I recently posted to ask for advice about how to publish in respectable peer-reviewed journals with little to no funding for publication costs. I am very appreciative of everyone’s responses and would like to pass on this summary.
Note: Journal lists below are not comprehensive, and I can’t speak to journal quality. 1)Open access vs. traditional publishing – Many journals do not charge for traditional publications (for which readers have to subscribe or pay a fee to view the whole article). However, there are typically costs for color figures, translation, and making an article open access. (The last is where the real expense to the author comes in.) Some traditional journals allow authors to post the accepted (pre-print) version of their manuscript on a personal website, including ResearchGate, or in a repository like PubMed Central. However, you should check the publisher’s self-archive policy as there may be an embargo on such postings. (The Wiley family of journals, for example, requires 12 months for science journals and a posted disclaimer.) Journals with free traditional publishing (but charges for open access): • British Ecological Society family of journals • Some Springer journals • Animal Conservation • Archives of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry • Biological Conservation • Canadian Journal of Zoology • Ecography • Journal of Zoology • Oikos 2) Free open access journals: • Current Zoology (free for non-commercial until 2020) • Herpetological Conservation and Biology • Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management • Journal of Political Ecology • Neotropical Biodiversity • Riparian Ecology and Management 3) Journals that offer fee waivers/grants: • Ecological Society of America family of journals • PLoS family of journals • Some Springer journals 4) Request to the editor for waived/lowered fees – It may be worthwhile to contact the editor of a journal ahead of time or in your cover letter to ask if they offer waivers or reduced fees. They may offer this but not publicly state it until after you submit. Authors from developing countries, sole authors, and low-income authors often qualify. 5) Professional societies – If you are a member of a professional society that publishes journals, you may be able to publish in theirs at a reduced cost, particularly if you are a current student or recent grad. 6) Possible funding from former institution – Your major advisor may be able to apply for departmental funds that you otherwise would not have access to. (At my university, faculty can apply for one open access grant per year, for a maximum of $2,000. If there are multiple students publishing from the same lab, the advisor has to choose.) You may also ask your department head or graduate dean. 7) Possible funding from co-authors – It may be helpful to ask co- authors if they can contribute to publishing costs. Sometimes costs can differ for each co-author on a paper, depending on their institution. (Someone at an R1 institution may have a higher cost than someone from a smaller school.) Some funders, including government agencies, may have requirements to publish open access but also opportunities to apply for internal funding.
