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Scholarly Communications

This guide is a resource for researchers and authors interested in author rights, research impact, publishing, institutional repositories, and open access publishing.

What is Open Access?

Open Access is the free, immediate, online availability of research articles coupled with rights to use these articles fully in the digital environment. Open Access ensures that anyone can access and use these results - to turn ideas into industries and breakthroughs into better lives.

-   The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition

Open access (OA) content includes scholarly articles, data, research, and educational resesources. 

Impact of Open Access

  • Increased visibility: Open access publications are freely available to anyone with an internet connection, which can lead to increased readership, citations, and impact of the research.
  • Accessibility: Open access publications can be read and used by anyone, including those who may not have access to traditional subscription-based journals or who cannot afford to pay for access.
  • Faster dissemination: Open access publications can be made available to the public immediately upon publication, which can help to accelerate the dissemination of new research and findings.
  • Collaboration: Open access publications can encourage collaboration and interdisciplinary research by making it easier for researchers in different fields to access and build upon each other's work.
  • Public engagement: Open access publications can help to promote public engagement and understanding of research by making it more accessible and available to a broader audience.
  • Ethical considerations: Some researchers may view open access publishing as a more ethical and equitable way to disseminate research, particularly if their research was publicly funded and should be available to the public.

Pratt Institute Libraries,Open Access Resources.

Open Access @ LMU

Recommended Resources about Open Access

Books about Open Access