Learn more about the evolution of business models in academic journal publishing, and watch our workshop on navigating article publishing charges.
- Frequently Asked Questions
What are publishing fees?
With certain business models of scholarly publishing, some journal publishers charge authors a publication fee to make the article Open Access (OA). These publication fees are also known as article processing charges (APCs) and can be charged to publish in entirely OA journals (Gold OA) or in journals that provide authors the option to make their article open (Hybrid OA). Most Gold OA journals do not publish these fees, but they are somewhat common amongst the large commercial journal publishers.
How do I pay the publication fee?
Publishing fees from large commercial publishers can cost several thousand dollars. Authors who receive external research funding, such as from the Tri-Agency federal funders, may expense the fees. Certain faculties also offer some internal funding, such as the Faculty of Science's New Faculty Publication Support Fund.
The library has also negotiated OA publishing rights with some journals that cover the fees entirely, or provide a discount to authors. See the publishers below for more details.
Are there alternatives?
Yes! There are many paths to Open Access, including free options. Instead of publishing in a Gold OA journal, or paying to make your article OA with a publication fee, you can choose to deposit a version of your manuscript in our institutional repository. This is known as Green OA, and allows authors to make their work open for all to read without having to pay publication fees. Most journal publishers will allow authors to deposit a pre-formatted, accepted version of their manuscript in such repositories – typically with an embargo period.
How do I take advantage of the discounts or waivers from the library's negotiated agreements?
For most publishers, simply ensure that the paper's corresponding author uses their UWindsor affiliation. With most publishers, in order to qualify for the licensed publishing rights, the corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. The journal's manuscript processing system will automatically check the corresponding author's affiliation against a database of institutions with OA agreements and will provide a waiver or discount when there is a match. Authors may be prompted to accept the offer or sign an additional agreement to publish the article as OA. Details for each publisher can be found below.
Fully-funded publishing fees
The library has negotiated agreements that cover the entire article processing charge of most or all journals. If you have any questions or comments on these, please do not hesitate to email us at scholarship@uwindsor.ca.
| Publisher | What is covered? | details |
|---|---|---|
| Cambridge University Press | 100% coverage of the article processing charge for all Cambridge University Press journals. | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. Once your manuscript is accepted, you will be able to publish your article in Open Access for free. The waiver does not apply to book reviews, discussions, editorials, introductions, letters, meeting reports, or proceedings. More details are available on the CRKN website. |
| Elsevier | 100% discount in over 1,800 hybrid journals. 20% discount for most gold OA journals. | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. Once your manuscript has been accepted, the corresponding author will receive an email to complete the publishing process. During this stage, they will be offered the opportunity to apply the discount. Exclusions apply to Cell Press, Lancet, and some other society-owned journals. More details are available on the CRKN website. |
| Institute of Physics | 100% coverage of the article processing charge for all Institute of Physics journals. | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. Some journals, such as AAS (American Astronomical Society) journals and journals published by some partner societies, are exempt from this agreement. The CRKN website provides more details. |
| Oxford University Press | 100% coverage of the article processing charge for hybrid Open Access journals. 10% discount on the article processing charge for gold Open Access journals. | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. Some journals are exempt from this agreement because they don't support Open Access. The CRKN website provides more details. |
| SAGE | 100% coverage for SAGE hybrid Open Access journals (SAGE Choice journals). 40% discount for SAGE gold Open Access journals. | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. You'll be notified about the APC discounts when your manuscript is accepted. The CRKN website has more details. |
| Wiley | 100% coverage is available for Wiley hybrid Open Access journals only. | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. Once your manuscript is accepted, you will be asked if you wish to publish it in open access. If you choose to do so, the APC fee will be waived for hybrid journals. More details are available on the CRKN website. |
Discounted publishing fees
The library has also negotiated some agreements that partially discount publishing charges. If you have any questions or comments on these, please do not hesitate to email us at scholarship@uwindsor.ca.| Publisher | discount | details |
|---|---|---|
| American Chemical Society | Discount: $250 USD flat discount Applies to: Hybrid OA journals | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. APC discount is applied upon manuscript submission when the authors must identify their institutional affiliation. |
| BioMed Central (part of Springer Nature) | Discount: 15% Applies to: All journals | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. When submitting your manuscript to BMC for the first time, you will be prompted to select your affiliation for the APC discount. If you are connected to the University network, this should happen automatically. Read more on the BMC website. |
| Canadian Science Publishing | Discount: 25% for all journals, and 100% for select journals | Any author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. The APC discount is applied upon submission of the manuscript. Authors must identify their institutional affiliation to qualify for the discount. Corresponding authors at UWindsor will be able to publish OA articles for free in the following five journals:
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| National Academy of the Sciences | Discount: $500 USD flat discount Applies to: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. Details are available on the PNAS website. |
| SpringerOpen (part of Springer Nature) | Discount: 15% Applies to: Springer Open journals only | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. When submitting your manuscript to BMC for the first time, you will be prompted to select your affiliation for the APC discount. If you are connected to the University network, this should happen automatically. Read more on the Springer Open website. |
| Taylor & Francis | Discount: 25% Applies to: Hybrid OA journals only (T&F calls these "Open Select" journals) | The corresponding author must be affiliated with the University of Windsor. Once your manuscript is accepted, you will be asked if you wish to publish it in open access. If you choose to do so, you will be offered a discount to apply. Details are available on the Taylor & Francis website. |