What is Open Access?
Answer
What is Open Access?
The term ‘Open Access’ refers to the removal of price and permission barriers to scholarly research. Open Access means peer-reviewed academic research work that is free to read online and that anybody may redistribute and reuse, with some restrictions eg acknowledging original author(s).
Open Access publishing is a requirement for many of the major funders and the University strongly encourages all University of Manchester authors to publish their research Open Access. Please check your individual funder’s Open Access policy.
There are different routes to Open Access. You can read more about these routes in the links below:
What are the benefits of Open Access?
Publishing OA can increase the discoverability, reach, and the potential impact of your research. Benefits of OA include:
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Enhanced visibility, accessibility and exposure of your work
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The public, researchers from global and smaller institutions, independent researchers, and policy makers can all access and benefit from your research
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There is evidence that Open Access publishing results in increased citations
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Increased opportunities for international collaboration
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Increased transparency and research integrity through adoption of this Open Research practice
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The enabling of faster sharing of new research; this was demonstrated through the Covid pandemic [Coronavirus (COVID-19): sharing research data | Wellcome]
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Compliance with funder Open Access policies and requirements, and can help secure future research funding
Further reading
- Open Access and the Humanities: Contexts, Controversies and the Future by Martin Paul Eve.
- Open Access by Peter Suber
Further support
Need any help? You can find more articles about other Open Access-related topics or get in touch with the team.