and referral to the relevant institution for investigation. Editors do not act as arbitrators in determining authorship rights.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Tools: AI systems cannot be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility for authorship. Requirements for disclosing the use of AI are explained in Section 20.

Policy References: COPE Core Practices and ICMJE: Defining the Role of Authors and Contributors.

AUTHOR GUIDELINES

Authors are requested to read these submission guidelines carefully before submitting a manuscript to JUSTER: Jurnal Sains dan Terapan.

All manuscripts must comply with the journal's focus and scope, formatting requirements, publication ethics, peer-review policy, and manuscript preparation standards.

Important Notice

Authors are strongly discouraged from withdrawing manuscripts after the editorial or publication process has progressed substantially, particularly after peer review, manuscript editing, or typesetting has begun. Authors who need to withdraw a manuscript must contact the editorial office and provide a reasonable justification.

1. Language

Manuscripts may be written in either Indonesian or English.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that their manuscripts are clear, grammatically correct, consistent with academic standards, and carefully proofread before submission.

2. Manuscript Format and Length

Authors must prepare their manuscripts using the official JUSTER: Jurnal Sains dan Terapan journal template.

• Manuscripts must be submitted in Microsoft Word format.

• PDF, LaTeX, and other file formats are not accepted as the primary submission file unless specifically requested by the editor.

• Manuscripts must use the journal template with a single-column layout.

• Authors must follow the layout, typography, spacing, and formatting requirements specified in the official template.

3. Manuscript Structure

Research manuscripts should generally contain the following elements in the order listed:

1. Article title;

2. Full names of all authors;

3. Author affiliations;

4. Email address of the corresponding author;

5. Abstract;

6. Keywords;

7. Introduction;

8. Methods;

9. Results and Discussion;

10. Conclusion;

11. Acknowledgments;

12. Author Contributions;

13. Funding Statement;

14. Conflict of Interest Statement;

15. Disclosure of the Use of Artificial Intelligence, where applicable; and

16. References.

The standard structure for the main sections of an original research article is:

INTRODUCTION → METHODS → RESULTS AND DISCUSSION → CONCLUSION

4. Article Title

The title must be concise, informative, specific, and accurately reflect the main content of the manuscript.

• The title should preferably contain no more than 20 words.

• Avoid unnecessary abbreviations, formulas, and overly general terminology.

• Where relevant, the title should clearly indicate the main topic, variables, context, or methodological focus of the research.

5. Authorship

Eligibility for authorship is determined according to the Authorship Criteria described at the beginning of this page.

Provide the full name and institutional affiliation of each author accurately. Check the spelling of all names and the author order before submitting the manuscript. Designate a corresponding author and provide a valid email address.

The corresponding author is responsible for coordinating communication with the journal throughout submission, peer review, revision, publication, and post-publication inquiries. The corresponding author must also ensure that all required author approvals and declarations have been obtained. These responsibilities do not remove the individual responsibilities of the other authors.

6. Abstract

The abstract must be presented as a single, structured narrative paragraph of approximately 150–250 words.

The abstract should briefly describe:

• Background or Context: Why the research is important.

• Research Problem or Objective: The issue the study seeks to address.

• Methods: How the research was conducted.

• Main Results or Findings: The principal findings of the study.

• Conclusion and Implications: The significance of the findings for theory, practice, policy, or future research.

Avoid unnecessary citations, unexplained abbreviations, excessive statistical details, and generic statements that do not convey the study's actual contribution.

7. Keywords

Authors must provide 3–5 keywords or key phrases that accurately represent the main concepts of the manuscript.

Keywords should complement, rather than merely repeat, the words used in the article title.

8. Introduction

The Introduction must provide sufficient scientific context to explain the relevance, originality, and objectives of the research.

Authors should:

• Introduce the general research context and progressively narrow the discussion to the specific research problem.

• Review relevant previous studies and explain important developments in the field.

• Clearly identify the research gap.

• Explain the novelty and contribution of the study.

• Clearly state the research objectives, questions, or hypotheses.

• Synthesize recent and relevant literature rather than merely listing previous studies.

• Avoid excessive discussion of basic theories in the manner of a textbook.

