Open access refers to free, unrestricted online access to research outputs.
Open access brings many benefits including:
- increased visibility for Brock research
- higher citation rates
- public access to publicly-funded research
There are two main paths to open access:
Diamond or gold open access
- publishing in an open access journal which makes its contents freely and immediately available online
- Diamond open access:
- Journals which do not charge fees to either authors or readers
- Most (70%) of open access journals follow this model
- Gold open access:
- Journals which charge authors a fee – called an article processing charge (APC) – to publish
- Journals owned by major commercial publishers, such as Wiley, Elsevier, Taylor and Francis, etc., are most likely to levy expensive APCs
Green open access
- publishing in a subscription-based journal and then depositing a copy of your article in a subject or institutional repository, such as the Brock Digital Repository
- no article processing charges are required
Green open access is specified by the Brock University Open Access Policy:
“all Brock Scholars are expected to deposit an electronic copy of their academic journal articles in the Brock University Digital Repository by the date of publication.”
Open Access Support
Brock University Library advances open access to scholarly research produced at Brock – and beyond – by investing in:
- Publisher Memberships that offer discounts or fee waivers for researchers publishing in open access journals which levy article processing charges
- Platforms and infrastructure facilitating open access nationally and globally
- The Brock Digital Repository, which provides free, immediate access to Brock research outputs and allows Brock scholars to track downloads and views of their scholarship
- Scholarly Journals at Brock, a journal hosting service to support the publication of open access, peer-reviewed scholarly journals
Learn More
- Scholarly Communication and Open Access Guide – from Brock Library
- Open Access: Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition
- Open Access: Canadian Association of Research Libraries
- Brock University Open Access Policy and FAQ
- Tri-Agency Open Access Policy on Publications – FAQ