The Philosophers' Cocoon

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  • Anxious academics in the UK on a Visa?

    In our most recent "how can we help you?" thread, an anxious reader in the UK on a visa writes:

    My guess is that some are in a similar situation to me: on a Skilled Worker Visa (not Global Talent Visa), are a few years from Indefinitely Leave to Remain (maybe equivalent to the US Green Card?), and has an employer who's unwilling to pay the visa costs and Immigration Health Surcharge.

    A few months ago, the UK government decided to crack down on immigration. One thing we know is that the government wants to increase the 5 year residency requirement before being eligible for Indefinitely Leave to Remain to 10 years. What we don't yet know is whether this will apply to people already in the country, and if so, whether we will qualify for “earned settlement” i.e. made sufficient "contributions to the UK economy and society.”

    Not seeking any insight into how the government will implement it, as this is anyone's guess before actual details are revealed. Just asking whether anyone in a similar situation would like to commiserate about how this country is unwelcoming to migrants.

    Are any other readers in a similar situation?

    1

  • Prestige & book presses?

    In our most recent "how can we help you?" thread, a reader asks:

    How prestigious are presses like Bloomsbury, Routledge, Rowman & Littlefield, Lexington, etc. compared to university presses? On the one hand, I have sometimes heard people in the humanities say university presses are the "gold standard" for academics in terms of hiring and promotion. On the other hand, many of these non-university presses rank higher in informal surveys than many university presses (e.g. https://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2013/02/best-philosophy-publishers-in-english.html). I am especially interested in Bloomsbury's reputation: since the time of Leiter's survey, it has obtained a number of other publishers ranked in the top 20, such as Rowman & Littlefield. Does this indicate that Bloomsbury has a comparable prestige?

    I'm not sure what to go on here beyond the Leiter poll referenced above. In terms of Bloomsbury, it obtained Rowman & Littlefield, but they're still different "imprints" right? So, I'm not sure that Bloomsbury purchasing them out affects the prestige of publishing with Bloomsbury per se.

    What do readers think?

    6

  • When you’re asked to review your own paper?

    In our most recent "how can we help you?" thread, a reader asks:

    What should I do when I am asked by a triple blind journal to review a paper that I myself submitted?

    Obviously I will not agree to review it, but I'm wondering what is the best way to decline the request.

    Usually when you decline a review, a paper's Editorial Manager site will ask for comments/recommendations for other referees.

    I imagine this is something to note there? 

    5

  • Thoughts on Leiter-poll journal rankings?

    In our most recent "how can we help you?" thread, a reader asks:

    I noticed that the Leiter poll journal rankings are pretty consistent throughout the years in how certain journals are ranked. I was curious if there's anyone out there who'd care to share if they have a strong disagreement about the rankings of some of the journals there, and even some unranked there.

    Here are Leiter's 2022 and 2018 poll results for "general" philosophy journals, and his 2022 and 2018 polls for journals specializing in moral and political philosophy.

    Does anyone have strong disagreements?

    30