Hello all! I’ve been intending to write this post for a while. Here in the Library we get asked all sorts of questions from research staff. So I thought I’d round-up a few tips that research/academic staff and PhD students may (hopefully!) find useful. (Dr Emily Davey, Research Outputs Manager.)
1 – Help with research data management – With the global drive towards ‘open research’, managing and sharing your research data is very important these days. The Library’s research data information page provides a ‘one stop shop’, covering everything from advice about writing data management plans, to data storage and back up, security, file formats and types, dealing with personal data and the GDPR, archiving data and open access, licencing and copyright. You may also like to contact the University’s Research Data Officer, Dr Gary Pike, on researchdata@port.ac.uk
2 – Gold Open Access discount deals – The Library has arranged free and discounted APCs (i.e. for gold OA) for UoP academics with some major publishers. This will allow your research to be shared online with anyone in the world as soon as it’s published. (How to apply for gold OA funding.) Highlights include:-
- Free APCs for articles published in Springer hybrid journals.
- APCs for £200 for articles published in Sage journals.
- 75% off APCs for articles published in Taylor & Francis hybrid
journals (coming soon).
3 – Help choosing a journal – Where to publish is very much an academic decision to be made within your department; however, it’s worth being aware of the tools available to you: –
- Journalmetrics.com: This internationally recognised database shows how (virtually) all journals are ranked. You can filter by subject area to identify the ‘top’ (and ‘worst’!) journals in your area. It has extremely good coverage for Science and Technology subject areas in particular. BAL subject area researchers may like to look at the ABS list instead.
- How to identify a ‘predatory journal/publisher’. These are to be avoided!
4 – How can I get an ORCID? An ORCID is a unique identifier number that every researcher keeps throughout their career. It ensures that you receive attribution and proper credit for your work each time you publish. See our ORCID information page.
5 – Which main stream news outlets, social media, blogs, policy documents, etc have referenced my research? The ‘Altmetric it’ tool will let you do this. It’s free and takes a couple of seconds to install. Help using Altmetrics. (If you need advice about research impact, then please contact the University’s Research Impact Officer, Dee Summers, dee.summers@port.ac.uk.)
6 – What is SciVal and should I be using it?! The short answer is probably, yes. SciVal is a powerful database that will let you do things like:-
- Identify areas of expertise within this university, or in any other
university, company or organisation. - Explore key trends in research areas.
- Find potential collaborators.
- See who our competitors are working with.
- Identify which journals/academics/authors are being cited most
highly.
7 – Who is my faculty Librarian and how can they help me? Your faculty Librarian can support your research in many ways, including helping you find, evaluate and acquire resources, use databases, run advanced queries, advise on referencing, and so on. Who is my Faculty Librarian?
Further information relating to everything in this post can be found on the Research Support pages on the Library website. Please feel free to get in contact with any questions – emily.davey@port.ac.uk (Dr Emily Davey, Research Outputs Manager, University Library).
Image credits –
Research Data – by Nick Youngson, Alpha Stock Images CC BY-SA 3.0
Vector illustration of sale tags – by Website Design Hot CC BY-SA 3.0
Question marks – by Pixabay CC0
Research and Innovation Services 