The SoSE 2025 conference keeps a rigorous peer-review process to ensure high-quality research contributions that advance the field of systems of systems engineering. Our process is designed to uphold the standards of academic excellence expected by both researchers and practitioners worldwide, whether they are coming from industrial or academic world. Below, we outline the steps involved in the peer review for all submitted papers:

1. Initial Submission: Authors submit their manuscripts through our conference submission portal, adhering to the formatting and submission guidelines outlined in the Call for Papers.

2. Preliminary Screening: The organizing committee conducts an initial screening to verify that submissions meet the basic criteria for relevance, novelty, and technical quality. Papers not meeting these requirements are returned to the authors without further review.

3. Double-Blind Review: Accepted submissions undergo a double-blind review process, where neither the authors nor the reviewers know each other’s identities. Reviewers are extracted from the TPC committee according to their competence, the load of assigned reviews and according to a random criteria. If specific competences are missing in the TPC, the organizing committee will involve additional external reviewers. So, each paper is reviewed by at least two experts in the field, who evaluate the work based on several key criteria:

   • Originality and Novelty: The extent to which the research introduces innovative ideas or approaches within systems of systems engineering.
   • Technical Merit and Rigor: The soundness of methodology, accuracy of results, and the overall robustness of the research approach.
   • Relevance and Impact: The potential of the findings to contribute to advances in the field and to benefit the broader research and engineering community.
   • Clarity and Structure: The readability and organization of the manuscript, including the effectiveness of data presentation and discussion.

4. Reviewer Feedback and Revisions: Authors receive feedback from reviewers, and, in some cases, may be invited to make revisions to strengthen their papers. Revised papers are re-evaluated before a final decision is made.

5. Program Committee Decision: The organizing committee reviews the recommendations from the reviewers and deliberates to make the final acceptance or rejection decision. Only papers that meet the high standards of the SoSE 2025 conference are accepted for presentation and publication.

6. Final Submission and Presentation: Accepted papers are submitted in their final form and scheduled for presentation at the conference, ensuring that only the highest-quality research is shared with the SoSE community.

Our Commitment to Quality:
The IEEE SoSE conference is committed to a transparent and thorough peer review process to promote innovation, reliability, and academic integrity in all published works. Our program committee an TPC include a mix of leading experts and young researchers from academia, industry, and government, ensuring that each paper is reviewed by individuals with deep and updated subject-matter expertise.