Publications - What is?

  • What is Minerva Elements?

    Minerva Elements is the University of Melbourne's research output collection and management system and which ultimately feeds into the researcher’s profile in Find an Expert and to the Researcher Project Dashboard and the  Academic Performance Framework (APF) Dashboard. It is the tool for the collection of and reporting of data on all research outputs published by the University, and the method by which publications are made publicly available in the Institution’s open access repository, Minerva Access.

    Research Outputs are:

    *Books, journal artilces, book chapers, reports, working papers and conference papers

    *Artisitic research items ie original creative works, recorded/rendered works.

  • Why does the university collect data about research outputs?

    The University of Melbourne collects data on research outputs published by staff and students of the University. This data provides the University with valuable information on the research activity of its staff and is used:

  • What is the Academic Role in Minerva Elements

    Academic Role

    • Claim or reject harvested articles
    • Enter labels: FoR, HERDC and SEO (used for University rankings
    • Attach approprite copy of publications. Check Sherpa Romeo box for correct version to attach, ie, published, Accepted (never 'submitted' version).  This is important for NHMRC and ARC grants.  Used as a University repository - see information below.

    Please view the support pages for publications here - https://gateway.research.unimelb.edu.au/resources/outputs/support

    Research Outputs (RO) team

    The collection and processing of research outputs will move over to the new Research Outputs (RO) team in Scholarly Services on Monday 29th March 2021. Staff access to the research outputs systems will not change; staff will continue to be able to interact with the research output systems, including Minerva Elements.

    If you have any research output queries, or requests for the collection or processing of outputs records, please contact the new RO team at research-outputs@unimelb.edu.au

    Academic Liaison Officer (ALO)

  • To Start - ORCID

    To start:  You will need to apply for an ORCID number. Once you have linked these into your Minerva Elements account publications will start to feed into the database.

  • How to enter and label Publications Guide

    For a complete and comprehensive guide to Minerva Elements in a step by step process please follow the instructions here.

    Labeling Research Outputs

    If you require further information and explanation please view the following.

    Minerva Elements Training and Support Materials

  • What is Minerva Access

    Minerva Access is the University’s Institutional Repository. It aims to collect, preserve, and showcase the intellectual output of staff and students of the University of Melbourne for a global audience. Increasingly funders are also requiring deposit of research output from grants to be deposited in an Institutional Repository and Minerva Access provides this service.   More information can be found here.

    On this site the following can be found:

    • What is Minerva Access?
    • What material does Minerva Access hold and what can be deposited?
    • How do I register as a Guest?
    • How do I link to material in Minerva Access?
    • Can I find out how many times my material has been downloaded around the world?
    • What is my My Account?
  • ARC/NHMRC Open Access Policy

    The funding councils want to ensure that the findings of publicly funded research are made available to the general public as soon as possible. Their policies therefore require that publications arising, in whole or part, from NHMRC and ARC grant funding be made freely available online via an Institutional Repository [IR] within 12 months of the date of publication.

    The NHMRC policy applies only to peer-reviewed journal articles published on or after 1 July 2012. The ARC policy applies to all publication arising from grants incorporating the ARC Open Access policy statement. In practice, this applies to grants awarded from 2013 under the 2014 [and later] Funding Rules.

    The Chief Investigator [CI for ARC, CIA for NHMRC] on the grant is responsible for providing the data which ensures compliance. Compliance requires [if a journal article] that a peer-reviewed version of the paper, as defined by publisher policies, be deposited into the CI/A’s IR. If an appropriate version of the paper is already available at another repository or at the publisher site, it will be sufficient to record and link to this version.

  • What is Open Access and other information?

    What is Open Access?

    Open Access (OA) in this OA Policy context means that access to published papers is available online freely and permanently to all rather than requiring personal or institutional subscription.

    Are there any exemptions from the policies?

    Yes – as follows:

    • Papers funded in whole or part by NHMRC but published before 1 July 2012 are not subject to the policy.
    • ARC funded papers where the grant was awarded before 2013 are not subject to the policy.
    • NHMRC Scholarship holders are not required to participate.
    • Some publishers may not have author rights policies compatible with these policies. While the bibliographic details of the output must still be recorded, it will be sufficient for the publisher’s non-compliance to be noted in the IR record and explained in the CI/A’s Final Scientific Report to the relevant funding agency.

    Do the policies apply to all publications or just journal articles?

    • The NHMRC policy applies only to peer-reviewed journal articles. Researchers are, nevertheless, encouraged to deposit any other peer-reviewed publication, funded or otherwise, into the Repository.
    • The ARC policy refers to all outputs funded in whole or part by their grants.

    What do I have to do to comply with the policies?

    If you are the CI/A you should:

    • Read and understand the publication agreements with your publisher[s]. In particular, check that the agreement gives you the right, especially in the context of a funder requirement, to deposit a peer-reviewed version of your paper into an IR.
    • Ensure that the “accepted manuscript” version of your NHMRC or ARC funded papers are retained at least until deposited into the Minerva Access Repository system.

    How to Upload publications onto Minerva Access

    NHMRC and ARC grantees should deposit papers subject to the OA policies via Minerva Elements into the Minerva Access repository. You will require your NHMRC or ARC GrantID Number[s], basic bibliographic detail (including DOI) and the version [accepted manuscript or published version] being deposited.

    To deposit research publications, open your web browser at the Minerva Elements login page. Sign in with your UoM staffID and follow the instructions on screen.  In “Minerva Access” section you will see a green box with a Sherpa Romeo logo telling you which version of the publication needs to be uploaded. You can upload the publication by clicking Upload new file.

