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Revised point system for publications by Dental Council of India
[To cite: Manohar B, Chakraborty R. Revised point system for publications by Dental Council of India. Natl Med J India 2024;37:170–1. DOI: 10.25259/NMJI_1173_2023.]
I read the ‘Correspondence’ titled Dental Council of India criteria for research publications: Need for revision.1
The authors refer to the Dental Council of India (DCI) guidelines considering journals with only PubMed/Medline indexing in Category I. However, the DCI had revised its points criteria and included publications from not only journals indexed in Pubmed/Medline but also, journals indexed in Web of Science and Scopus in Category I (Table I).2
| S.No. | Category | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Category I: | 15 |
| (1) Journals indexed by PubMed–Medline Please see www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed | ||
| (2) Journals published by Indian/International Dental Specialty Associations approved by Dental Council of India | ||
| 2. | Category II: | 10 |
| (1) Medical/Dental journals published by government health universities awarding dental degree or government universities awarding dental degree | ||
| (2) Original research/study approved by Indian Council of Medical Research/Similar government bodies | ||
| (3) Author of text/reference book concerned with the respective specialty | ||
| (4) PhD or any other similar additional qualification after MDS | ||
| 3. | Category III: | 5 |
| (1) Journals published by deemed universities/dental institutions/Indian Dental Association | ||
| (2) Contribution of chapters in a textbook | ||
| 4. | MAY BE CONSIDERED AS OPTIONAL IN CATEGORY-I | |
| Journals indexed by the following agencies can be accepted: | ||
| (1) Web of Science; | ||
| https://clarivate.com/webofsciencegroup/solutions/webofscience-platform/ | ||
| (2) SCOPUS; www.scopus.com | ||
| (3) All original research articles, systematic reviews, meta-analysis, case reports and review articles published in Web of Science, Scopus and PubMed | ||
| (4) Owner of Patent | ||
| Note: | ||
| A. For any publication, except original research, first author (principal author) will be given 100% points and remaining authors (co-authors) will be given 50% points and up to a maximum of 5 co-authors will be considered | ||
| B. For original research, all authors will be given equal points and up to a maximum of 6 authors will be considered | ||
| C. Maximum of 3 publications would be considered for allotting points in Category III | ||
| D. Publication in Tabloids/Souvenirs/Dental news magazines/abstracts of conference proceedings/ letter of acceptance etc. will not be considered for allotment of points. | ||
| Total score required | ||
| For Professor and Head of Department: | 40 marks | |
| Professor: | 30 marks | |
| Reader/Associate Professor: | 20 marks | |
| IMPORTANT: | ||
| A post-graduate teacher would be re-evaluated every three years and shall have at least an additional 15 points in their score |
Another concern raised by the authors is regarding Category III journals, where publication in any journal is considered for 5 points raising doubts about predatory journals. The DCI has recommended considering only up to a maximum of 3 articles in Category III journals, adding a maximum possible 15 points.2,3
The points required to be a head of the department, professor and a reader are 40, 30 and 20, respectively.2,3 By having publications in Category III journals (maximum of 3 articles and 15 points) does not make a lecturer (with Masters in Dental Surgery [MDS] degree) eligible for promotion to a reader. Moreover; a postgraduate teacher is also required to have an additional 15 points added to the score, which is re-evaluated every 3 years (Table I).3
The future of application of these criteria and point system is unknown after the introduction of the National Dental Commision4 which has come into existence and the rules and regulations for teachers may/may not be changed or modified.
Conflicts of interest
None declared
References
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