Research Publishing

What authors need to do

Use the steps below as a checklist for research publications covered by the QA237 Research Publishing Policy (applies to all staff and students of the University of Galway. It covers research publications such as journal articles, conference papers, books, book chapters, monographs and reports. Artistic, creative and literary works are recognised as essential research outputs but are excluded from the mandatory elements.)

1. Plan publishing outlet and open route

• Identify suitable journals, conferences or presses that are recognised in your field. Check College or School guidance or publishing strategies (Example of Utrecht University Toolkit for College Publishing Strategies) and the curated lists of domain-leading outlets (Internal Access) managed by the Research and Innovation Committee
• Decide how the output will be made openly available, taking into account funder and policy requirements. See routes to Open Publishing describing repository-led (Green), APC-free (Diamond), and publisher-hosted (Green, Diamond, or Gold)
• Check for eligibility under national read-and-publish and other open publishing agreements. The National Deals for APCs page sets out current agreements and conditions, including the need to assert University of Galway affiliation.

If you are unsure about a journal, publisher, or press, consult Library guidance on responsible journal selection and predatory publishing or ask for individual advice from experts in publishing in the Library.

2. Before you submit

• Use 'University of Galway' as your primary affiliation on the manuscript and in your ORCID record, where relevant.
• Make sure you will have the correct Author Accepted Manuscript (AAM) file, required metadata (authors, funder, grant, DOI), and permissions for any third-party content so you can deposit in the local Research Repository without delay on acceptance or publication.
• Under the University of Galway Research Publishing Policy, you retain copyright and license content to the publisher. The Library has already notified publishers that eligible AAMs can be made open in the University of Galway Research Repository under CC BY on acceptance. You can add a rights retention statement to your cover letter if you wish, but you do not need to negotiate it with the publisher. Email openanddigitalresearch@universityofgalway.ie with any questions or issues from publishers.
  • Suggested text: "For the purpose of open availability, the author has applied a public copyright licence to the Author Accepted Manuscript arising from this submission to enable immediate repository dissemination."
• If you anticipate legal, ethical, security or commercial sensitivities that might require postponing immediate open access, contact the Library and your Research Office representative before submission so that a possible exception can be discussed with the Embargoes sub-committee.

3. When your publication is accepted

• Prepare the version you are allowed to share. Preferably, the Version of Record (publisher PDF), where permitted, otherwise the Author Accepted Manuscript.
• Deposit this version in the University of Galway Research Repository using the “How to submit” instructions and include accurate metadata, including funder information and grant numbers
• If you need help with the deposit process, contact the repository support service in the Library.

Note: In 2026, a new workflow will be introduced that allows you to submit open publications via the Current Research Information System (CRIS), with eligible publications automatically pushed to the Research Repository. We will update these web pages with up-to-date instructions as these workflows go live.

4. After deposit

The Library will:

• Verify that an appropriate version has been deposited and check metadata
• Check any exception requests, copyright and licence information
• Make the deposited version openly available under the policy and any approved embargo
• Register DOIs for items where appropriate and ensure metadata are harvested by national and international discovery services. 

You do not need to repeat these steps on other repository platforms unless required by a specific funder or collaborator.

Frequently Asked Questions

Not paying vs paying: What do I do

Paying an Article Processing Charge (APC) can buy immediate publisher-hosted open access. It is not the only compliant route. Research Repository/CRIS deposit (Green) and APC-free venues (Diamond) often meet policy needs without author payment.

If you do not pay

• Publish and deposit AAM (or permitted version) in the Research Repository/CRIS (Green)
• Use Diamond OA where a suitable venue exists in your field
• Rely on read-and-publish agreements (National APC deals via IRel) where eligible (APC covered centrally)
• Watch embargoes and rights, and find out more about rights-retention where relevant.

If you pay (APC or similar)

• Immediate open access on the publisher site (Gold or Hybrid)
• Licence terms may be standardised (often Creative Commons, depends on journal)
• Central payment eligibility may depend on the APC quota, publisher agreements, and affiliation check
• Still deposit in Research Repository (Green).

How to choose where and how to publish

The policy expects authors to exercise due diligence and avoid outlets that engage in deceptive or poor practices. Outputs in questionable outlets may be ineligible for internal support or excellence-focused initiatives.

For support with selecting an appropriate publication outlet:

• Use the Open Publishing service page as the main entry point for Library advice on making publications open, understanding APCs and using repository deposit
• Consult the Guides for information on quality indicators, predatory publishing and tools such as DOAJ, Think. Check. Submit., and major indexing services.
• Check the National Deals for APCs page for information on publisher agreements, quotas, eligibility and how to take advantage of read-and-publish deals.

If you plan to publish a book, chapter or other long-form output, you can also discuss options with OpenPress at University of Galway and the Open and Digital Research team.

How to meet policy and funder requirements

The Research Publishing Policy sets out University-level expectations for the open availability of research publications, alignment with external policies, and the use of institutional infrastructure, such as the Research Repository and CRIS.

As an author, you should:

• Ensure that each publication carries a clear statement on how others can access underlying research data, software or materials, where appropriate
• Use 'University of Galway' as the primary affiliation for outputs arising from University employment or student research, including in persistent identifiers such as ORCID
• Follow funder-specific open publishing rules and licence requirements. The Open Publishing Guide explains the major funder policies and how they interact with University supports.

If you believe there are substantial grounds for a postponement of immediate open availability, you should:

• Document the reason (for example, legal, ethical, national security or commercial sensitivity)
• Deposit metadata in the Research Repository even where the full text is withheld
• Seek approval via the process described on the Research Publishing Policy page (postponement of immediate open availability is being developed)