OA Publishing @ SJSU (ScholarWorks)

The SJSU Library supports open access publishing for SJSU faculty through read and publish agreements with academic publishers. These agreements allow the library to cover the cost of open access publishing for SJSU faculty. At this time, the SJSU Library is not able to offer funding directly to faculty authors to subsidize the cost of Article Processing Charges (APCs).

About Read and Publish Agreements

Read and publish agreements expand traditional subscription agreements between the library and publishers to include support for SJSU authors to publish their work open access. You may also see these agreements referred to as transformative agreements. If we are able to negotiate these types of agreements with more publishers, we will continue to update the list below.

NEW **ACM Open**

ACM Journals are moving to a fully-OA model by 2026. As institutional members of ACM Open, corresponding authors from the CSUs have the opportunity to publish eligible article-types in ACM journals and conference proceedings without paying Article Processing Charges (APCs), with a few limited exceptions. More information can be found in the following announcement: Open Access Publication & ACM.

NEW **IGI Global**

Term: 1 December 2025 - 30 November 2026.

SJSU researchers qualify for a 5% discount on APCs when publishing in IGI Global open access journals. To be eligible, the corresponding author must list their affiliation as SJSU and/or use their SJSU.edu email address when submitting their manuscript.

NEW **MDPI Open Access Program**

Starting May 15, 2025, SJSU Library has joined MDPI's Institutional Open Access Program. Under this program, SJSU authors qualify for:

• 10% discount on  Article Processing Charges (APCs) for all affiliate authors (must provide SJSU email domain);
• 10% discount on Book Processing Charges (BPCs); and
• 15% discount on Author Services (e.g., English Editing Services).

American Chemical Society

Term: 1 July 2022 - 31 December 2025

SJSU is one of over 50 California institutions to enter into a read and publish agreement with the American Chemical Society (ACS). This agreement allows SJSU authors to publish open access in ACS journals at a discounted rate. Articles must have an original acceptance date between July 1, 2022 and December 31, 2025.  

Cambridge University Press

Term: 1 January 2022 - 31 December 2024 (renewal expected)

As part of an agreement reached through the Statewide California Electronic Library Consortium (SCELC), SJSU authors can publish open access in Cambridge University Press Journals at no additional cost to the author.

See which Cambridge journals are part of this agreement.

Elsevier

Term: 1 January 2025 - 31 December 2027

Through an agreement between Elsevier and CSU, eligible SJSU authors are able to publish open access in select Elsevier journals at no additional cost to the author. Learn more about the agreement between Elsevier and CSU. Articles must have an original acceptance date between 1 January 2025 and 31 December 2027.

Use Elsevier's journal search tool to find eligible titles.

Institute of Physics (IOP)

Term: 2023-2025

As a member/affiliate library of the Statewide California Electronic Library Consortium (SCELC), SJSU authors can waive the OA charge when publishing in  76 hybrid and fully OA IOP journals -- excluding AAS and 17 hybrid society titles. More details, including workflows, can be found on the SCELC IOP 2023-2025 Open Access Agreement website.

Oxford University Press (OUP)

Term: 2025-2028

The 10-campus University of California system, 20 of 23 California State University campuses (including SJSU), and 30 private academic and research institutions represented by the Statewide California Electronic Library Consortium have reached a comprehensive four-year transformative open access agreement with OUP. Beginning Feb 2025 through 2028, eligible authors from participating institutions will be able to request use of this account to contribute towards the Open Access charge when arranging payment in OUP’s online licensing and payment system. Authors with grant funds available will pay a discounted open access publishing fee across OUP’s hybrid and fully open access journals. Authors without grant funds available will be able to publish open access in hybrid journals at no cost to them. To request use of Open Access funds from the UC, CSU or SCELC Read and Publish deal, please follow the steps outlined in this step-by-step guide.

Click here to download a spreadsheet of eligible hybrid or fully open access OUP titles.

While the SJSU Library is excited to support faculty publishing open access with Elsevier and other publishers, it is important to note that many open access journals have no article processing charges (APCs) and are free to both authors and readers.

the California State University system subscribes to Pressbooks, a digital publishing platform that can be used to create dynamic, interactive learning materials or open education resources. SJSU faculty: contact Barbara Sperling (CSU Academic Technology Services) to request an account on the CSU Pressbooks platform.

Why use Pressbooks?

• Create engaging learning materials enriched with videos, multimedia, formative quizzes, and more.
• Ensure access to learning materials via multiple downloadable formats.
• Decrease your students' financial burden by publishing your own textbook.
• Retain copyright by not publishing with a traditional book publisher.

Tip: if you plan to use your Pressbooks learning materials in your course (s), contact SJSU's Affordable Learning Solutions (AL$) team for more information on the benefits of being part of AL$.

Getting Started

CSU faculty can request access to Pressbooks for publishing open access books and learning materials. Email the CSU Pressbooks administrator, Barbara Sperling,to request an account. You'll find her contact information and more on the AL$ Pressbooks page.