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Open Access Publishing

This guide highlights open access publishing for AUB affiliates as well as self-archiving at AUB. It also provides information and resources on author's rights, open access publishing, what to do before publishing plus some venues

What is Open Access?

Open Access (OA) refers to allowing unrestricted online access to scholarly information including peer-reviewed journal articles, conference proceedings, working papers, graduate theses, data, and other. For more on this, click here or watch the PhD Comics Animated video entitled Open Access Explained!

Ask a Librarian

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Nabila Shehabeddine
Contact: Jafet Library
American University of Beirut
Tel: 961 01 350000 ext. 2629
E-mail: ns24@aub.edu.lb

Open Access (OA) Publishing is a publishing model whereby scholarly journals, articles and books are published online with no or minimal restrictions on access and reuse.

There are two basic types of Open Access Publishing.

https://library.carleton.ca/sites/default/files/img/open-access-green.jpg
 

Green Open Access Publishing also known as Self-Archiving. ​

  • Researchers can deposit their pre-print or post-print works in
    • An institutional repository (e.g. AUB ScholarWorks) 
    • A subject specific repository (e.g.ArXiV). Click here for a list of Open Access repositories.
  • Copyright is retained by the publisher
  • Access could be direct or may be delayed due to embargo periods set by the publisher

https://mitpress.mit.edu/open/assets/img/open-access-icon.png

 

Gold Open Access Publishing. 

  • Researchers publish their articles in
    • An Open Access Journal
    • A Hybrid Journal (Subscription based journal with a paid open access option)
  • The publishing costs also known as 'Article Processing Charges' is usually paid either by the author or by the author's institution
  • Copyright is held by the author
  • No embargo and the access is immediate through the publisher website

To learn more about the difference between green open access and gold open access, click here.

Researchers should understand their copyright options before publishing and can refer to SHERPA/RoMEO to learn about Open Access and Self-Archiving copyright policies.

Open Access Publishing - Publication Cycle by Darren Chase


Open Access Publishing may lead to:

  • Increased visibility, exposure, usage, and impact of research
  • Expended readership
  • Greater citation rates


Some Misconceptions about Open Access Publishing:

  • OA journals are not of good quality or can be considered 'predatory'
  • OA works are not copyrighted
  • OA journals do not have peer review
  • OA publishers charges fees to publish

Article Processing Charges (APCs) are charged to authors of articles published in open access journals. APCs are used by open access journals to cover publishing and dissemination of information. ACPs vary widely by publisher and subject areas. 

There are many reputable open access publications that do not charge open access costs or ACPs to authors of publications. This is known as Diamond (Platinum) Open Access. These publications are usually financed by a university or research organization

To find journals that do not charge ACPs use: