Open Access Policy
Science Exploration Press is dedicated to advancing knowledge by making high-quality research freely available to everyone. As part of our commitment to open access, we have developed this policy to guide our practices and ensure transparency, accessibility, and sustainability in the dissemination of research.
What is Open Access?
Open access refers to the free, immediate, online availability of research articles, allowing anyone to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of these articles. Open access aims to remove financial, legal, and technical barriers to accessing academic research, thereby facilitating the wide dissemination and use of scholarly work.
Our Gold Open Access Model
Science Exploration Press follows the Gold Open Access model, where all published articles are immediately and freely accessible to anyone upon publication. Under this model:
● No subscription fees: Readers do not pay for access to articles. All content is freely available on our journal websites.
● Article processing charges (APCs): To cover the costs of publication, including editorial management, peer review, and production, an APC is charged to authors or their institutions/funders for each accepted article. However, to support the dissemination of research, we are waiving APCs for all articles submitted and accepted until the end of 2028.
● Creative Commons Licensing: Articles are published under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0), which allows for broad re-use of the content while ensuring authors receive appropriate credit.
Benefits of Open Access
Open access provides numerous benefits for researchers, institutions, and society as a whole:
● Increased visibility and impact: Open access articles are freely available online, leading to higher visibility and increased readership. This often results in higher citation rates and greater impact for authors' work.
● Broader dissemination of knowledge: Open access removes financial and accessibility barriers, allowing researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and the general public to access and utilize research findings, regardless of their location or financial status.
● Faster and wider communication: Open access accelerates the dissemination of research by making findings available immediately upon publication, facilitating faster scientific progress and innovation.
● Enhanced collaboration: By making research freely accessible, open access fosters collaboration across disciplines and geographies, enabling researchers to build on each other's work and advance collective knowledge.
● Compliance with funding requirements: Many funding agencies and institutions mandate open access publication. Complying with these requirements ensures that researchers remain eligible for funding and meet institutional policies.
● Public good: Open access supports the principle that publicly funded research should be accessible to the public, contributing to education, informed decision-making, and the overall advancement of society.
Scope
This policy applies to all journals and publications managed by Science Exploration Press. It covers the following aspects of our open access publishing model:
● Access to published content: All articles are freely available online to anyone, anywhere, at no cost to the reader. This includes full-text articles, supplementary materials, and multimedia content.
● Article processing charges (APCs): To cover the costs associated with the publication process, we may charge an Article Processing Charge (APC) for accepted articles. APCs are used to support editorial management, peer review, copyediting, typesetting, and other publication-related activities. A temporary waiver of APCs is in place until the end of 2028, after which APCs will be implemented.
● Licensing: All published articles are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license, which allows others to freely share, reuse, and build upon the work while giving appropriate credit to the original authors.
● Archiving and preservation: We ensure that all published articles are archived in trusted, long-term repositories to guarantee their ongoing availability and preservation. Our digital preservation strategies include regular backups and compliance with best practices for data management.
● Compliance with funders' policies: We adhere to the open access policies of major funding agencies and encourage authors to comply with funders' requirements for open access and data sharing. Authors are responsible for ensuring that their work meets these requirements.
● Transparency and accountability: We maintain transparency in our publishing practices, including the disclosure of APCs, editorial processes, and the handling of conflicts of interest. Detailed information about our policies and procedures is available on our website.
● Sustainability: We are committed to ensuring the long-term sustainability of our open access model. This involves continuously evaluating and improving our practices, seeking innovative funding models, and collaborating with stakeholders to support the future of open access publishing.
Author Responsibilities
Authors are encouraged to:
● Check licensing and copyright: Ensure that their work is submitted with the appropriate licensing and copyright permissions to allow open access publication.
● Disclose funding sources: Clearly disclose any funding sources and conflicts of interest related to their research.
● Comply with institutional and funder policies: Adhere to institutional and funder policies regarding open access and data sharing.
● Promote their work: Actively promote their published work through social media, academic networks, and other channels to increase visibility and impact.
Contact Information
For questions or more information about our open access policy, please contact contact@sciexplor.com. We are here to assist with any inquiries and provide support to authors, readers, and other stakeholders.