IJER: Impact Factor and Journal Metrics

International Journal of Educational Research: Impact Factor

The International Journal of Educational Research impact factor and citation profile denote the Clarivate-calculated Journal Impact Factor (3.3 in recent Journal Citation Reports releases) and Scopus-indexed metrics for the International Journal of Educational Research (IJER). Published by Elsevier since 1986 under ISSN 0883-0355, the periodical is tracked in the Web of Science Core Collection under Education & Educational Research. The metric represents the mathematical ratio of citations received in a given JCR year to citable scholarly items published during the preceding two years, functioning as a journal-level visibility indicator rather than an appraisal of individual research quality.

ByCASRAI Editorial Board

· Last updated 7 Nov 2026

Overview and Journal Scope

The International Journal of Educational Research is a leading peer-reviewed academic journal published by Elsevier. The journal provides an international forum for scholarly research across primary, secondary, higher, and comparative education. As detailed in our overview of the education research field, scholarship in this domain spans curriculum design, learning psychology, educational technology, teacher training, and institutional policy.

IJER publishes rigorous empirical investigations, comprehensive systematic literature reviews, and conceptual analyses that address issues of broad international significance rather than purely localized case studies. The journal accepts contributions across diverse quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods research traditions, including intervention studies supported by programs such as the Spencer Foundation grant and related initiatives in education research funding.

Key Bibliometric Indicators and Impact Factor

The journal’s influence and citation frequency are tracked across multiple major bibliometric indices:

Clarivate Journal Impact Factor (JIF): 3.3 (indexed in the Social Sciences Citation Index, SSCI, within the Education & Educational Research subject category).
Scopus CiteScore: 3.6 (a four-year citation window).
SCImago Journal Rank (SJR): About 1.017, Quartile 1 (Q1) in Education.
Crossref record: 3,228 registered DOIs under print ISSN 0883-0355, of which 720 are current (Crossref journal record).
Publisher: Elsevier.

Calculation and Metric Context

The Journal Impact Factor for IJER is computed annually by Clarivate in the Journal Citation Reports. The calculation divides the total number of citations received in an evaluation year by articles and reviews published in the journal during the preceding two calendar years by the total number of citable items published during that same two-year span.

In contrast, the Scopus CiteScore applies a broader four-year citation window, capturing citations received in a given four-year period to peer-reviewed documents published in those same four years. Analysts evaluating journal performance frequently cross-reference these metrics; our comparison of CiteScore vs Impact Factor examines how citation windows and document indexing rules shape these complementary indicators.

Disambiguation: IJER vs. IJER Open

Authors and research administrators should distinguish between two related Elsevier publications:

International Journal of Educational Research (IJER): Elsevier, print ISSN 0883-0355. The 3.3 Journal Impact Factor and 3.6 CiteScore on this page refer to this title.
International Journal of Educational Research Open (IJER Open): A separate Elsevier journal with its own ISSN, 2666-3740, and its own Crossref record. Do not apply IJER’s metrics to it; check its metrics separately.

Responsible Research Assessment Context

In alignment with international evaluation frameworks such as the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) and the Leiden Manifesto, periodical-level metrics like the Journal Impact Factor must never be used as a proxy for the scientific quality or impact of an individual scholar or specific research paper. Citation distributions across scholarly journals are heavily skewed; a small fraction of highly cited papers accounts for the majority of any journal’s total impact factor score.

Tenure committees, funding review panels, and institutional evaluators should assess education scholarship through direct expert peer review, methodological soundness, and societal or pedagogical contributions, treating journal metrics strictly as indicators of periodical circulation and scholarly community reach.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the impact factor of the International Journal of Educational Research?

IJER’s Clarivate Journal Impact Factor is 3.3 in recent Journal Citation Reports releases, alongside a Scopus CiteScore of 3.6. Check the current Journal Citation Reports for the latest value.

Who publishes the International Journal of Educational Research?

Elsevier publishes it under print ISSN 0883-0355, according to the Crossref journal record.

Is IJER the same journal as IJER Open?

No. IJER Open (ISSN 2666-3740) is a separate Elsevier title with its own Crossref record, so its metrics should be checked separately.

Should the impact factor be used to judge a single paper or researcher?

No. DORA and the Leiden Manifesto advise against using journal-level metrics as a proxy for the quality of an individual paper or scholar.

Sources

Crossref Metadata API, “Journal Record for ISSN 0883-0355 (International Journal of Educational Research)”, accessed November 7, 2026, https://api.crossref.org/journals/0883-0355
Clarivate Analytics, “Journal Citation Reports (JCR) — Social Sciences Citation Index: International Journal of Educational Research”, accessed November 7, 2026, https://mjl.clarivate.com/
Elsevier ScienceDirect, “International Journal of Educational Research: Aims, Scope, and Metrics”, accessed November 7, 2026, https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/international-journal-of-educational-research
ISSN International Centre, “ISSN 0883-0355 — International Journal of Educational Research”, accessed November 7, 2026, https://portal.issn.org/resource/ISSN/0883-0355

Use in your systems

JATS XML <role> element

xml

<role vocab="credit"
      vocab-identifier="https://casrai.org/dictionary/"
      vocab-term="International Journal of Educational Research: Impact Factor"
      vocab-term-identifier="https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/international-journal-of-educational-research" />

Schema.org DefinedTerm (JSON-LD)

json

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "DefinedTerm",
  "@id": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/international-journal-of-educational-research",
  "name": "International Journal of Educational Research: Impact Factor",
  "identifier": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/international-journal-of-educational-research",
  "description": "The International Journal of Educational Research impact factor and citation profile denote the Clarivate-calculated Journal Impact Factor (3.3 in recent Journal Citation Reports releases) and Scopus-indexed metrics for the International Journal of Educational Research (IJER). Published by Elsevier since 1986 under ISSN 0883-0355, the periodical is tracked in the Web of Science Core Collection under Education & Educational Research. The metric represents the mathematical ratio of citations received in a given JCR year to citable scholarly items published during the preceding two years, functioning as a journal-level visibility indicator rather than an appraisal of individual research quality.",
  "inDefinedTermSet": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/domain/publishing#set",
  "url": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/international-journal-of-educational-research",
  "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "publisher": {
    "@id": "https://casrai.org/#organization"
  },
  "author": {
    "@id": "https://casrai.org/#editorial-team"
  },
  "datePublished": "2026-11-07T06:17:40",
  "dateModified": "2026-11-07T06:59:26",
  "inLanguage": "en-GB",
  "isAccessibleForFree": true
}