MyCite and MyJurnal are two related but distinct systems run by Malaysia’s Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) through its Malaysian Citation Centre (MCC), sometimes referred to as the Citation and Infometric Division. Between them they cover most of the questions researchers, authors, editors and institutional administrators ask about Malaysian journal publishing: is this journal "MyCite indexed," where can I read or submit to a specific Malaysian journal, and how does any of this count toward promotion, grant reporting or a university’s MyRA score. This guide explains what each system actually does, how to check a journal’s status in each, and how the two connect to Malaysia’s wider research-assessment landscape.
MyCite and MyJurnal are not the same system
It is easy to conflate the two because both are run by the same MCC and both concern Malaysian journals, but they serve different functions:
- MyCite (Malaysian Citation Index) is a bibliographic and citation database. It indexes a selected, evaluated set of Malaysian scholarly journals and tracks citation data, author records and journal-level performance — the same broad role Scopus or Web of Science’s Journal Citation Reports play internationally, but scoped to Malaysian journals and run as a national government service.
- MyJurnal is a journal-hosting and management platform. It collects bibliographic data and, for participating titles, full text of articles published across a wide range of Malaysian refereed journals spanning arts and humanities, engineering and technology, medical and health sciences, sciences, and social sciences. Its purpose is to increase the visibility and accessibility of Malaysian journal content, not to certify journal quality.
In practice, a journal can appear in MyJurnal (simply as a hosted, discoverable title) without having gone through MyCite’s evaluation and been accepted as a MyCite-indexed journal. Being "in MyJurnal" and being "MyCite indexed" are different claims, and administrators checking a candidate’s publication list should confirm which one is actually being asserted.
How to check if a journal is MyCite indexed
MyCite provides a general search function on its own portal (mycite.mohe.gov.my) that lets you search by journal title, ISSN or subject area to confirm current indexing status. Because MOHE periodically re-evaluates indexed titles and can add or delist journals, treat a citation appearing on a CV, in a promotion dossier or in a grant report as unverified until you have checked it directly against the live MyCite database rather than relying on a journal’s own website claim or an outdated list.
When verifying a journal, look for:
- Current indexing status, not historical status — MyCite, like other citation indexes, periodically removes journals that stop meeting quality or regularity standards.
- The exact journal title and ISSN match what is claimed, since Malaysian journals sometimes share similar names across institutions.
- Which evaluation cycle the listing reflects, if that information is shown, since MyCite runs periodic journal evaluation rounds rather than continuous rolling admission.
MyCite’s journal selection criteria
MyCite’s published selection criteria apply across all subject areas — sciences, technology, medicine, social sciences and the humanities — and center on a small number of consistent requirements:
- Publication history: a journal generally needs to have published at least two issues before it can be considered for indexing.
- Timeliness: MyCite evaluates whether a journal is publishing according to its own stated frequency; consistent, on-schedule publication is treated as a signal of a healthy submission pipeline and long-term viability.
- Access: priority is given to journals already publishing electronically with full access to their content. Journals still publishing only in print are generally expected to arrange for their back issues to be scanned and submitted for processing.
- Existing citation performance: journals that have already accrued citation counts, an impact score or an h-index — sourced from indexes such as Journal Citation Reports, Scimago/Scopus data, or Google Scholar-derived metrics — are given preference in evaluation.
This is a qualitative summary of publicly stated criteria; the exact application procedure, submission deadlines and any fees are set by MOHE/MCC and can change between evaluation cycles, so applicants and editors should confirm current requirements directly on the MyCite portal before submitting a journal for evaluation rather than relying on this or any third-party summary.
How MyCite and MyJurnal connect to Malaysia’s research-assessment system
Neither system exists in isolation. Both feed into how Malaysian universities and researchers are assessed:
- MyRA (Malaysia Research Assessment Instrument), the star-rating system MOHE uses to evaluate university research performance, recognises MyCite-indexed journals as one of the accepted publication venues for research-output scoring, alongside international indexes such as Scopus and Web of Science. For institutions and researchers focused on Malaysian-language or locally-scoped scholarship, a MyCite-indexed venue can be a legitimate, recognised outlet in a way a non-indexed local journal is not. See CASRAI’s guide to MyRA for how the star-rating model itself works.
- Grant and promotion documentation. Where a funding scheme or a university’s promotion criteria references "indexed journals" without further qualification, MyCite is typically one of the recognised national indexes alongside the major international databases. CASRAI’s guide to FRGS and other MOHE grant schemes covers how Malaysian funding programmes structure their reporting requirements more broadly.
