Mastering Open Access: A Trusted Guide to Success

There is more discussion than ever surrounding open access and the future of publishing. Globally, the percentage of scholarly research published open access continues to grow each year, including that of open access articles in ACS journals.

There are many reasons why authors are increasingly choosing to publish open access:

• Support for Open Science: Many researchers choose the open access route through a personal desire to support the broader open science movement, which champions a globally inclusive landscape built on collaboration—not only among researchers and across academic fields, but also between publishers, funders, and institutions to make their work freely available for everyone.
• Institutional Requirements: Others are required or encouraged to publish open access by their research funder or institution. Navigating these requirements and processes may seem challenging if you are new to open access publishing, but there are many options available to make this journey easier than ever (read along to find out which ones may be best for you).
• Greater Visibility and Discoverability: When an article is published open access, anyone in the world with internet access can find and read it free of charge. As a result, open access research is more likely to be discovered by peers and indexed in search engines and online databases—often leading to greater citations.

Regardless of your reasons, ACS Publications has designed our open access publishing processes to be as easy as possible for you as an author. And just like the open science landscape, these processes are constantly evolving—as our journal portfolio and open access output continues to grow, we will continue working to provide authors with the best “OA first” venue to publish their original research.

Your Open Access Publishing Roadmap

With a publishing program spanning more than 85 journals, ACS Publications has a home for your research. Once you've identified which journal you would like to submit to, our Author Guidelines page will help you identify any journal-specific considerations for your manuscript.

Read and publish agreements are a type of transformative agreement between publishers and institutions in which the institution pays the publisher a single fee covering both access to subscription-based content (the “read”) and the costs for authors to publish their work fully open access (the “publish”). These agreements encourage the sustainable transition towards a more equitable, inclusive scholarly publishing environment, where knowledge is widely and easily attainable for all.

More than 1,000 institutions in nearly 40 countries currently have read and publish agreements with ACS Publications. Before submitting your manuscript, find out if your institution currently participates in a read and publish agreement or if your research grant includes support for open access publishing charges.

Your manuscript is ready to submit…but what if your institution doesn’t yet participate in a read and publish agreement? What if you want to publish outside of a peer-reviewed journal? What is the difference between Green and Gold open access? We’re here to help.

ACS Publications provides authors with a variety of pathways when choosing to publish open access, including our newest zero-embargo green open access option. This option provides sustainable support for authors who are required to make their accepted manuscript available immediately upon acceptance, but do not already benefit from a read and publish agreement or have access to other funding to cover article publication charges.

Visit the flowchart below to learn more about this new option and to explore all of ACS Publications’ pathways to open access.

Coordinating a rigorous peer review process is an enormous undertaking, but one that provides tremendous value to authors. ACS editors identify and communicate with multiple qualified reviewers who volunteer their time to ensure authors receive comprehensive, helpful feedback as quickly as possible (a matter of weeks for most ACS journals).

ACS Publications’ peer review process is designed to guide authors along their journey of scientific discovery and toward future publication while upholding the highest standards of publishing integrity. Learn more about the tools and guidance we provide for authors throughout the peer review process, as well as the entire publishing journey, below.

Your manuscript has made it through peer review and has been accepted for publication—congratulations! There’s just one final step in your open access journey: the Journal Publishing Agreement (JPA).

Every author is required to complete sign a JPA upon acceptance of their manuscript, which includes choosing your licensing option. If you have access to a read and publish agreement, you should be automatically prompted to publish under that agreement. Otherwise, you will be prompted to provide details for payment of the article processing charge. If you are eligible for a full or partial discount based on the country you work in, this will automatically be applied.

Learn More About Open Access at ACS Publications

We are a long-time supporter of, and leader in, open access. Our commitment to the open science movement is reflected across our author-focused open access programs, institutional agreements, and wealth of resources available for authors and administrators to understand and navigate the ever-evolving open access landscape.

Visit our Open Science Resource Center to learn more about our dedication to open access and the resources we offer to help make your open access publishing journey as easy as ever.