Korean Council Of Science Editors

Name

Korean Council Of Science Editors

Legal name

Korean Council of Science Editors

Website

https://kcse.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services for Scientific Journal Editors

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (51312), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Standards Development & Publishing (SDOs, Technical Standards) (MPAJACAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Professional Certification & Training Content Publishing (Exam Prep, CE/CPD) (MPAJACAL)

Keywords

• Scientific publishing standards
• Manuscript editor certification
• Publication ethics training
• Journal indexing support
• Editor professional development

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership fees (annual): Organizational members and special members pay annual membership fees to KCSE. Individual members are by invitation only and do not pay a membership fee. Fees support KCSE's operations, workshops, publications, and certification programs.
2. EKMEC examination fee: Examination fee of 100,000 KRW per attempt for the Korean Manuscript Editors Certification Examination. First-time examinees pay the full fee; one retake is exempt from the fee for eligible candidates.
3. Workshop and conference registration fees: KCSE generates revenue from registration fees for workshops, webinars, pre-conference events, and annual conferences. These events cover topics such as manuscript editing, publication ethics, journal management, and Scopus indexing.
4. Science Editing journal publishing: Science Editing is published as a platinum open access journal with no page charges or article processing charges. Revenue is not generated from author-side charges. The journal is supported by the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Korean Council of Science Editors (KCSE) is a nonprofit professional association that delivers manuscript editor certification (KMEC/EKMEC), recurring training workshops, publication ethics resources, and the biannual Science Editing journal to science journal editors and publishers in Korea. Founded in 2011, the organization represents 346 member journal-publishing societies across natural sciences, engineering, agriculture/fisheries, health sciences, and multidisciplinary fields, and operates ECSAC-Korea as the national Scopus indexing advisory committee. KCSE generates revenue from annual organizational and special membership dues, workshop and conference registration fees, examination fees, and support from the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies.

Product overview

KCSE operates as a professional association for science journal editors in Korea, offering a portfolio of products and services centered on journal quality improvement and scientific publishing excellence. The core offerings include the Science Editing journal (official peer-reviewed publication), quarterly Newsletters, and the KMEC (Korean Manuscript Editors Certification) professional certification system with annual EKMEC examinations. Educational services comprise regular workshops including Editor Online Workshops, Publication Ethics Online Workshops, and Manuscript Editor training courses. Resource offerings include editorial policy guidelines, EndNote citation style files for 50+ Korean journals, and the ECSAC-Korea Scopus advisory committee service. The organization also publishes books on research and publication ethics. All offerings are interconnected through KCSE's mission to enhance the quality of Korean scientific journals to international standards.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• KMEC (Korea Manuscript Editors Certification): Professional certification system for manuscript editors in Korea, administered by KCSE's Manuscript Editing Committee.
• EKMEC (Examination for KMEC)
• Science Editing

Products and services

• Science Editing Journal Official peer-reviewed journal of KCSE covering science editing, publication ethics, and scholarly publishing practices, published biannually as a platinum open access journal with no author-side charges. Indexed in ESCI, SCOPUS, KCI, DOAJ, and CrossRef, and serves as the official journal of the Council of Asian Science Editors (CASE).
• Korean Manuscript Editors Certification (KMEC) Professional certification system for manuscript editors in Korea, administered through annual EKMEC examinations by KCSE's Manuscript Editing Committee. Certifies editors with required experience, training, and passing examination scores; over 148 individuals have obtained the credential.
• Examination for KMEC (EKMEC) Annual certification examination for KMEC, consisting of 80-100 multiple choice questions covering journal editing and publication knowledge areas. Registration fee is 100,000 KRW per attempt, with one free retake available for eligible candidates.
• KCSE Annual Conference and Workshops Program Recurring educational and professional development programs including an annual academic conference (16th edition in 2026), pre-conference workshops, Editor Online Workshops (A-series), Publication Ethics Online Workshops (E-series), Manuscript Editor Basic Training Courses (M-series), and Scopus preparation workshops targeting science journal editors in Korea.
• Manual for Research and Publication Ethics in Science and Engineering Comprehensive manual covering research and publication ethics guidelines, published by KCSE in Korean (2014) and English (2016), authored by Eun Seong Hwang et al., and targeted at science and engineering journal editors and editorial staff.
• ECSAC-Korea (Scopus Expert Advisory Committee for Korea) National Scopus advisory committee operated by KCSE under an MOU with Elsevier since 2019, providing guidance and application support for Korean journals seeking Scopus indexing.
• KCSE Membership Program Annual membership program offering organizational, individual (by invitation), and special membership tiers for Korean scientific societies, publishing organizations, supporting companies, and invited editorial professionals. As of January 2023, 346 scientific society journals were members.

