Funder Public Access Policies: NSF

This guide provides information and resources on federal research funding agencies' public access policies as outlined in the 2013 Office of Science and Technology Policy Public Access Directive.

NSF Public Access Policy Overview

The National Science Foundation (NSF) developed its Public Access Plan, "Today's Data, Tomorrow's Discoveries: Increasing Access to the Results of Research Funded by the National Science Foundation" in response to the 2013 OSTP Public Access Memorandum. This ~30 page document outlines the rational behind the plan as well as details of compliance for both publications and data derived from NSF-funded research.

In summary, authors are to deposit either their final accepted peer-reviewed manuscript or the final published article (AKA Version of Record) for articles in peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings which are derived from NSF-funded research (in whole or in part) into an approved repository within 12 months of publication. Currently the only compliant repository is the NSF Public Access Repository (NSF-PAR). IT IS THE AUTHOR'S RESPONSIBILITY TO RETAIN ENOUGH RIGHTS TO COMPLY WITH THIS PUBLIC ACCESS POLICY IN THE SIGNING OF PUBLICATION CONTRACTS.

Authors are also required to develop and submit a Data Management Plan as previously required. It is not possible to submit a proposal without this document.

These requirements are mandatory for awards resulting from proposals submitted on or after January 2016. Non-compliance with the Public Access Policy may result in withholding of future funds.

For a quick overview see also this press release from the Association of Research Libraries "National Science Foundation releases plan for public access to NSF-funded research" as well as the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) response by Executive Director Heather Joseph.

Compliance Resources

Versions:

NSF identifies 2 versions of articles: final accepted peer-reviewed manuscript, and final published article or version of record.

  • Final accepted peer-reviewed manuscript: the author's final manuscript of a peer reviewed paper accepted for journal publication, including all modifications from the peer-review process.
  • Final published article or version of record: the publisher's authoritative copy of the paper, including all modifications from the publishing peer-review process, copyediting, stylistic edits, and formatting changes.

Either version is acceptable to meet the public access requirement.

Policy Resources:

NSF Public Access is the home page for the NSF Public Access Policy.

NSF Public Access FAQ

NSF-PAR (Public Access Repository) As of January 2016 NSF-PAR is the only repository identified as compliant with the NSF Public Access Policy. NSF-PAR is built on the Department of Energy's Public Access Gateway to Energy and Science (PAGES) system. The submission portal is not yet active, but we are monitoring closely and will update with further information as it becomes available.

 

Head, Scholarly Communication & Copyright