NIH Library Editing Services are only available to NIH and select HHS employees.
The NIH Library provides light editing for NIH or HHS work-related publications and presentations for authors from NIH and select HHS agencies. Light editing includes identifying spelling errors and suggesting improvements for word choice, grammar, and punctuation, and ensuring consistency with the journal publication style.
The NIH Library also offers a plagiarism-checking service, using iThenticate to identify paraphrasing or missed citations. This service is available for NIH and select HHS authors preparing works for publication.
Editing Services are provided at no cost to the customer.
Editing Services Policies and Procedures
Editing Service
- Submit requests through the NIH Library’s Editing or Plagiarism Review Request form. Once assigned, the editor will use the information in the ticket to contact the author and request the document for service.
- Submit a separate request for each document. Make sure documents are clean (with track changes turned off and no comments in margins).
- The document must include a title, the authors' names, and the institutions on the first page of the document. Failure to include any of these will pause the request until an updated document is received.
- Light editing includes identifying spelling errors and suggesting improvements for word choice, grammar, and punctuation, and ensuring consistency with the journal publication style.
- Edited manuscripts are returned with suggested changes using MS Word’s Track Changes, which authors to easily review and accept or reject edits.
Plagiarism-checking service (iThenticate)
- Submit plagiarism-checking requests through the NIH Library’s Editing or Plagiarism Review request form.
- The iThenticate plagiarism-checking service cannot be used for an article that is already in publication or print, or for an article for which the requester is not an author.
- A librarian will provide the author with an iThenticate report; however, librarians will not interpret or offer an opinion on the report’s results.
Publication Types Covered
- Manuscripts
- Book chapters
- Protocols
- Case studies
- Reviews
- Posters
- PowerPoint slides
- Conference abstracts
Publication Types Not Covered
- Alien of Extraordinary Ability, "green card" application letters
- Blog posts
- Congressional reports
- Grant applications
- Job or school applications
- Manuscripts written for non-NIH-related work (other agencies or academia)
- Resumes, CVs, personal statements, cover letters, or biographical sketches
- Theses or dissertations
- Website content
- Whole books
Writing and Publishing Training
Classes on writing, editing, and publishing are available through the NIH Library's training program. Look for upcoming classes on the training calendar . Tutorials and customized training by NIH Library staff can also be provided.
Writing and Copyright Resources
Copyright resources, dictionaries, style guides, and more are accessible via the Writing Resources subject guide page.
Additional Editing Support
Fellows and students have access to other formal writing and editing programs.
Fellows have the option to submit ready-for-publication manuscripts to the Fellows Editorial Board. Submissions are accepted electronically and require a 10-day turnaround. This is a comprehensive editing service provided by volunteer scientific editors.
Office of Intramural Training Education (OITE)
Postdoctoral fellows, postbaccalaureates, and summer interns have writing classes and career counseling support available through OITE. NIH staff who wish to receive help with editing medical school applications, please get in touch with OITE.