The Professional Geographer, initially a publication of the American Society for Professional Geographers, became a journal of the Association of American Geographers in 1949. It publishes short articles of academic or applied geography, emphasizing empirical studies and methodologies, as well as book reviews. These features may range in content and approach from rigorously analytic to broadly philosophical or prescriptive. The journal provides a forum for new ideas and alternative viewpoints.

Submission. All manuscripts should be submitted electronically through AAG Manuscript Central (http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/aag). Submissions must include a cover letter containing a statement that the manuscript has not been submitted for publication elsewhere, and will not be submitted elsewhere until a decision has been rendered by the editor.

Review. After evaluation by the editor, manuscripts are normally sent to at least two outside reviewers. The review process normally takes four to six months and every effort is made to respond as quickly as possible.

Manuscripts. Prepare your manuscript using Microsoft Word. Do not put any identifying information in your manuscript or your file name to ensure a blind review. This includes names of the authors, their affiliations and bio sketches, or acknowledgements. All author contact information will be saved separately when uploading your submission to Manuscript Central. Please include the title, abstract, and key words in the body of your manuscript even though you will be asked to save them separately as part of the upload process. Reviewers will only have access to these if they are part of your manuscript file.

Do not embed tables or figures in your manuscript file. They should be placed at the end of the document or uploaded separately. Figure files can be uploaded as .gif, .jpg, .eps, and .tif; however, only .eps or .tif files can be used for publication purposes.

Manuscripts, with the exception of references, tables, or figures, should be no longer than 21 pages or approximately 5,000 words.  Text must be in a 12-point font with 2.54 cm (1 inch) margins. All parts of the manuscript (abstract, text, notes, references, tables, and figure captions) must be double-spaced and paginated. Format manuscript as follows, starting each section with a new page: (1) title page, (2) abstract, (3) text, (4) notes, (5) references, (6) appendix, (7) tables, (8) figure captions, (9) figures.

Title Page. The title serves as the author's invitation to a diverse audience; it should be chosen with care. Do not include any identifying information on the title page, including the names of the authors, their affiliations or contact information, bio sketches, or acknowledgments (this information can be added to your final files if your paper is accepted for publication).

Abstract/Key Words. Include an abstract of 100 words or less that summarizes the purpose, methods, and major findings of the paper. All authors should provide three to five key words or phrases by which an article can be indexed in periodical references. These should appear in italics at the end of the abstract.

Acknowledgments. Do not include any acknowledgments (including grants/financial support) in your submission. This information can be added to your final files if your paper is accepted for publication.

Units of Measure. The Professional Geographer uses the International System of Units (metric); other units should be noted in parentheses.

Equations. Equations should appear in the text in an appropriate type style (Greek letters, bold type, etc.). Authors should carefully distinguish between capital and lower-case letters, Roman and Greek characters, and letters and numerals. Number equations sequentially, in parentheses, on the right edge of the text. All constituent terms should be defined when they initially appear.

Notes. Specific arguments or single points may be amplified by concise Notes numbered sequentially in the text. The list of Notes appears immediately after the text.

References. References should be cited parenthetically in the text in this order: author's last name, year of publication, and page number. All sources in the text of a paper must be listed in the references section and vice versa. List all references alphabetically by the author's last name and chronologically, and if possible, please include full names for all authors. Provide the full, unabbreviated title of books and periodicals. Personal communications can be cited either in endnotes or in the references section. All newspaper articles and articles from weekly magazines should be fully cited in the references section rather than worked into the text of the paper. For examples of the correct style for various forms of publication, see recent articles in The Professional Geographer, The Professional Geographer Style Sheet (available on www.aag.org), and the 15th edition of the Chicago Manual of Style, published by the University of Chicago Press.

Tables. All tables must be referenced in the text. Each table must be typed double-spaced on a separate page in the same 12-point font as the text, and numbered sequentially with Arabic numerals. Each table must have a descriptive title as well as informational column and row headings. Decimals appearing in tables should include leading zeros: 0.1273 rather than .1273. For examples of the preferred table style, see recent articles in The Professional Geographer.

Illustrations. Maps, graphs, and photos should convey ideas efficiently and tastefully. Graphics must be legible, concise, and referenced in the text. Illustrations must be designed to fit the page and column format of The Professional Geographer; 12.7 × 19.5 cm (5 × 7.65 inches) or 6.3 cm (2.48 inches) for a single column. For review purposes, graphics may be uploaded as .gif, .jpg, .eps, .pdf, or .tif files. For printing purposes, all graphics must be computer generated and will be accepted in the following formats only: .eps (Encapsulated Postscript) for most illustrations or .tif (Tagged-Image File Format) for raster images. Type sizes below 6 point should be avoided. Detailed guidelines and support for authors may be obtained from Thomas Hodler, Cartography Editor (cartedit@uga.edu or 706-542-6913). For further instructions, please read the Graphics Guidelines available at www.aag.org

Authors may print four color illustrations at no charge. Authors wishing to include additional color illustrations may be expected to cover a percentage of the cost of printing. On request, the Managing Editor (profgeog@aag.org) will provide an estimated cost.

Copyright. Authors must sign a copyright transfer agreement before their paper can be published. In accordance with copyright laws, the manuscript must not duplicate substantial portions of previously published material. If a manuscript incorporates previously published material (in the form of text, tables, or figures), the author is responsible for obtaining written permission from the copyright holder and for any costs associated with the use of the copyrighted materials.

Final Submission. Upon acceptance, the final version of each article must be submitted in digital and hard copy form to the Managing Editor. Final Submission Guidelines will be provided by the Managing Editor. Figures should be submitted in accordance with the Guide to Preparing Graphics (available at www.aag.org).  Please note that files uploaded to AAG Manuscript Central are for review purposes only—they are not considered final files. Copyediting will be undertaken once the manuscript has been accepted and entered into production. Authors will have the opportunity to review their typeset galley pages before the article is published. Page proofs are sent to the designated corresponding author. They must be carefully checked and returned within 48 hours of receipt.

Reprints. Each corresponding author will receive one complete copy of the issue in which the article appears and 25 complimentary reprints of their article upon registration with Rightslink, Taylor & Francis' authorized reprint provider. Authors will need to create a unique account and register with Rightslink for this free service. The link is provided at the time of page proof review. Complimentary reprints are not available post publication. A discount on additional reprints is available to authors who order before print publication.