Puros: Undergrad Philosophy Journal

Puros: Undergrad Philosophy Journal

Puros Mission Statement

Puros publishes original undergraduate research in philosophy on any philosophical topic, including topics in epistemology, metaphysics, ethics (including metaethics, applied ethics, and normative ethics), aesthetics, political philosophy, the history of philosophy, the philosophy of religion, and more. Submissions need not adhere to any particular philosophical tradition, methodology, or concern. Puros aims to publish philosophical work that embraces the profound diversity of thought, methodology, and questions that constitute philosophy as a human activity pursued in diverse ways throughout human history and culture. For this reason, Puros seeks submissions that take a holistic approach to philosophical questions, whether by drawing on philosophical traditions outside the traditional Anglophone canon, approaching some philosophical question in a way that might not be immediately deemed “philosophical,” or synthesizing different philosophical perspectives, traditions, or systems in doing philosophy.

Puros 2024 Volume

Puros Standards of Review
Puros Standards for Publication
Puros Standards for Submission

Puros Standards of Review

  1. Puros will assess the merits of a paper based on the criteria of argumentation, clarity and organization of writing, and novelty.
  2. To ensure a blind review process, all submissions to Puros must not include the author’s name in the paper itself. To this end, two documents must be submitted to Puros. The first document consists in the paper submitted for review with the title and no name or identifying features of the author. The second document must contain personal information relating to the submission, including the title of the submission, the author’s name, email address, and institution. Standing (or alumni status) is also optional. An abstract and four or five keywords is preferred but not necessary. If included, the abstract should not exceed 250 words.
  3. Any submissions displaying morally concerning content or intention will be rejected outright. Puros reserves the right to determine what constitutes “morally concerning content or intention.”
  4. All submissions will be evaluated according to the standards laid out in the Puros reviewer’s rubric.

Puros Standards for Publication

  1. All published works must address a philosophical topic or question.
  2. All published pieces must be original, unpublished work that is not under consideration in any other journal.
  3. All published works must be in Chicago Manual Style.
  4. All language must be gender-inclusive.
  5. There will be no monetary compensation for publication.
  6. Upon acceptance of a submission for publication, authors must submit a confirmation statement: “I [the author] confirm my interest in having my work published in Puros.”
  7. Upon acceptance of a submission for publication, authors must submit an intellectual property rights statement: “I [the author] confirm that the submission [name] is entirely my intellectual property.”
  8. All submissions will be reviewed through a blind peer review process.
  9. All submissions accepted for publication work must have a clearly articulated thesis, argument, and conclusion. All short response papers must adequately address the pre-determined question and be philosophically significant in content.

Puros Standards for Submission

  1. Puros welcomes submissions that draw on non-philosophical sources for their argumentation (e.g., scientific literature, literary theory, fiction, etc.). What is required is that all sources drawn upon must be relevant and used persuasively and defensibly in the argumentation of the submission. Furthermore, the relevant literature cited in a submission need not be within the Western canon of philosophy.
  2. Submissions are open to undergraduate students at any institution of higher education. Authors need not be enrolled at UCCS. Submissions from UCCS alumni are welcome and encouraged.
  3. All submissions must be sent to purosuccs@gmail.com. Submissions are open from November 1st to December 15th for publication during the spring semester in March or April, pending number of submissions.
  4. Submitted papers may be written in any of the standard citation styles (Chicago, Harvard, APA, etc.), but upon a paper’s acceptance for publication in Puros, the paper must be reformatted to fit Chicago Manual of Style citation practices.
  5. Papers submitted should be no less than 500 words  and no more than 3,500 words. Exceptions to this restriction on word count are senior theses and short response papers. For senior theses, the word count maximum should not exceed 15,000 words, although it is preferred that submissions be 10,000 words or less. Short response papers are submissions written in response to a pre-determined philosophical question selected by the editorial staff of Puros. Short response papers must be a minimum of 250 words and a maximum of 750 words.
  6. During each submission cycle, authors are limited to no more than two submissions, regardless of the type of submission. Submission of more than one senior thesis is discouraged.
  7. All authors must submit two documents for review. All papers submitted for review must include the title and theme of the paper, while the author’s name and all identifying information must be removed from the submitted paper(s). Authors must also submit a second document including the author’s name, email, title of submission, theme, and preferably an abstract not exceeding 250 words. In this second document, authors may also include their academic standing (undergraduate/alumni/graduate/year), if desired.
  8. All submissions and accompanying documents must be submitted as Word documents.