Open Access Policy
iCRAG Open Access (OA) Policy
As an SFI-funded research centre, iCRAG is committed to implementing SFI’s Open Access research policy. This means that research published by the Centre will be accessible for free and without restrictions. Authors of publications reserve the right to be properly acknowledged and cited.
What does this mean for researchers?
All SFI funded research as of 1st January 2021 must be open access. As iCRAG is an SFI funded research centre, all iCRAG funded-research going forward must be available through an open-access source (e.g. Gold open access or Green open access routes). For details of open access publication options, see below.
Why is this being implemented?
SFI is a member of cOAlition S, an international consortium of research funders which favours Open Access publication of research. Open Access research policies ensure that scientific research is readily available to all who may need to access it – whether they are members of the public or other researchers. As stated on the coalition S website: “The chain, whereby new scientific discoveries are built on previously established results, can only work optimally if all research results are made openly available to the scientific community.” Open access research, therefore, helps to ensure that research can be access by anyone who needs to.
Open Access resources at iCRAG partner institutions:
UCD: Open Access | UCD Research & Innovation
TCD: Open Access - Scholarly Communication - Library Guides at Trinity College Dublin (tcd.ie)
UCC: CORA UCC Institutional Repository - Open Access - UCC Library at University College Cork
NUIG: Home - Open Access Publishing - LibGuides at National University of Ireland Galway (nuigalway.ie)
DCU: Home - Open Access - LibGuides at Dublin City University
Teagasc: T-Stór - Teagasc Open Access Repository`
Useful Resources:
Unpaywall: An open database of 20 million free scholarly articles
Journal Checker Tool: Plan S Compliance Validator |
Sources: SFI open access policy & FAQs, Coalition S website, DORA website
Gold Open Access
There are two options:
- Publication in an open-access journal: The procedure is similar to publishing in a regular journal i.e. the article is submitted to the publisher and undergoes peer review. There may be a charge for publication which is paid by the author, however, this is often reimbursed by the funder.
- Transformative agreements: This involved publishing in a subscription or hybrid journal committed to transitioning to a fully open access journal. In this case, the researcher’s institution pays the publisher for subscription and open access publishing.
Green Open Access
This involves publishing in a traditional journal and depositing a copy of the final version of articles to an institutional repository. No embargo period is allowed, and a Creative Commons licence must be used. The publisher must be informed that the author is retaining their rights to their work.
Institutional Repositories in iCRAG:
UCD: Home | Research Repository UCD
TCD: TARA (tcd.ie)
UCC: CORA UCC Institutional Repository - Open Access - UCC Library at University College Cork
NUIG: Home - Open Access Publishing - LibGuides at National University of Ireland Galway (nuigalway.ie)
DCU: Frequently Asked Questions - DORAS (dcu.ie)
DIAS: Repository Help - DIAS Access to Institutional Repository
Teagasc: T-Stór - Teagasc Open Access Repository
