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George Mason University Infoguides | University Libraries
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Open Access Publishing Fund

University Libraries supports Open Access publishing

Criteria used to select an OA journal in which to publish are essentially the same as those to vet a traditional, subscription-based journal, with the added criterion of open access. The research should understand the journal’s review process, reputation in the discipline, impact factor (or similar metric), and acceptance rate. In addition to the appropriateness of the subject content, these criteria may have bearing on your decision to submit to a particular journal.

Learn more about what factors to consider when selecting an open access journal to publish in.

Journal Requirements

Requirements must be met by a journal for an individual to apply for OAPF support.  The journal must:

The plethora of open access journal titles, and attendant indiscriminate manuscript solicitations, invites caution before entrusting one’s research and reputation with a publisher.   The following site that can help you identify reputable publishers:

             

https://thinkchecksubmit.org

Hybrid Journals

Authors may wish to publish in a journal that offers the option of paying a fee to make a subscription-based article immediately and freely available online (i.e., the “hybrid” model). The OAPF program does not support publication in hybrid journals although some of our discount programs do include such publications (see below).  Our OAPF program's core purpose is to stimulate and support truly open access publishing.

 

Publishing Discounts

Mason authors receive article processing fee discounts when publishing open access with the following journal publishers. To benefit from these discounts, the article's corresponding author must be from Mason and use their Mason email address.

See information for authors for important details and exclusions.

Publisher Discount Based on Information for Authors
Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) 100% VIVA Read/Publish Agreement Information for Authors
BioMed Central (BMC) 15% Institutional Membership Discount on APCs
Cambridge University Press 100% VIVA Read/Publish Agreement Information for Authors
Ergo: An Open Access Journal of Philosophy 100% Institutional Membership

Waives $20 submission fee

Institute of Physics

(a 2-year pilot agreement ending 12/31/2024)

100% VIVA Read/Publish Agreement Information for Authors
International Water Association 100% VIVA Read/Publish Agreement  
Rockefeller University Press 100% VIVA Read/Publish Agreement Information for Authors
Wiley 100% VIVA Read/Publish Agreement Wiley Agreement FAQ