    Your publications will not be made openly available without appropriate checks being made by Minerva Access staff of their copyright status and any embargo periods which may apply.

    Which version of my article can be deposited?

    The NHMRC and ARC policies require that a version of the paper post-peer review be made available.

    1. Author's accepted manuscript (AAM) version (returned to author after peer-review but before copy-editing - "green" version)
    2. Accepted manuscript (Author's) post-print version
      1. If you are unsure of the policy of your publisher, check your publisher agreement or check the SHERPA/RoMEO registry of publisher author-rights agreements for guidance. Contact Minerva Access staff for further guidance if you are unsure.
      2. In a few cases, the accepted manuscript may already be available at PubMed Central if funded by NIH or other funders with Open Access policies. Again, it will be sufficient to provide a link [such as the PMCID] from the Repository to the PMC site to comply with the policy.
    3. Final, Published (Publisher) version of the Paper
      1. A paper published in an Open Access [“Gold’] journal, such as the PLoS or BioMed Central journals. This is the final published version of the paper.
      2. A paper published as Open Access in a subscription [or “Hybrid “] journal, usually paid for by author or authors associated with the research. This is the final published version of the paper.
      3. In the above cases, while you are welcome to deposit a copy of the paper into the Repository it will be sufficient to provide an “OA Location” link [such as the article DOI] from the Repository to the publisher site to comply with the policy.
    4. paper published in a subscription journal where the publisher makes all papers freely available at or within 12 months of the date of publication.
      1. in this case, it will be sufficient to provide an “OA Location” link [such as the article DOI] from the Repository to the publisher site to comply with the policy.
    5. A paper published in a subscription journal where the publisher allows the author to deposit the published version of the paper in the Repository. Only a small number of publishers will allow this, many of them listed here.

    Which versions of the article cannot be deposited?

    • Submitted Version. This version [also known as the ‘Submitted Manuscript Under Review’ or ‘Preprint’] is NOT acceptable for NHMRC or ARC as it has not been through the peer-review process.
    • Published Version – unless permitted as outlined above.

    What is my publisher’s Author Rights policy?

    • Publisher policies for authors, describing what they can and cannot do with the various versions of their papers, are often described in the publisher’s agreement with the author, at the publisher website and in the SHERPA/RoMEO registry of publisher author-rights agreements. Minerva Access staff can be consulted for further guidance if you are unsure of your rights.

    What if I no longer have the AAM available?

    • The corresponding author may be able to go retrieve the AAM from the publisher’s manuscript management system. Publishers such as Elsevier make this option available. Approach the editor of the journal if the above option is not available or contact Minerva Access staff for further advice.

    What if my publisher does not allow me to make any version Open Access?

    • NHMRC and ARC understand that some publishers do not allow any version of the paper to be made openly available at or within 12 months. In such cases you should provide an explanation in the Final Scientific Report to your funding council that, for legal or contractual reasons, you could not comply with the OA policy.

    Do I have to pay to make my article Open Access?

    • No. Some publishers are contacting authors suggesting they pay an Article Processing Charge to make their paper compliant with the NHMRC [and ARC] policies. You may choose to do this but it is not part of either the NHMRC or ARC policies to require that you pay such Article Processing Charges. Many of the same publishers will allow for the accepted manuscript version to be made available at no cost. If, after enquiry, the publisher will not allow this you are still not compelled to pay to make the paper OA. Rather, you should provide an explanation in the Final Scientific Report to NHMRC.

    ARC Grants and Books or Book Chapters?

    The ARC OA policy covers all forms of research publication, including books and book chapters. While the economics of publishing make it much harder for commercial publishers to allow entire books to be made available OA, more and more publishers will allow “accepted” versions of chapters from edited or authored works to be made available. Publishers like Brill, Cambridge, OUP and Taylor &Francis have policies helpful in this context. If unsure about your publisher’s position, please ask Minerva-Access staff.

    Further Information

  • Open Access Publishing Agreements

    The University of Melbourne has signed an open access publishing agreement with a number of journals (those with subscription charges) – this means that rather than being charged Article Processing Charges (APCs), staff can select the option to make their papers open access at no charge to them as authors.  Please note – this doesn’t apply to existing open access only journals (e.g: PloS, BMC) – these charges will still be covered by the author.

    Full details can be found at: https://library.unimelb.edu.au/open-scholarship/open-access-publishing-agreements. Types of agreements and models include:

    • Read and Publish: An agreement where both subscription fees and open access publishing fees are combined into a single contract.  However, publishing components can vary and there may be journal exclusions or an annual cap on the number of open access articles covered.  See below for details on each agreement.
    • Subscribe to Open: If the journal reaches their target subscription revenue at the start of each year, they will make the entire year’s content open access.  Subscribers will also gain access to back issues.
    • Open access publishers are also exploring institutional level agreements to remove the barrier of author-facing APCs.  Any agreements with the University are also included in the list below.

    Publishing agreements (no author-facing APCs) include:

    Annual ReviewsCSIRO publishingPortland Press (Biochemical Society)
    BerghahanDe GruyterPractical Action Publishing
    BrillFuture Science GroupRoyal Society
    Cambridge University PressMicrobiology SocietySpringer Nature
    CogitatioOxford University PressWiley

    Notes: all agreements are viewed annually.  The webpage will be updated to reflect any changes.  Click here for full details.

  • What Support can I request?

    In the first instance please discuss any queries with your Publications Coordinator.

    REQUEST SUPPORT

    For queries that cannot be resolved by your publication coordinator, you can request additional support:

    Research Systems Queries

    Research Outputs Process Queries