For decades, the university-wide Department of Languages managed disciplines covering English, Filipino, Spanish, and Literature. But in 2010, English was spun off as an independent department under the Faculty of Arts and Letters for the purpose of laying the groundwork for the establishment of an academic program called Bachelor of Arts in English Language Studies (BA-ELS) at the University of Santo Tomas. Corollary to this change, a journal was established to create a platform for faculty members, and graduate and undergraduate students to publish their research papers. The publication was intended to support the development of a research culture and, at the same time, promote excellence among the faculty members and students under the Department of English. This publication was called the Asian Journal of English Language Studies (AJELS). Although the publication is based in the University of Santo Tomas, it also welcomes contributions from other universities and academic organizations, both local and international, with a special focus on the Asia Pacific region. With such orientation, the AJELS presents itself as a primarily Asian platform reaching a wide audience internationally in the field of linguistics and language education.

The first volume of AJELS was released in October 2013, with Dr. Marilu Rañosa-Madrunio as the founding editor-in-chief. She was supported by the inaugural editorial board composed of Dr. Alejandro S. Bernardo, Mr. Roy Randy Y. Briones, Dr. Veronico N. Tarrayo, and Dr. Camilla J. Vizconde, who was then-chair of the UST Department of English. AJELS was conceptualized with the help of prolific researchers, including Dr. Allan B. De Guzman of UST and 13 scholars from international universities who served as the Journal’s advisory board. Among the supportive advisors of AJELS during its early years were Dr Resty M. Cena (formerly of University of Alberta, Canada), Dr Christopher Conlan (formerly of Curtin University, Western Australia), Dr Azirah Hashim (University of Malaya, Malaysia), Dr Paul Kei Matsuda (Arizona State University, USA), and Dr Ricardo Ma. D. Nolasco (University of the Philippines). With their valuable guidance and the vision and work of the founding editorial team, the journal was officially launched on February 10, 2014. At present, it has in its roster about 30 outstanding academics from reputable institutions around the globe who serve as peer reviewers.

From 2013 to 2017, AJELS was published on print mode. In 2018, the journal became fully online and open-access to make it more available to as many readers and researchers as possible worldwide. This shift to online publication was made possible through the University’s full support. Moreover, because open-access publications are paperless, the bold decision the Department took to upgrade AJELS to a fully digital mode is a significant step toward reducing our carbon footprint and ultimately taking better care of the environment.