The submission guidelines for the Forced Migration Research Archive (FMRA) are available here. Currently, they focus specifically on depositing postprints of "relevant peer-reviewed journal articles in English, French and Spanish." Since this category is quite broad, here are a few things for potential contributors to consider:
Who should submit?
- All authors focusing on forced migration issues are welcome to contribute their peer-reviewed postprints to FMRA. Because FMRA is a subject repository, it can accept submissions from a broader range of researchers, whereas institutional repositories (IRs) predominantly collect content from their affiliated faculty and students.
- That said, many potential contributors lack any access to an IR, including academics whose universities have not yet established a repository, most NGO-/IGO-affiliated authors, as well as independent researchers. FMRA fills this gap.
- For authors who have never deposited a postprint before, FMRA is a great place to start! Because FMRA uses a mediated deposit form, the submission process is quick and easy. No accounts need to be set up to contribute, and the librarian on the receiving end will be in touch if there are any issues.
Why submit?
- First and foremost, depositing in FMRA gives authors an additional avenue for showcasing their scholarly output and ensuring its availability over the long-term.
- This translates to increased discoverability and greater research impact; studies have identified a "positive citation effect" for manuscripts in repositories.
- Depositing postprints in FMRA may also allow authors to comply with green open access requirements stipulated by research funders.
- Moreover, self-archiving in FMRA indicates an author's support for information equity and "community over commercialization" - in line with this year's Open Access Week theme! This table lists the article processing charges (APCs) authors would have to pay to make a single article open access in key journal titles in the forced migration field; the fees range from US$2600 to over US$4000 - too costly for many authors to afford.
- Finally, FMRA will only become a useful resource to those seeking information on forced migration issues through the contributions it receives. If you have benefited from open access yourself, then submit to FMRA as your quid pro quo!
What to submit?
- As stated above, FMRA is currently focusing on "relevant peer-reviewed journal articles in English, French and Spanish." The journals will typically be subscription-based (i.e., not fully open access) and must allow self-archiving in a repository. Most do, but authors can always confirm a journal's policy in the Sherpa Romeo database. For some examples, see this short list of key journal titles in the forced migration field of study, with links to their self-archiving policies.
- Postprints of journal articles published recently or in the past are all welcome - there is no stipulation regarding publication date.
- Authors who have already deposited postprints elsewhere can also deposit them in FMRA, as long as they meet the general criteria set out above. One advantage of doing so is that you already know where you can retrieve a copy of your postprint - which can sometimes be hard to track down (the subject of the next blog post)!
When to submit?
- It is good practice for authors to deposit postprints soon after their journal articles have been officially published so that they don't have to worry about remembering to do it later! As the Explainer referenced above notes, many journal publishers impose embargo periods on when the full-texts of postprints can be accessed. These may range anywhere from six to 24 months. FMRA will set the embargo period for authors, and when it has ended, the text of the postprint will be made available automatically.
- Some journal publishers like Brill, Cambridge Univ. Press, Emerald and SAGE do not impose any embargo. This means that authors can deposit a postprint of one of their articles in FMRA either right after it has been accepted or right after it has been published online, and the full-text will be available immediately.
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