Open Access and Scholarly Communications: Author Fund
General Fund Information
The Open Access Author Fund is now closed.
(April 16, 2024, 12:02 pm).
Memorial University Libraries Open Access (OA) Author Fund has been in place since 2011 to provide financial support of Memorial University authors who wish to publish their work in OA journals. The Libraries recognize that paying APCs can be a barrier for authors who are interested in publishing in gold OA journals so the Libraries will assist with the payment of associated APCs, up to a maximum of $3000 USD per year for each applicant and article, if the application meets all of the criteria outlined below. This year’s fund will open May 1st for students (undergraduate, graduate and postdocs) and May 14th for faculty and staff. Students are early career researchers who often require more support as they navigate a publishing process that can often be confusing and overwhelming, especially around licensing agreements, publisher agreements, and complicated workflows. This lead time will allow students to access the proper supports so they can succeed. The Libraries OA fund is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis in each of the funded applicant categories, according to the eligibility criteria.
Questions regarding the Open Access Author Fund can be directed to Dr. Kathryn Rose at kathrynr@mun.ca
Fund Eligibility Criteria
All of the following criteria must be met to be eligible for the Open Access Author Fund.
Who can apply:
- Applicants must be the corresponding author on the article.
- Applicants must be Memorial faculty, undergraduate students, graduate students, staff, post-docs, emeriti, or honorary research profs who are primarily affiliated with Memorial. Recent graduates can apply up to one year after their convocation, provided they have no other funding sources, their work was conducted at Memorial University, and they list Memorial University as the affiliation.
- Applicants must not have already received funding from the Open Access Author Fund during the current funding cycle; only one article will be funded per author per year (at a maximum of $3000 USD per article).
- Applicants must not have already paid the Article Processing Charge (the Library must pay the publisher directly; we cannot reimburse applicants as we have no mechanism by which we can reimburse individuals).
- Applicants must agree to deposit a copy of the funded paper to the Memorial University Research Repository immediately after initial publication.
What is covered:
- The journal must be gold open access (hybrid journals are ineligible for the Fund).
- The journal content must be peer-reviewed.
- The journal must be listed in the Directory of Open Access Journals.
- The journal must permit the author to retain copyright over their work (the journal uses Creative Commons or similar licencing).
- The article must have already been fully accepted for publication by the journal with all revisions complete.
Application Process
STEP 1: Ensure that you are eligible for funding via the Open Access Author Fund. The eligibility criteria for the Fund are listed on this page in the Fund Eligibility Criteria box.
STEP 2: Apply for funding by filling out the application form (the form is linked when the Fund is open). Just a reminder that your article must already be fully accepted before you are eligible to apply for the Fund.
STEP 3: The library will respond to your application within five business days. If your application is successful, we will provide you with invoicing information for you to pass along to the publisher.
STEP 4: To guarantee your funding, we ask that the publisher send the updated invoice to the Library within two weeks of notification of your application to the Fund being approved. We will pay the publisher directly. As noted in the Fund criteria, we are unable to reimburse applicants who have already paid for their APCs.
Additional Information
In addition to the Open Access Author Fund, Memorial University Libraries also has agreements with several publishers to provide discounted or entirely waived APCs. For more information about which publishers participate, please see Article Processing Charge (APC) Discounts. Another program that assists with funding MUN researchers is the Publications Subvention Program that gives priority to book-length manuscripts, but will take journal articles into consideration if funds permit.
Unfortunately, some publishers exploit the author-pays model of open access publishing for their own profit. These publishers are referred to as predatory publishers and they compromise the integrity of research and the scientific process. Articles submitted to suspected predatory journals will not be funded. Please consult Think. Check. Submit., COPE Core Practices, and/or the COPE/DOAJ/OASPA/WAME Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing to help determine the legitimacy of a journal.