Open Access Policy at Virginia Tech: How to Deposit

You can deposit your scholarly article via 1) Elements, or 2) the web deposit form, or 3) by email, as described below.  Simply choose the method that works best for you.  Your article will become available in VTechWorks within a day or so, after a review by staff.  Once available, articles are generally indexed by search engines and Google Scholar within a few days.

Before deposit, please see the Version Prep tab to ensure that your article contains useful features.

For questions about the deposit process, email vtechworks@vt.edu.  For questions about the policy, email openaccess@vt.edu.

See step-by-step instructions below:

Elements deposit

Web form deposit

Email deposit

To deposit your article, go to Elements and log in. 

If the article has already been published:

1. Go to "Scholarly & creative works". Look on the lower left of your homepage.

2. Find the item in your publications list.  Note that journal articles and conference papers published from July 1, 2021 will be marked "In OA Policy."

 If the item isn't listed, check the "Pending" tab at the top of the page and then claim the item.

3. Click the black "Deposit" button on the right side of the item.  In the pop-up box, click "Deposit" again.

4. On the deposit screen, click "Browse" to select a PDF from your computer, and for File version, choose "Accepted version" (or "Published version" if the article is published open access with a CC license).  Then click "Use this file."

5. Optionally, you can add a second file, such as a Word version, or supplemental material.

6. If you would like an embargo, check the box and choose a number of months, or leave a comment in the box underneath (please do not select "Unknown," "No embargo," or "Indefinite", which are invalid choices).  The policy enables immediate deposit, so journal embargo periods need not be observed.  The maximum allowable embargo is 5 years, or 60 months (add a comment in this case). In the comment box, you can also request that article information not appear during the embargo. If you do not want an embargo, leave the box unchecked.

7. If you would like to specify a reuse license, check the box and choose one of the Creative Commons (CC) licenses.  If you do not check the box, the article status will be In Copyright (all rights reserved).

8. Click "Deposit".

 

If the article has been accepted but not yet published:

[NOTE: To avoid unintentional disclosure of patentable processes, please address technology, invention, or intellectual property disclosures prior to depositing a manuscript ahead of publication.]

1. Go to "Scholarly & creative works". Look on the lower left of your homepage.

2. In the upper right corner, click the plus sign in the black circle.

3. Choose the type of work you are creating.  Most of the time this will be "Refereed journal article," but you can choose "Journal article" or "Conference paper or proceeding."  All three are included under the umbrella term "Scholarly article" in the policy.

4. Enter the title to ensure you aren't adding a duplicate record, or click "Skip."

5. Fill out as much of the article information (authors, journal name, DOI, etc.) as you can.  For Status, choose "Accepted version". When finished, click "Save" at the bottom of the page.

6. On the deposit screen, click "Browse" to select a PDF from your computer, and for File version, choose "Accepted version".  Then click "Use this file." 

7. Optionally, you can add a second file, such as a Word version, or supplemental material.

8. If you would like an embargo, check the box and choose a number of months, or leave a comment in the box underneath (please do not select "Unknown," "No embargo," or "Indefinite", which are invalid choices).  The policy enables immediate deposit, so journal embargo periods need not be observed.  The maximum allowable embargo is 5 years, or 60 months (add a comment in this case). In the comment box, you can also request that article information not appear during the embargo. If you do not want an embargo, leave the box unchecked.

9. If you would like to specify a reuse license, check the box and choose one of the Creative Commons (CC) licenses.  If you do not check the box, the article status will be In Copyright (all rights reserved).

10. Click "Deposit".

To deposit your article, go to the OA policy deposit form.  You'll need to be logged into your VT/Google account.

1. Enter the article DOI (if available), title, and journal.

2. Choose "Deposit my article" and click Next.

3. Click "Add file" to upload your PDF.

4. Optionally, if you would like an embargo, add the release date in the box below.  In the next box, choose whether you want article information (title, authors, etc.) to appear in the VTechWorks record prior to the release date (enabling user requests), or whether you want a "dark" deposit (no information at all appears until the release date).  The policy enables immediate deposit, so journal embargo periods need not be observed.

5. Choose a license for your work.  Creative Commons (CC) licenses enhance scholarly sharing and reuse.  If you do not want a CC license, choose the last option, In Copyright (all rights reserved).

6. Check the VTechWorks distribution license.

7. If you would like an email confirmation, select this option and then click Submit.

To deposit your article by email, attach a PDF of your accepted manuscript and send it to vtechworks@vt.edu, with the subject line "OA policy deposit."  In the email body, please include:

• the article title
• the journal name
• the DOI, if available
• optionally, if you would like to specify a reuse license, please identify one of the Creative Commons licenses to be applied 
• optionally, to embargo the article, include a date when the embargo should expire, and whether you would like article information to appear before the embargo expires.  The policy enables immediate deposit, so journal embargo periods need not be observed.

You will receive an email confirmation when your article is added to VTechWorks.