Glossary

Glossary

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An APC is a fee paid to the publisher to make an article free at the point of access. The publisher moves the cost of publication from the reader (via subscriptions and pay-walls) to the author (via the APC). Could be paid via a read and publish deal or transformative/transitional agreement.

Learn more about APCs and other open access payments

A researcher's raw manuscript, after peer review but before publisher formatting. Also known as manuscript after peer review, author accepted manuscript, peer-reviewed version.

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A BPC is a fee paid to the publisher to make a monograph free at the point of access. The publisher moves the cost of publication from the reader (via subscriptions and pay-walls) to the author (via the BPC).

Learn more about BPCs and open monographs

Creative Commons is a non-profit corporation dedicated to making it easier for people to share and build upon the work of others within the framework of national copyright laws. The Creative Commons suite of free copyright licenses provides a simple, standardised way to give users permission to share and use creative and scholarly work.

Learn more about Creative Commons licences

Some publishers only permit 'green' open access after an embargo period.

Learn more about open access embargoes

A publication route (or ‘type’) of open access, where the publisher makes the work open access within their system, openly licensing it for reuse.

Learn more about 'gold' open access

A publication route (or ‘type’) of open access, where the author deposits their work into a repository so the work is free to access. This is often done because the published version is only accessible for a charge (see hybrid/subscription).

Traditionally the version deposited is the AAM and sometimes is subject to a timed embargo period before public release.

Learn more about 'green' open access

A subscription journal where you can pay an APC to make a single article open. An alternative, free to the author, 'green' route to open access can also be used in these journals.

Learn more about hybrid subscription journals

Immediate deposit: A copy of the final peer-reviewed accepted version of the item) is deposited in ORA at the time of final submission to the publisher.

Optional access: Where possible, the full text is made open access at the point of deposit. Optionally, it is embargoed in compliance with the publisher’s conditions.

Learn more about depositing your work

The author’s written work before it is peer-reviewed. Also known as paper or draft.

Making research publications freely available and licensed for reuse, so anyone can benefit from reading and using research. 

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An online service which stores, preserves, disseminates and allows free access to the research publications of an institution or scholarly community. 

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OA journals perform peer review and then make the approved contents freely available to the world under a licence.

Learn more about the types of open access journals

Oxford’s institutional repository, containing research outputs produced by members of the University of Oxford. 

View the Oxford University Research Archive

An early version of a scholarly article that is published online before being published in a journal.

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The published version of research, after peer review and publisher formatting. Also known as VoR, formatted manuscript, publisher's version.

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