There are many ways to make a work openly available that do not require authors to pay any fees!  You may:

  • Select publishers that allow authors to deposit final manuscripts or final formatted articles in scholarly repositories, such as the University Digital Conservancy or an appropriate disciplinary repository
    • Deciding which journal to submit your article to? Find out a journal’s policy in the SHERPA/RoMEO database.
    • Article already published? Search the article DOI at Shareyourpaper.org for ways to share your article.
  • Negotiate to retain your copyrights, including the right to openly share post-publication.  See www.lib.umn.edu/copyright/manage-your-rights.
  • Contact your subject specialist librarian to discuss specific alternatives in your discipline (list of specialist librarians by subject area: www.lib.umn.edu/about/selectors)

If you are an author who has already been accepted to a publication that charges an Article Processing Charge (APC) for all articles, you may be able to seek a waiver from the publisher after indicating that there are no institutional funds available. 

Also consider choosing a journal with which the University has a relationship that provides a discount on APCs.

Any further questions? Please contact openaccess@umn.edu or visit www.lib.umn.edu/openaccess/approaches-open-access

Questions or comments about open access issues at the University of Minnesota, and in general, can be directed to openaccess@umn.edu.