UWS provides support to researchers with publishing Open Access. The open access publishing process below supports you to select an appropriate route to make sure your output reaches a relevant audience and is compliant with REF open access requirements.

Whichever route you choose, you must follow the steps listed in 'Recording Your Output' as soon as your work has been accepted for publication

Remember to add sustainable development goal keywords to your research publication submissions to increase their impact. Contact the IT Helpdesk for a copy of the sustainable development goal tool to help identify suitable keywords.

UWS Library service has agreements with a range of publishers which cover the cost of publishing Open Access in some or all of their journals or conference proceedings. Review the Current Open Access Publishing Agreements to see whether any of the listed journals could be suitable for your article.

If you are the submitting corresponding author, and your output is accepted for publication in a journal or conference proceedings that is covered by a publishing agreement, follow the steps listed in 'recording your output'. This will allow library staff to approve use of the agreement to cover the cost of publication.

Advantages of this route

Articles are made available open access within the journal as soon as the issue is published, so people searching the journal will be able to get access to the article straightaway. You also have the benefit of the publisher's professional page design and layouts. You may hear this referred to as 'Gold' Open Access.

Agreements are available for use by all UWS researchers, including students.

What to watch out for

Some publishers do not include all of their titles within the agreement. In particular, journals that are listed as 'Fully Open' are often excluded. The publisher's information should make it clear which titles are and are not covered, but if you need further advice, contact Pure@uws.ac.uk.

You must be the submitting corresponding author, have a UWS e-mail address and list UWS as your main affiliation to be eligible to use a publisher agreement.

Availability and content of agreements may change from year to year. Always check the current list before deciding to take this route.

When your output details and accepted author manuscript are added to Pure, these are checked and made available as soon as possible based on the terms set out by the publisher. Many publishers allow the author manuscript to be made available immediately, as soon as - or sometimes before - the article is published in the journal.

Embargo periods for specific journals can be checked at https://openpolicyfinder.jisc.ac.uk/ or contact Pure@uws.ac.uk for advice.

Once the record has been checked and published in Pure, it is made publicly available. As long as no embargo is required by the publisher, you can share the Pure link to the manuscript straightaway wherever you choose. You may hear this referred to as 'Green' Open Access.

Advantages of this route

You can follow this route simply without the need to deal with publisher open access workflows. If your output has a defined audience with clear routes for sharing information, your target audience can be reached with the manuscript. 

This route has no additional cost, so if it is suitable for your output, sharing your manuscript allows central funding to be directed towards outputs that cannot be made open access any other way.

What to watch out for

This route may not meet the requirement of REF if the publisher requires an embargo on the manuscript.

If your outputs has a broader public audience, manuscripts may be less visible than outputs made available Open Access in the original publication.

If a route to Open Access publishing cannot be found through a publisher agreement, and sharing the manuscript is not suitable for the required distribution of the research, Article Processing Charges (APCs) may be covered for articles, submitted by UWS staff, that are expected to have a significant impact.

Requests will automatically be approved for payment if

• The submitting corresponding author is a UWS member of staff with significant responsibility for research and a UWS e-mail address
• The cost of the APC is less than £2,500 (Additional charges for elements such as additional pages or colour images will not normally be funded).
• The journal is listed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
• The steps listed in 'Recording your Output' have been followed
• Funds are still available

Articles costing over £2,500, submissions to journals not included in DOAJ and payment of other charges may be considered by the research review panel. 

Advantages of this route

Articles are made available open access within the journal as soon as the issue is published, so people searching the journal will be able to get access to the article straightaway. You also have the benefit of the publisher's professional page design and layouts. You may hear this referred to as 'Gold' Open Access.

This route can support you to publish Open Access in the most suitable publication for your research, even where a publisher agreement is not available.

What to watch out for

You will need to meet a number of criteria for your output to be funded. It is advisable to contact Pure@uws.ac.uk if you are considering using this route before selecting the Open Access option to confirm that funds are still available.

Where the request needs to be reviewed by the panel there may be a delay to publication whilst the review is carried out. If you have already opted for Open Access publishing through the supplier workflow, you may need to find another source of funds if payment is not approved.

UWS is a member of the Scottish Universities Press (SUP) providing Open Access Publishing at reduced cost. If you have a book accepted by SUP, publishing costs will be covered as long as central funds are available at the point of the request.

Cost of open access publishing of books (other than through SUP), chapters and other outputs will only be covered in exceptional cases, but may be considered by the review panel on a case by case basis. You should contact Pure@uws.ac.uk with information about your proposed output, including an outline of the impact that open access publishing will have. Your request will be reviewed by the panel who will contact you with the outcome as soon as possible.

Whichever route you take to publish open access, you must follow the steps below as soon as your output is accepted.

What to do when your output is accepted

1. Add the details of your output to Pure if you have not done so already.

2. Attach a copy of your accepted author manuscript.

(This is the final agreed version of the article after amendments, but before the publisher's layout is added).

3. Check that you have included the acceptance date in the article details.

(This is the date of the e-mail or other communication from the publisher that says your output has been accepted for publication)

If you have any difficulties with completing these steps contact Pure@uws.ac.uk for advice