Authors are encouraged to use recent primary literature from scientific journals and reputable conference proceedings. Previous guidelines required at least 15 references overall and emphasized the use of recent primary literature.

9. Methods

The Methods section must provide sufficient information for readers to understand how the research was conducted and, where relevant, to enable replication.

As appropriate, authors should describe:

• Research design;

• Population and sample;

• Participant characteristics;

• Sampling techniques and the rationale for determining sample size;

• Data sources;

• Data collection procedures;

• Survey, interview, observation, experimental, or case study procedures;

• Research variables, measures, or instruments;

• Reliability and validity testing procedures;

• Statistical, qualitative, computational, or analytical methods;

• Software, tools, algorithms, or packages used;

• Ethical approval and informed consent, where required; and

• Modifications to previously established methods.

New methods must be described in detail. Established methods may be summarized with appropriate references.

10. Results and Discussion

JUSTER: Jurnal Sains dan Terapan generally uses an integrated Results and Discussion section.

Authors should:

• Present the most important findings clearly and systematically.

• Avoid presenting unnecessary raw data.

• Avoid repeating the same information in the text, tables, and figures.

• Interpret the results rather than merely restating numerical values.

• Explain the significance of the findings.

• Compare the findings with those of previous studies.

• Explain similarities, differences, and unexpected findings.

• Discuss theoretical, managerial, policy, methodological, or practical implications, where relevant.

• Directly relate the findings to the research objectives or hypotheses.

• Report important limitations where necessary.

Large raw datasets or detailed intermediate calculations that are not essential to the main discussion should preferably be provided in appendices or supplementary materials.

When using software or computational tools, authors should provide the software name and version where relevant. The original guidelines also require disclosure of the software used and information about code availability.

11. Conclusion

The Conclusion must clearly address the research objectives and summarize the study's main contributions.

Authors should:

• Summarize the main findings without excessively repeating the Results section.

• Explain the study's contribution to science and applied sciences, including Mathematics and Natural Sciences (Physics, Chemistry, and Biology), applications of science in Mathematics and Natural Sciences, or related interdisciplinary fields.

• Discuss relevant theoretical or practical implications.

• Acknowledge important limitations where necessary.

• Provide reasonable recommendations for future research.

12. Section Headings

Main section headings must follow the journal's official template.

• The main sections of a research article generally consist of INTRODUCTION, METHODS, RESULTS AND DISCUSSION, and CONCLUSION.

• Subheadings must be formatted consistently according to the template.

• Third-level subheadings must also follow the journal template.

• Avoid excessive subdivision of short sections.

13. Equations

• Equations must be created using an equation editor rather than inserted as images.

• Each equation should be placed as close as possible to its first mention in the text.

• Equations should be numbered consecutively when numbering is necessary.

• Each equation must be referenced in the text using a consistent format, such as Equation (1).

• All variables and symbols must be explained when first introduced.

14. Tables

• Tables must be created as editable tables rather than inserted as images.

• Each table must have a concise and descriptive title or caption.

• Tables must be numbered consecutively.

• Every table must be cited in the manuscript text.

• Where possible, tables should be placed close to the first relevant discussion.

• Notes, abbreviations, significance levels, superscripts, and symbols must be clearly explained below the table.

• Avoid unnecessarily presenting the same information in both tables and figures.

15. Figures

• Figures must be numbered consecutively and cited in the text.

• Each figure must have a concise and informative caption.

• Where possible, figures should be placed close to their first relevant mention.

• All text, labels, legends, and symbols must remain legible at publication size.

• Figures must have sufficient resolution for publication.

• Charts created using Word, Excel, or PowerPoint should preferably remain editable.

• Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to use copyrighted figures reproduced or adapted from other sources.

16. Acknowledgments

Individuals who contributed to the research but do not meet the authorship criteria may be acknowledged in the Acknowledgments section.

Authors must obtain written permission from the individuals concerned before including their names. Their contributions must be described accurately. Eligibility for authorship remains subject to the Authorship Criteria provided at the beginning of this page.

17. Author Contributions

Authors must provide a concise statement describing the actual contributions of each author. This statement documents each author's role and does not replace the four Authorship Criteria. All listed authors must meet all four criteria, regardless of their specific contribution roles.

