Kingston University Research Repository FAQs

Who can deposit items?: Current Kingston University staff and graduate research students.
What can I deposit?

I used to work at Kingston University, can I still access my records?: Yes you can!
What formats can I use to download records?: Bibtex - a useful interchange format for bibliographic reference software or other repository systems; CSV citations - can be used in Excel; RTF file - can be used in Word

What other web services index the Research Outputs Repository?: Google; Google Scholar; Core an aggregation service of open access materials; OAIster OAIster is a union catalog of millions of records that represent open access resources; Ethos EThOS is the UK’s national thesis service which aims to maximise the visibility and availability of the UK’s doctoral research theses

Are there any statistics about Repository usage?: You can find repository statistics at this page; If you are a current member of Kingston University staff, you can access UK national statistics via the IRUS-UK service here

What is Kingston University's Open Access Policy?: This can be found here

Where can I find research data sets?: We have a research data repository here; You can also find research data sets on Figshare; Google has a beta search service for data sets here

Contributing items to the Research Repository: All members of Kingston University staff are registered users of the Research Repository and can deposit details of research items. Click on the login button at the top of the screen, and use your University username and password to login.

Copyright and Institutional Repositories

Copyright is often a cause of concern in relation to open access repositories. There is uncertainty about the implications that self archiving has on publishing agreements and the commercial value of research. There is also concern that research placed in open access repositories can be vulnerable to unauthorised editing, theft and commercial exploitation.

In most cases, these concerns can be addressed by taking a few simple steps to ensure that you and your work are protected. This FAQ aims to set out the ways in which you can do this and also outlines the protection given to you and your work by the repository itself.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know that I can legally deposit my item?: You many only deposit items if you are the copyright owner and you have not accepted any contractual restrictions preventing you from depositing the work in an institutional repository.
What kind of contractual restrictions might be in place?: Any publishing agreements that you have signed in respect of your research or article may prevent you from including your work in an institutional repository. In addition, some publishers impose embargo periods upon self archiving - you will need to check the terms of the agreement you signed to be sure.
Who owns the copyright in my article?: As the author, you are the first copyright owner. However, once your paper has been accepted for publication you may be required to sign a copyright transfer as part of your publishing agreement. If you sign a copyright transfer you will not have the automatic right to reuse, copy or distribute your work.
What rights might I be asked to sign away?: Some of the rights you may be asked to sign away include:; - the right to distribute your work to colleagues; - the right to reproduce copies for teaching purposes; - the right to publish or re-use your work elsewhere; - the right to revise or adapt your work; - the right to self archive or make the work available in an institutional repository; Increasingly, publishing agreements include clauses allowing you to retain some (or all) of these rights and many of the major academic publishers allow self archiving within an institutional repository in their standard publishing agreements. The SHERPA RoMEO service can be used to check re-use permissions for either a particular journal title or a journal publisher.
Do I have to agree to a copyright transfer?: No. Publishers are usually willing to discuss copyright arrangements with authors, and may accept an amended or alternative agreement. Guidance on amending existing agreements can be found in the University's IPR policy. Increasingly, publishers offer 'licence to publish agreements' instead of 'copyright transfer agreements'. These agreements tend to be more liberal and allow the author to retain most rights over the work.
My existing publishing agreement does not allow self archiving - can anything be done?: Publishers often change the terms of their standard publishing agreements and apply these retrospectively. Even where a publishing agreement does not permit self archiving, it is possible to contact the publisher directly and request permission to include your research in the repository. The repository team may be able to assist.
Can I deposit articles I have written with other people?: Yes. You can deposit articles written collaboratively with members of other Institutions, provided that no agreement with a publisher or funding body prevents you from doing so.
Can I deposit articles that contain reproductions of third party copyright material?: You should have obtained the written permission of the copyright owner to include the work in your published article. Unless this permission explicitly allowed for the material to be reproduced in an institutional repository, you will need to secure separate written permission to do this. The Copyright Officer can seek this permission on your behalf.
Can I deposit research before it is accepted for publishing?: This is inadvisable and the repository does not accept unpublished material. Making research available in an institutional repository prior to publication can harm the commercial value of your research and make it more difficult for you to secure a publishing agreement.
Do I have to sign over any rights to the repository?: You are asked to grant the repository the right to make digital copies of your work available via the repository. You are also asked to grant the repository permission to alter the format of the file as necessary, and to remove the file subject to the takedown policy.; You are not asked to assign any further rights. You retain full ownership of your work and the copyright within it.
Why do I have to accept a deposit agreement?: The deposit agreement is intended to set out the rights that are retained by you and granted to the repository in respect of your work.
How does the Repository protect my research?: All full text items deposited in the Research Repository are protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
My question has not been answered above.: Contact the Copyright Officer for specific guidance on topics not found above.

Copyright Officer

If you have a question relating to copyright and the Research Repository, should be sent to the Copyright Officer.

Contact Information

Any correspondence concerning this specific archive should be sent to eprints@kingston.ac.uk.