Open Access Publishing @ Wits: APC Fund for OA publications

BEFORE PAYING ANY FEES FOR SUBMITTING A MANUSCRIPT (NON-REFUNDABLE IF YOUR PAPER IS NOT ACCEPTED), OR PAYING AN APC OR OTHER CHARGES, PLEASE SEE ABOVE LINK AND ADVICE BELOW ON AVOIDING SUCH CHARGES.  

BEFORE YOU PAY HIGH ARTICLE PROCESSING CHARGES (APCS) TO PUBLISH IN AN OPEN ACCESS JOURNAL, PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:

1. Check and select DHET Accredited Journals that do not charge APCs.  You can also do a search on ​NWU accredited journals search engine (Courtesy Corrie Breitenbach and Elize van Eldik, North-West University Library) and then select OPEN in the 3rd search field, and NO in the 4th search field.  You will get a list of all DHET accredited OA journals that do not charge APCs.  There are over 12 000 journals listed on the Directory of Open Access Journals that do not charge APCs, but they may not all be on the DHET accredited list,. First cross-check before selecting a journal that charges APCs. 
2. If your publisher in a closed subscription journal allows you to place a copy of your work on a personal or departmental website, then attach a Creative Commons Licence to it.  You will then be able to place that OA CC-licensed version on WIREDSPACE. Click here to see how to do this.
3. If you have to pay an APC for an accredited Open Access journal and you would like some financial assistance, see APC Fund Information Sheet and Application Form on this page. Be aware that you will have to pay the APC to the publisher first, before you can receive assistance from this Fund.  Try negotiating a reduced APC or a complete waiver of the APC with your publisher.  Some publishers have granted these for authors who have found it difficult to find funds to pay the APC upfront.
4. Contact Bongi Mphuti at bongi.mphuti@wits.ac.za  (Tel. 0117171978) for advice or further information, or to arrange for a presentation about OA Publishing and How to Get Assistance from the Fund.

If you have published in a closed subscription journal, but the publisher allows you to place a copy of your manuscript (final peer-reviewed version sent for publication) on your personal or departmental website, please remember to attach a Creative Commons (CC) licence (www.creativecommons.org) to that version.  See: https://libguides.wits.ac.za/Copyright_and_Related_Issues/CreativeCommons, or contact your Faculty Librarian for assistance with this. 

You will then be able to deposit a copy of the CC licensed version on our institutional repository, WIREDSPACE.  Anyone using the copy on WIREDSPACE, will then need to follow that CC licence.

PLEASE NOTE:

• It is the responsibility of the author(s) to ensure the journal is on the DHET-accredited list, before submitting an application for APC funding. 
• Authors need to submit the published PDF version to the Research Office for DHET subsidy purposes in the year of publication. 
• The deadline for submissions is 25 November, as the deadline for finance to process them is 30 November each year.  

Documents required for a refund:

• Completed and signed application form by applicant and Faculty Business/Finance Manager (with correct Faculty-approved AKF account code (20 digit number). 
• Publisher's letter of confirmation of publication, or if published already, the first page of the published paper
• Publisher's invoice
• Proof of payment in Rands