Remote Senior Editor, Publication Ethics

Public Library of Science; Maryland City (MD); Remote; USD 75,000 - 83,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Fully remote work with home office a/​

Private medical insurance

Pension with employer match

Job summary

Public Library of Science is seeking a Senior Editor, Publication Ethics, to investigate and resolve ethics cases across all PLOS journals. The role supports journals, editors, and authors, upholding COPE standards while contributing to policy development and cross-team initiatives in a fully remote setting.

The team handles a broad range of integrity issues, from data/image concerns to authorship disputes, with opportunities to train staff and contribute to recruitment.

Qualifications

• Excellent communication and presentation skills, both written and oral.
• Highly organized and efficient self-starter with excellent attention to detail and problem-solving abilities.
• Familiarity with peer review, publishing, editorial decision-making, and publication ethics issues and standards.
• Prior experience investigating and resolving publication ethics cases.
• Knowledge of COPE standards and guidance.
• (Preferred) Expertise in image forensics; experience delivering trainings.

Responsibilities

• Resolve publication ethics cases efficiently and in line with PLOS standards and COPE guidance; provide timely support for others’ publication ethics case work; address escalations and queries about publication ethics issues; prevent reputational damage to PLOS journals as feasible.
• Contribute to team-level and cross-functional initiatives and projects addressing ethics and integrity issues at PLOS (e.g., workflows, policy updates, and training).
• Support journal staff editors in resolving issues during manuscript handling, peer review, or post-publication.
• Communicate rapidly and effectively about ethics cases with stakeholders, including editors, authors, and other PLOS teams.
• Attend COPE Forums within working hours and contribute to internal discussions on integrity and related topics.
• Help with recruitment/onboarding for vacant team positions and provide training for staff on ethics case management and standards.
• Uphold high standards of professionalism in all communications about ethics issues.

Skills

Communication

Highly organized

Remote collaboration

Open access & integrity

Peer review knowledge

COPE standards knowledge

Image forensics (preferred)

Education

Master’s degree or PhD in a scientific discipline

Tools

COPE guidelines familiarity

Job description

Public Library of Science is seeking a Senior Editor, Publication Ethics, to investigate and resolve ethics cases across all PLOS journals. The role supports journals, editors, and authors, upholding COPE standards while contributing to policy development and cross-team initiatives in a fully remote setting.

The team handles a broad range of integrity issues, from data/image concerns to authorship disputes, with opportunities to train staff and contribute to recruitment.