Quantifiable outcome

• 346 scientific journals represented through organizational membership as of January 2023
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability2 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies (한국과학기술단체총연합회)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 September 2011KCSE was established under the umbrella of the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies (KOFST/과총). KOFST is the largest umbrella organization for scientific societies in Korea and has supported KCSE's founding and operations. KCSE signed a project agreement with KOFST in 2012 for the development of science journals.
• EASE (European Association of Science Editors)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKCSE serves as the official EASE Regional Chapter for Korea. The partnership involves joint webinars (e.g., SAGER@10: Embedding into the Korean context), guideline translations, and collaborative professional development for science editors across Europe and Korea.
• CASE (Council of Asian Science Editors)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKCSE was instrumental in founding CASE (Council of Asian Science Editors) in 2014 and has co-organized the Asian Science Editors' Conference and Workshop multiple times (2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2024). Science Editing serves as the official journal of CASE.
• CSE (Council of Science Editors)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerKCSE is a member journal organization of the Council of Science Editors (CSE), participating in CSE's Annual Meeting and contributing to international standards for science journal editing. KCSE members have participated in CSE Annual Meetings and contributed to the CSE Manual 9th edition.
• ALPSP (Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerKCSE is a member journal of ALPSP and participates in its activities to advance professional publishing standards.
• DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerScience Editing journal is listed in DOAJ. KCSE members have been appointed as DOAJ ambassadors, enhancing the visibility and credibility of Korean open-access journals.
• CrossrefmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerKCSE has partnered with Crossref, and KCSE members have served as Crossref ambassadors. In 2023, KCSE's 5th President Kim Kihong was elected to the Crossref Board of Directors, strengthening this partnership.
• COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics)Strategic or Co-development PartnerKCSE translates and publishes COPE flowcharts and core practices in Korean, and promotes COPE guidelines among Korean science journal editors. KCSE's Publication Ethics Committee aligns with COPE's standards.
• KISTI (Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKCSE signed an MOU with KISTI in 2017 for cooperation on science journal quality improvement. KISTI supports KCSE's journal indexing initiatives and provides expertise on databases and research evaluation.
• Elsevier ScopuscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKCSE signed an MOU with Elsevier Scopus in 2019 to support Korean journals in achieving Scopus indexing. KCSE operates ECSAC-Korea (Scopus Expert Advisory Committee for Korea), which advises and supports Korean journals in the Scopus application process.
• EASE (European Association of Science Editors)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKCSE serves as the official EASE Regional Chapter, operating under EASE's umbrella to promote science editing standards and guidelines in Korea. This includes translating and localizing EASE guidelines such as SAGER for Korean researchers.
• Korean Society of Life ScienceminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorListed as an organizational member society under the Natural Sciences category, publishing Journal of Life Science through KCSE membership.
• Korean Society of Phycology (한국조류학회)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorListed as an organizational member society publishing ALGAE through KCSE membership.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• International Society of Managing and Technical Editors (ISMTE): ISMTE is an international association for managing and technical editors of scholarly publications. It serves a closely adjacent editorial professional community and competes for editor training and conference attendance.
• Council of Science Editors (CSE): CSE is the US-based science editors association with which KCSE holds membership and active collaboration. Both publish authoritative editor guidelines, host annual meetings, and provide professional development for science journal editors, making them direct peers.
• European Association of Science Editors (EASE): EASE is the European counterpart and parent organization where KCSE holds official Regional Chapter status. Both run science editor training, guidelines, and an international journal, making them direct functional peers in the scholarly publishing association space.
• Board of Editors in the Life Sciences (BELS): BELS offers the leading international certification for life sciences manuscript editors. KCSE brought BELS exams to Korea in 2018, and BELS competes directly with KCSE's KMEC certification for editor credentialing in the Korean market.
• Council of Asian Science Editors (CASE): CASE was co-founded by KCSE in 2014 and KCSE serves as its secretariat convener. The two organizations co-host the Asian Science Editors' Conference and Science Editing journal serves as CASE's official journal, making CASE KCSE's closest regional peer.

Others

• Crossref: Crossref is a scholarly publishing infrastructure provider and KCSE partner; the KCSE 5th President sits on the Crossref Board. Crossref is an adjacent ecosystem enabler rather than a competitor, but the governance overlap reflects shared interests in Korean journal metadata quality.
• Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE): COPE is the international publication ethics standards body whose flowcharts and guidelines KCSE translates and disseminates in Korean. They are an ecosystem partner and standards supplier rather than a direct competitor, but operate in overlapping editorial ethics territory.

Regional players

• American Medical Writers Association (AMWA): AMWA is a US-based professional association offering medical writing and editing certification. It serves as an adjacent certification alternative to KMEC, particularly for editors with medical/scientific publishing backgrounds in Asia.
• Japanese Association of Science Editors (JSE) / Science Council of Japan editors: The Japanese science editor community, including JSE, is KCSE's closest national counterpart in Northeast Asia. They target a similar scholarly editing professional community with similar certification, training, and journal-quality programs in Japan.

Broad incumbents

• Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers (ALPSP): ALPSP is a larger, broader international membership body for learned society publishers. KCSE is an institutional member; while ALPSP covers all scholarly publishing verticals, it overlaps with KCSE's role in serving society publishers and editors.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/kcse2011
• Facebookfacebook.com/%ED%95%9C%EA%B5%AD%EA%B3%BC%ED%95%99%ED%95%99%EC%88%A0%EC%A7%80%ED%8E%B8%EC%A7%91%EC%9D%B8%ED%98%91%EC%9D%98%ED%9A%8C-457762754265081

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Korean Council Of Science Editors