Authors may use the CRediT contributor roles, where appropriate, including:

• Conceptualization;

• Methodology;

• Data Curation;

• Formal Analysis;

• Investigation;

• Writing – Original Draft;

• Writing – Review and Editing;

• Visualization;

• Supervision; and

• Project Administration.

Example:

A.B.: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing – Original Draft. C.D.: Data Curation, Formal Analysis, Visualization. E.F.: Conceptualization, Supervision, Writing – Review and Editing. All authors approved the final manuscript and agree to be accountable for the work.

18. Funding Statement

Authors must disclose all financial support received for the research, writing, and/or publication of the article.

Example of funded research:

“This research was supported by [Full Name of Funding Agency] under Grant Number [grant number].”

Example when no specific funding was received:

“The authors received no specific funding for this research.”

19. Conflict of Interest Statement

Authors must disclose any financial, personal, professional, institutional, or other conflicts of interest that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the research.

Example:

“The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest related to the publication of this article.”

20. Disclosure of the Use of Artificial Intelligence

Authors must disclose the substantial use of generative artificial intelligence or AI-assisted technologies in manuscript preparation or research, where such disclosure is relevant.

Authorship eligibility requirements, including the prohibition against listing AI tools as authors, are explained in the Authorship Criteria at the beginning of this page.

Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, citations, data, interpretations, and integrity of the entire submitted manuscript.

Example:

“During the preparation of this manuscript, the authors used ChatGPT, Grammarly, and Claude to assist with language improvement and editing. The authors subsequently reviewed and revised all generated or modified content and accept full responsibility for the final manuscript.”

21. References

The reference list must follow the APA citation and referencing style.

• In-text citations must follow APA style, and the reference list must be arranged alphabetically.

• Authors must provide complete and accurate bibliographic information.

• DOIs must be included where available.

• Manuscripts should generally contain at least 15 scholarly references.

• At least 80% of the references should preferably consist of relatively recent primary scholarly literature relevant to the research topic.

• Authors are strongly encouraged to use reference management software such as Mendeley or Zotero.

• Authors are responsible for ensuring that every cited reference exists, is accurate, and supports the statement for which it is cited.

22. Examples of APA-Style References

1. Journal Article

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (2026). Title of the article. Journal Name, 10(2), 100–110. https://doi.org/xx.xxxx/xxxxx

2. Book

Author, A. A. (2025). Title of the book (2nd ed.). Publisher.

3. Book Chapter

Author, A. A. (2024). Title of the chapter. In B. B. Editor (Ed.), Title of the book (pp. 25–40). Publisher.

4. Conference Paper

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (2025). Title of the conference paper. In Proceedings of the international conference name (pp. 100–105). Publisher. https://doi.org/xxxxx

Note: If the proceedings include editors, a DOI, or a URL, provide the relevant information in accordance with the available publication metadata.

5. Web Source

Organization Name. (2026, September 6). Title of the webpage. Website Name. https://URL

If the organization name is the same as the website name, the website name does not need to be repeated.

Important APA 7 Requirements:

• The reference list must be arranged alphabetically by authors' surnames, not by the order in which references appear in the text.

• In-text citations must use the author–date format, for example, (Author & Author, 2026).

• Article and book chapter titles must use sentence case.

• Journal names and volume numbers must be italicized; journal issue numbers must not be italicized.

• The publisher's city and country are no longer included in APA 7th edition book references.

• DOIs must be presented in URL format, for example, https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx.

23. Pre-Submission Checklist

Before submitting a manuscript, authors must ensure that:

• The manuscript falls within the journal's focus and scope.

• The manuscript is original and is not under consideration by another journal.

• The official JUSTER journal template has been used.

• The manuscript is written in Indonesian or English and has been proofread.

• The manuscript structure complies with the journal's requirements.

• The title, abstract, and keywords are complete.

• All authors meet the four Authorship Criteria, and no individual who meets these criteria has been omitted from the author list.

• All authors have approved the submission, author order, affiliations, and required declarations.

• The corresponding author's email address is valid.

• All tables and figures are cited in the text.

• All references are cited and formatted according to APA style.

• DOIs are included where available.

• The funding and conflict of interest statements are included.

• Author contribution information is provided.

• The use of AI tools has been disclosed where applicable.

• Ethical approval and informed consent information are included where required.