Scholarly Publishing and Communication

Open access (OA) can be defined as content that is “digital, online, free of charge, and free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.” (Suber 2012)

Some of the benefits of OA include:

• Free, immediate, and equitable access to content
• Promotes collaboration and scientific advancement
• Higher citation rates and research impact

While this page has a focus on OA articles, other research outputs can be published OA as well. Read more about OA benefits and debunking common myths in the article Benefits of publishing your work open access: debunking myths.

Open Scholarship and Research Impact Challenge

Gold OA

• Involves publication in an OA journal
• Requires a publication fee called an article processing charge (APC)
  • APCs can sometimes be covered or reduced by research funders, institutions, and sometimes by the journal publisher
• Once published, content is immediately and freely available to everyone
• Find Gold OA journals in the Directory of Open Access Journals

Hybrid OA

• Gives authors the option to make their work OA
• Requires an APC
• Once published, content is immediately and freely available to everyone

Green OA

• Involves depositing the postprint version of the article into an OA repository.
  • Examples include institutional repositories (D-Scholarship@Pitt) or subject repositories (see OpenDOAR to explore different options).
  • Article is made open access in the repository after an embargo period.
• Check first that the journal has a policy that allows for green OA.
• No APCs

Jisc's Open Policy Finder allows you to check the OA policies of journals and funders ahead of time before you submit. Search by funder name, journal title, ISSN, or publisher name to view a summary of their OA options, including green OA. Records in this database includes information on publication fees, copyright ownership, embargo timelines, and more.

For the most up to date information, refer to the journal or funder's website.

The Health Sciences Library System (HSLS) and the University Library System (ULS) have agreements with several publishers to enable eligible authors to publish open access, either at no charge or at a discounted article processing charge (APC).  

These agreements cover corresponding authors who are currently enrolled as students or employed at the University of Pittsburgh. Many of these agreements are also available to current UPMC employees and students.  While eligible article types may vary by publisher and journal, normally only original research, review articles, and case studies are eligible.

For specific details and included journals see the below links  

(Details outlined for each publisher include: discount or funding available; who is eligible; included journals; excluded journals; submission instructions; limitations; and agreement effective dates)