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Learnings From 1000 Rejections

Author

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  • Alex Edmans

Abstract

The Review of Finance aimed to significantly increase its standards over my 6 years as managing editor and 1 year as editor. To comply with these new standards, I had to reject nearly 1000 manuscripts. This paper aims to use these rejections constructively by distilling common reasons for rejection to guide future research. They are divided into three categories: contribution, execution, and exposition. Beyond extracts from decision letters that give reasons for rejection, this paper also shares excerpts that shed light on the editorial process, such as how an editor weighs up feedback to reach a decision, as well as emails to authors outside formal letters in response to queries on the process.

Suggested Citation

  • Alex Edmans, 2025. "Learnings From 1000 Rejections," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 54(2), pages 419-444, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:finmgt:v:54:y:2025:i:2:p:419-444
    DOI: 10.1111/fima.12487
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alex Edmans, 2009. "Blockholder Trading, Market Efficiency, and Managerial Myopia," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 64(6), pages 2481-2513, December.
    2. Alex Edmans & Vivian W. Fang & Katharina A. Lewellen, 2017. "Equity Vesting and Investment," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 30(7), pages 2229-2271.
    3. Jonathan B. Berk & Campbell R. Harvey & David Hirshleifer, 2017. "How to Write an Effective Referee Report and Improve the Scientific Review Process," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 31(1), pages 231-244, Winter.
    4. Paul Gompers & Joy Ishii & Andrew Metrick, 2003. "Corporate Governance and Equity Prices," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 118(1), pages 107-156.
    5. Todd A. Gormley & David A. Matsa, 2014. "Common Errors: How to (and Not to) Control for Unobserved Heterogeneity," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 27(2), pages 617-661.
    6. David Yermack, 2017. "Corporate Governance and Blockchains," Review of Finance, European Finance Association, vol. 21(1), pages 7-31.
    7. Alex Edmans, 2022. "The purpose of a finance professor," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 51(1), pages 3-26, March.
    8. Jon A. Garfinkel & Mosab Hammoudeh & James Weston, 2024. "Academic publishing behavior and pay across business fields," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 53(1), pages 31-58, March.
    9. Clifford G. Holderness, 2009. "The Myth of Diffuse Ownership in the United States," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 22(4), pages 1377-1408, April.
    10. David Hirshleifer, 2015. "Editor's Choice Editorial: Cosmetic Surgery in the Academic Review Process," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 28(3), pages 637-649.
    11. Edmans, Alex, 2011. "Does the stock market fully value intangibles? Employee satisfaction and equity prices," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(3), pages 621-640, September.
    12. Campbell R. Harvey, 2017. "Presidential Address: The Scientific Outlook in Financial Economics," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 72(4), pages 1399-1440, August.
    13. Alexander W. Butler & Timothy Falcon Crack, 2022. "A rookie's guide to the academic job market in finance: The labor market for lemons," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 57(4), pages 775-791, November.
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