About the Journal

About HMSR

The Harvard Medical Student Review (HMSR) is a student-founded, student-run, open access medical journal established in 2014 at Harvard Medical School. Our mission is to provide a rigorous, trainee-centered platform for scholarly dialogue on topics spanning clinical medicine, basic and translational science, health policy, ethics, global health, medical education, public health, and health equity. We welcome a wide range of formats—including original research and quality improvement reports, narrative and systematic reviews, perspectives and editorials, case discussions, as well as poetry, prose, and visual artwork that illuminate the human side of medicine. Submissions are invited from medical students and trainees across health professions and related graduate programs worldwide.

HMSR is fully open access: all articles are freely available online without subscription fees or paywalls, and there are no article processing charges for authors. We are committed to transparent editorial practices, attention to research and publication ethics, and a mentored review process that supports the development of early-career authors and reviewers. The journal is managed by a student Executive Board—currently Editor-in-Chief Arya Rao; Managing Editors Cameron Young, Evan Dennis, and Keegan Mendez; Directors of Internal Affairs Seerat Chawla and Lynn Bi; Outreach Director Anna Wadhwa; and Production Director Sam Steuart.

Interested in submitting to HMSR? We encourage you to review our Submission Guidelines and access our submission portal here: (https://journal.hmsreview.org/index.php/home/about/submissions)

Peer Review Process

The Harvard Medical Student Review employs a rigorous peer review process to ensure the quality and integrity of published work.

Review Process:
- All submissions undergo initial editorial screening
- Manuscripts are reviewed by at least 2 independent reviewers
- Single-blind peer review
- Reviewers assess originality, methodology, significance, and clarity
- Authors receive feedback within 12 weeks
- Final decision by Editor-in-Chief

Criteria for Publication:
- Scientific rigor and validity
- Originality and significance
- Clear writing and presentation
- Ethical compliance
- Relevance to medical education and health sciences

Open Access Policy

The Harvard Medical Student Review is committed to open access publishing. All articles are freely available to read, download, and share immediately upon publication.

Licensing:
Articles are published under a Creative Commons CC BY-NC 4.0 license, allowing for broad reuse with proper attribution.

Article Processing Charges:
HMSR does not charge authors any submission or publication fees.