- Research integrity expectations. Malaysian institutions increasingly reference the Malaysian Code of Responsible Conduct in Research (MCRCR) alongside publication-venue requirements; verifying a journal’s actual indexing status, rather than trusting an unverified claim, is part of the same due-diligence expectation.
MyCite compared with Scopus, Web of Science and other citation indexes
MyCite operates on the same basic logic as international citation databases — evaluate journals against defined criteria, admit those that pass, track citations for admitted titles — but at a national rather than global scale, and administered as a government service rather than a commercial product. This matters practically in a few ways:
- A journal can be legitimately indexed in MyCite without ever being evaluated by or accepted into Scopus or Web of Science, and vice versa; the two are not substitutes for each other, and a MyCite listing does not imply Scopus coverage.
- Researchers publishing in Malaysian-focused, Malay-language, or nationally-scoped journals may find MyCite indexing the more realistic and relevant recognition path than pursuing Scopus indexing, particularly for early-career or locally-oriented work. See CASRAI’s guide to getting a journal indexed in Scopus for how that separate, much larger-scale evaluation process works, and the CASRAI dictionary entry on Scopus for background on that database.
- Citation counts and metrics generated within MyCite (such as any journal-level citation report it publishes) are specific to MyCite’s own indexed corpus and are not directly comparable to Scopus’s CiteScore or Web of Science’s Journal Impact Factor, which are each calculated from their own respective indexed literature.
Common problems and how to resolve them
- "The journal says it’s MyCite indexed, but I can’t find it in a search." Search using the exact ISSN rather than the title, since journal name variants (English/Malay, abbreviated/full) can cause a title search to miss the correct record. If it still doesn’t appear, treat the claim as unverified and check whether the journal may have been indexed in a past cycle and subsequently delisted, or was never formally evaluated despite being hosted on MyJurnal.
- "A journal is in MyJurnal — does that mean it’s MyCite indexed?" Not necessarily. MyJurnal hosting is a separate, broader function from MyCite’s evaluated index. Confirm status in MyCite directly rather than inferring it from MyJurnal presence.
- "How does this affect my grant or promotion submission?" Check the specific funder’s or institution’s own wording. Some require Scopus/Web of Science specifically; others explicitly recognise MyCite-indexed venues as an accepted category, particularly for Malaysian institutions assessing locally-scoped scholarship. Do not assume equivalence without checking the specific policy document.
- "My journal was removed from MyCite — what happened?" Like other citation indexes, MyCite re-evaluates indexed titles periodically and can delist journals that no longer meet regularity, access or quality standards. Editors in this position should consult MOHE/MCC’s current guidance directly, since the specific grounds and any appeal or reapplication process are set by MCC and can change between cycles.
What institutional research administrators should do
- When verifying a researcher’s publication list for promotion, tenure or grant-reporting purposes, check MyCite-indexed status directly against the live portal rather than accepting a journal’s self-description or an internally maintained list that may be out of date.
- Keep MyCite and MyJurnal conceptually and procedurally separate in internal guidance documents — conflating "hosted on MyJurnal" with "MyCite indexed" is a common and consequential error when it feeds into research-output counts.
- Where a funding scheme or promotion policy lists "recognised indexes," confirm explicitly whether MyCite is included, since practice varies by funder and by institution and should not be assumed either way.
- Cross-reference publication-venue policy against the institution’s MyRA reporting framework, since MyCite’s role there is specifically as a recognised national publication-output category rather than as a general quality certification usable for every purpose.
Frequently asked questions
Is MyCite the same as MyJurnal?
No. MyCite is an evaluated citation index of selected Malaysian journals; MyJurnal is a journal-hosting and discovery platform with broader, less selective coverage. A journal can appear in one without the other.
Who runs MyCite and MyJurnal?
Both are operated by Malaysia’s Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) through the Malaysian Citation Centre (MCC).
Does MyCite indexing count the same as Scopus or Web of Science indexing?
It depends entirely on the specific funder’s or institution’s policy. Some Malaysian funding schemes and university promotion frameworks explicitly recognise MyCite-indexed journals as an accepted publication venue alongside Scopus and Web of Science; others require the international indexes specifically. Always check the exact wording of the relevant policy rather than assuming equivalence.
How often is MyCite’s list of indexed journals updated?
MyCite runs periodic journal evaluation cycles rather than continuous rolling admission, and can add or delist titles between cycles. Always check current status on the live portal rather than relying on a previously confirmed listing.
Can a new Malaysian journal apply to MyCite?
Yes, journals meeting MyCite’s published selection criteria (publication history, timeliness, access, and citation performance) can apply for evaluation. Editors should confirm the current application process, any submission window and documentation requirements directly through the MyCite portal, since these details are set by MCC and can change between cycles.
