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Open Access

This guide discusses open access, its significance, and how UChicago Library supports it.

Open Access Repositories as Information Resources

Open access (OA) repositories have proliferated in the past two decades, resulting in a broad spectrum of content hubs that enable free access to academic materials.  Some repositories have comprehensive coverage while others specialize in particular content types.  Below are some common repository categories.

Select Disciplinary Repositories (see this page for more examples)

Select Repositories of Preprints and Working Papers (see this page for more examples)

  • arXiv: An online archive of non-peer-reviewed scholarly articles in STEM and social science disciplines
  • medRxiv: A collection of unpublished manuscripts (preprints) in medical, clinical, and health sciences
  • SSRN: A commercial platform for working papers in various fields

Select Repositories of Theses and Dissertations

  • EThOS: An online hub of doctoral dissertations from the U.K.
  • Thesis Commons: An online archive of theses and dissertations

Select Data Repositories (see this page for more examples)

Select Repositories of Open Educational Resources (OER)

Select Comprehensive Repositories

You can find more repositories of different kinds by searching these directories:

Questions?  Feel free to contact the Library's subject specialists or the Center for Digital Scholarship for assistance.

Search Tools for Open Access Content

If you prefer searching across a number of OA repositories simultaneously, you may find the following tools useful:

For Scholarly Content

For Research Data

For Open Educational Resources (OER)

If you need help, feel free to ask a librarian.