Writing about open access
On this page you will find words, phrases and content to help you communicate about open access.
It does not cover every possible scenario but provides some recommended, reusable content.
Things to understand
From our user research we know that authors and researchers:
- are focused on getting published
- do not have much time
- often do not speak English day to day
- have limited understanding of open access
- often avoid publishing open access due to concerns about how to pay the article processing charge
Open access content you can use
Use these pieces of content to help you when writing about open access. Think about the context you are using the content in and adapt as needed.
What is open access
Open access means publishing your work publicly so anyone can read it without having to pay a subscription or fee.
Why open access
The statements in this section can be supported by linking to evidence on our benefits of open research page.
In a sentence
Open access makes your work publicly available, meaning it can get more readers and more citations.
In a few bullet points
Publishing open access means you can:
- get more readers
- get more citations
- share your article as soon as it is published
In a few paragraphs
Open access makes research publicly available for everyone to read, cite and use. Unlike with a subscription, readers do not have to pay for access. This means more readers, citations and impact for research published this way.
Open access allows researchers to quickly respond to and build on each other’s work. Improved visibility of the work leads to better collaboration within and across disciplines.
Many organisations, research grants and governments now say that work must be published open access to get funding. Publishing open access makes it easier to follow these rules.
Link to more information
Learn more about the benefits of open research on our website.
Funding requirements
Tell people that many organisations require open access
Many organisations say that if they fund research, it must be publicly available to readers. Publishing open access is the easiest way to do this.
If one or more of your research funders requires the work they support to be publicly available right away, then you should publish open access.
Link to more information
Learn more about open access funding on our website.
Help people understand the article processing charge
Tell people they will not usually have to pay
There will only be an article processing charge (APC) if your article gets accepted and published.
You will not usually have to pay the APC yourself. Many organisations and research grants will pay the fee in part or full.
Help people find funding
To find out if someone else will pay an article processing charge for you, go to our funding and support service.
Open access agreements
We have open access agreements with many organisations that will cover article processing charges for researchers who work with them.
Go to our page on open access agreements.
Comparing open access and subscription
What is subscription
Publishing subscription means it is free to publish, but only those who subscribe to this journal will be able to read your work.
Negatives of subscription
Subscription articles:
- are only available right away to people who subscribe to the journal
- get cited less often
- get fewer downloads
Open access words and phrases
article processing charge
The charge for publishing an article open access. Lower case. No hyphen.
There is only a charge if the article is accepted and published.
Authors and researchers can usually have this paid in full or part by their institution or other organisations that support open research.
However, they often do not know they can get funding. They can be suspicious of why an organisation might be willing to pay.
Try to avoid shortening to APC and if you need to do it then only when you have explained it already.
book processing charge
The charge for publishing a book open access. Lower case. No hyphen.
CC BY
Type of Creative Commons licence. All capitals, no hyphen.
A hyphen is used only if there’s a clause relating to the licence, for example a non-commercial open licence would be ‘CC BY-NC’.
chapter processing charge (CPC)
The charge for publishing a chapter open access. Lower case. No hyphen.
Creative Commons attribution licence (CC BY)
Upper case on Creative Commons. Lower on attribution licence.
Licence is the British English noun
License is the British English verb.
Examples:
The CC BY licence is the default licence for all Palgrave Macmillan and SpringerOpen books and chapters.
For more information on OA licensing options in Springer Nature books and chapters see our book policies page.
hybrid journal
A journal that offers both open access and subscription options.
open access, open data, open science
Lower case. Unless it’s part of a proper name.
Example:
The Open Access Support Centre was set up to help people understand their options for publishing open access.
OA
Abbreviation for open access. Do not use it often and only where you have already shown that it stands for open access.
Words and phrases you should avoid
at no cost
Can be confusing because while the author or researcher will not usually have to pay it, there is a cost.
You could use ‘at no cost to you’, but be careful with this phrasing.
embargo
Too easily confused with journalistic embargo.
If you have to use ‘embargo’, explain what we mean by it.
Example:
You will not be allowed to publish or share the manuscript on your own website or anywhere else for 6 months.
freely available
Use ‘publicly available’ instead.
gold open access, green open access
Not well understood.
If you must use them, explain what they mean. Lower case.
paywall
Makes subscription or non open access options seem too negative.
repository
Not well understood.
If you have to use ‘repository’ explain what it is.
Example:
A repository is a digital archive where an organisation stores research.
Useful links
Open science at Springer Nature glossary
A detailed glossary of terms and definitions maintained by the content marketing strategy team.