Agreements Enabling APC-Free Publishing
For more than a decade, Emory Libraries have supported many external initiatives focused on increasing open access publishing and improving diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in scholarly communications. We have also supported Emory researchers by establishing the Emory Open Access Publishing Fund as a fund of last resort in 2013 so that funding to pay article-processing charges (APCs) is available, assuming that applicants meet the fund's eligibility criteria. In 2022, we built on this foundation by implementing read and publish agreements with scholarly publishers. The name for these agreements reflects the fact that they support zero-cost, open access reading and publishing for Emory's researchers.
APCs typically range quite widely from $500 to over $10,000 and are usually paid partially or fully out of authors’ departmental or grant funds or special library funds, such as the Emory Open Access Publishing Fund.
However, thanks to these read and publish agreements, if you have an emory.edu email address, you can publish open access in all American Chemical Society (ACS), Cambridge University Press, Institute of Physics (IOP), Royal Society (RS), and Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) journals at no cost. Included in these deals are hybrid journals (i.e., some content is paywalled, and some is open access). These agreements continue our efforts to maximize the accessibility, availability, and impact of Emory research.
The process for making your article open access is simple. When you are accepted for publication in a journal from one of these publishers, you will be asked if you wish to publish your research open access, either as a “funding request” or a “Read and Publish” option. Respond in the affirmative, and no further action is required on your part. Simple instructions for each publisher are below.
Note: Be sure to use your Emory.edu email address to take advantage of each open access agreement. If you don't see your publisher below, check the eligibility requirements for the Emory Open Access Publishing Fund to see if you qualify for funding there.
- During submission via ACS Paragon Plus, select Emory University from a drop-down box and use your Emory email address (note: Emory researchers must be the corresponding author to qualify for this funding).
- Complete the Journal Publishing Agreement to publish open access and retain copyright.
- Click on the "Order Open Access" link in the JPA tool to submit the open access funding request.
- We will be alerted of your open access funding request and your work will be published as ACS open access via a CC BY 4.0 license and made freely available on the ACS Publications website at no cost to you.
- Confirm the Creative Commons license under which the article should be published. Please note your funder may require you to select a specific Creative Commons license, e.g., CC BY 4.0 license.
- Rightslink works on Cambridge’s behalf to process article process charges (APCs). When you are contacted by Rightslink, enter Emory University in the "Affiliation Discount" section
- Your APC will be automatically waived.
- At step 6 in the submission process, you can indicate that you want to publish open access. Select this option, and IOP will contact you separately.
- Either during the peer review process or once your article has been accepted for publication, you will be asked to sign an open access copyright form to publish under a CC BY 4.0 license.
- During the submission process, simply state details of your institution, then select the “Read & Publish” option.
- Be sure that you are listed as the corresponding author, both in RSC's online submission system and in your manuscript.
- Use your official institutional email address to submit your manuscript (this helps RSC to identify you).
- State your institutional affiliation and email address in your manuscript and make sure this remains the same, even after submission.
- Do not sign the standard license to publish; upon acceptance of your manuscript, you will be able to choose and sign the CC BY or CC BY-NC open access license.
