Getting on an Editorial Board: A Strategic Career Move
Why an Editorial Board Seat Matters in Academic Medicine
I talk to a lot of mid-career faculty who have a solid publishing record but feel like their career has quietly stalled. They have the papers, the grants, the teaching evaluations. But something is missing from the CV. If that sounds familiar, let me ask you this: have you thought about joining a journal editorial board?
Editorial board membership in academic medicine is one of the most underrated career accelerators I see. It signals to promotion committees that your peers view you as a thought leader. It is not just a line on your CV. It reshapes how you engage with your field.
What Serving on an Editorial Board Actually Gets You
Here is what I have watched it do for faculty I coach:
- Deeper expertise. Regular manuscript review sharpens your critical appraisal skills faster than almost anything else.
- Network expansion. You build relationships with editors and fellow board members at other institutions, leading to collaborations and speaking invitations.
- Promotion leverage. Most promotion committees explicitly value editorial service as evidence of national reputation.
- A seat at the table. You gain influence over the scholarly conversation in your subspecialty.
A colleague at a large academic medical center once described it to me like being called up to the coaching staff after years on the roster. You finally see the game from a different angle.
How to Position Yourself for a Journal Editorial Board
A 2022 analysis in Academic Medicine found that editorial board members tend to share a few traits: a consistent publication record in the target journal, ad hoc reviewer experience, and visibility at national meetings.
Here is a practical path:
- Start reviewing. Volunteer as an ad hoc reviewer for journals you publish in. Most editors are desperate for reliable, timely reviewers.
- Be excellent at it. Return reviews on time with constructive feedback. Editors notice.
- Build your publication record in that journal. Three to five well-placed articles in a single journal make you a familiar name.
- Let people know you are interested. Mention it to mentors and editors at conferences. Many boards fill seats through informal networks.
- Target strategically. You do not have to start with the top-tier journal in your field. Subspecialty and education-focused journals often have more turnover and are actively looking for engaged reviewers.
Do Not Wait Until You Feel Ready
If you have been publishing for five or more years and reviewing manuscripts regularly, you are probably closer than you think. The faculty I coach who land these positions are rarely the ones with the longest CVs. They are the ones who were intentional about building relationships with a specific journal over time.
This is the kind of strategic career planning that makes a real difference at promotion time. Check out our individual coaching options.
