Transforming Scholarly Communication at Marquette

Scholarly Communication is Changing

 

Rising Cost of Scholarly Publications

The process of Scholarly Communication, upon which scholars depend to share their work, has undergone significant changes over the past two decades. The steep rise in subscription costs for scholarly journals, especially in the sciences, has had a significant impact on libraries. This price escalation has often led to routine cancellations of journal subscriptions and cutbacks in other areas of collecting.

Open Access via the Web to Research

Prompted in part by the escalation of serials prices as well as by the possibilities presented by access to Web-based research, an "open-access" movement is flourishing in academia. The open-access initiative promotes the provision of journals that are freely available online. The Marquette University Libraries actively select open-access journals for linking via MARQCAT. In addition, recent legislation has required free access to research articles funded by the National Institutes of Health. Another opportunity to promote the provision of open-access materials is the creation of institutionally sponsored repositories that provide open or nearly open access to the intellectual output of academia.

Retaining Author's Rights

Digital technology has shifted delivery of much scholarly content from print to electronic, making dissemination of scholarly work easier and more broadly accessible. However, copyright and authors’ right restrictions tend to reduce access to scholarship. Therefore, the Libraries urge Marquette authors to retain their rights when submitting articles for publication. Marquette University and Raynor Library are committed to promoting scholarly communication in all its forms. This site provides resources to help scholars navigate this shifting landscape.