McMaster authors can now publish in PLOS, select Wiley journals at no cost

McMaster University Libraries are announcing two agreements that remove financial barriers to publishing research.

The first is a pilot project with the Public Library of Science (PLOS) that will see the elimination of author/article processing charges (APCs). Typically, authors incur APCs to cover the cost associated with making their article publicly available for free in open access journals.

This means that McMaster faculty, staff, and students won’t need to worry about the financial implications of publishing in any PLOS journal from Feb. 1, 2023 through Jan. 31, 2025.

“The pilot is an amazing opportunity for graduate students and early career researchers, in particular, to more easily disseminate their work without having to incur the costs associated with publishing,” said Jennifer McKinnell, director of Health Sciences Library at McMaster. “We hope this agreement will encourage McMaster researchers to pursue open access publishing in PLOS journals.”

Meanwhile, McMaster is also part of a deal that will provide its authors with immediate open access publishing capabilities in select Wiley journals.

The two-year agreement for 2023-24 will allow corresponding authors from participating Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN) institutions to publish eligible articles to Wiley’s hybrid journals under an open licence with no APC.

The agreement is effective on Jan. 16, 2023 and includes 71 CRKN institutions.

“This is a great opportunity for McMaster authors to reach new readers,” said Casey Hoeve, associate university librarian, Content, Access and Open Licensing at McMaster University Library. “By reducing cost barriers, authors without funding for publishing can now make their articles fully open access. This will extend the reach of McMaster research, allowing new articles to be immediately read throughout Canada and internationally.”

There are no limitations on the number of articles accepted for publication in Wiley’s hybrid journals by an author during the agreement term.

Wiley publishes more than 1,330 hybrid journals across a range of disciplines.

Articles accepted for publication in Wiley’s gold journals are not eligible under this agreement.

Authors associated with the university should use their McMaster email address (@mcmaster.ca) when submitting an article to PLOS or Wiley to ensure streamlined access to these new opportunities.

The PLOS and Wiley agreements build on current initiatives at McMaster University Libraries that include publishing support for authors and subscription discounts through negotiated licence agreements with selected publishers.