ijtihad journal was originally a forum for the Shari'ah Faculty of UIN Imam Bonjol Padang academics to intensify their efforts to publish scientific works in an organized and periodic manner. The first edition of ijtihad was published in 1997. For several decades, the management of this journal has not been organized, so several editions were published with inconsistencies in the management and guidelines. Since 2009, ijtihad journals have started to be published in printed editions regularly until now. The printed version of the ijtihad journal was on A5 paper.
In 2016, the Dean of Fakultas Syari’ah enacted rumah jurnal. Rumah jurnal has an official journal management on Fakultas Syari’ah. Since Volume 31 Issued 1 Year 2015, ijtihad has refreshed it by changing the print appearance to A4 size with a purple cover. Changes were also made to the writing format by adopting a two-column style. In issue 32 of Number 2 of 2016, ijtihad renewed the article template by using a body note that refers to the Chicago Style citation.
ijtihad journal began to be published in an online edition since Volume 33 Issued 1 Year 2017. In 2017, ijtihad published 1 issued only due to some technical problems that could not be avoided. Ijtihad was re-published in Volume 34 Issued 1 Year in 2018 with a refresh in terms of the appearance of the cover and the logo. This edition also updates article templates to adjust to national and international accredited journal standards.
The newest template has been published since Volume 35, Number 1, Year 2019.
Starting with Volume 42, Number 1, 2026, the Ijtihad Journal officially adopted a new article template as part of its continuous commitment to improving the quality of scientific publication management. This revision includes enhancements to the article structure, manuscript formatting, citation style, and submission guidelines in accordance with current best practices in both national and international scholarly publishing. The implementation of this new template is expected to improve the consistency, readability, and overall quality of published articles while strengthening the journal's visual identity and professional standards.
The Ijtihad Journal's commitment to enhancing editorial management and the quality of scholarly publications has also received national recognition. Based on the Decree of the Director General of Science and Technology, Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, Number 355/DST/D.D1/HM.01.01/2026, the Ijtihad Journal was awarded a new National Accreditation at Rank 5 (SINTA 5). This accreditation is valid for publications from Volume 39, Number 2 (2023) through Volume 44, Number 1 (2028). This achievement marks an important milestone in the journal's ongoing efforts to strengthen its editorial governance, peer-review process, and publication quality in accordance with national standards while continuously advancing its reputation within the international scholarly community.