SPE Peer-Reviewed Publications Awards

Every year, SPE recognizes editors and reviewers who have made an exceptional effort to ensure the technical excellence of the Society’s peer-reviewed journals. For their contributions, these individuals are awarded the SPE Peer-Reviewed Publications Outstanding Reviewer or Associate Editor Award.

Criteria is based on completed assessments between 1 July–30 June and the awards are then delivered annually in October. Award recipients are given a certificate as well as recognition in their respective SPE journal and in the Journal of Petroleum Technology (JPT). Recipients are justified by merit only. No special consideration is given to diversity factors.*

Outstanding Technical Reviewer Award

Technical Reviewers who have distinguished themselves in terms of review quality, timeliness, and communication with editors are nominated by an Associate Editor (self-nominations are not permitted) and selected under the following criteria:

  • Fully meets the Eligibility requirements of the Technical Editor position
  • Number of completed reviews (preferred minimum is 3 in 12 months)
  • Reviewer score should be 3.5 or higher
  • High-quality reviews displaying a broad understanding of current technologies in a specific discipline completed within the requested timeframe <14 days (no review to exceed 21 days)

Each Associate Editor may nominate 1–2 candidates. From this list, the Executive Editor(s) of each journal will select up to, but no more than 20 award recipients per journal. Candidates can be nominated in consecutive years.

Outstanding Associate Editor Award

Starting in 2022, SPE will recognize high-performing Associate Editors who have distinguished themselves in terms of ability to manage a paper’s timeliness, stay in regular communication with staff and reviewers, and the quality/completeness of both reviewer feedback and Associate Editor recommendations. These individuals are nominated by the Executive Editor (self-nominations are not permitted) and selected under the following criteria:

  • Fully meets the Deliverables and Expectations of the Associate Editor position
  • Number of finalized recommendations (preferred minimum is 3 in 12 months)
    • Weight will be given to the complexity of the manuscript cases (with proper substantiation)
  • Review process completed within the requested timeframe <30 days; time to recommendation (no recommendation to exceed 45 days)

Each Executive Editor of a journal may nominate up to three candidates. All nominations are approved by the Editor-in-Chief. Candidates cannot be nominated in consecutive years.

*Volunteers who reside in countries sanctioned by the United States and the European Union are not eligible to be a recipient of the SPE Peer-Reviewed Publications Outstanding Editor Award. Learn more about sanctions.