Self-Archiving: Information for Authors and Researchers
The CAR: Supporting Impactful Research
The aim of the CARJ and its contributors is to increase the reach, accessibility, and impact of research that affects the practice of Canadian radiologists. When research findings are made more widely available, evidence can be translated into policies and practices that bring downstream benefits to Canadian patients and the health system as a whole.
What Is Self-Archiving?
Self-archiving, also known as ‘Green Open Access’, is the practice of uploading research papers, articles, or datasets to digital repositories or institutional repositories affiliated with their university. The latter are often library-run websites that enable researchers to upload their work for public display and access. Institutions employ librarians and data specialists who can ensure long-term archiving and accessibility of the work.
5 Reasons to Self-Archive
- Self-archiving in an institutional repository increases the accessibility of the research, and the likelihood that the papers will be read, cited, and applied clinically.
- Papers that are uploaded to institutional repositories are given permanent identifiers (URLs that do not change), which ensures that research can be preserved over time and that it will always be accessible.
- Researchers whose work is funded by the Tri-Agency (e.g., CIHR) are required to ensure that all research papers generated from funded projects are made open access through the publisher's website or via an online repository within 12 months of publication.
- Many institutional repositories also monitor access views, downloads, and other metrics to track how research is being used worldwide.
- Work submitted to institutional repositories often receives search engine indexing, resulting in higher search engine rankings than items posted on departmental or personal websites.
How to Self-Archive
The process of uploading material to an institutional repository varies by institution. Researchers can access the relevant repository, instructions for uploading, and the contact person for additional assistance using the list below
A word on timing and embargo periods: articles published in the CARJ are subject to a 12 month embargo period, meaning that the papers cannot be made public until 12 months post-publication. Researchers can check the relevant embargo period for other publications using SHERPA/Romeo. Many repositories allow the researcher to upload material at the time of their choosing and specify the embargo period or posting date.