Rewarding open access : The power of promotion and tenure

This paper outlines faculty consideration for promotion and tenure as a major barrier for open access publishing. Through quantitative and qualitative study, faculty report feeling compelled to follow promotion and tenure requirements, which often include publishing in prestigious paywalled journals, rather than publishing according to their needs and preferences. While this is still the institutional norm, this study shows that there is some evidence that a number of institutions are increasingly incorporating open access publishing into promotion and tenure considerations, and that this trend is continuing over time. This paper further discusses opportunities for librarians in academic institutions to promote Open Access (OA) through proactive involvement in OA policy and practice in the realm of faculty promotion and tenure.Arts, Faculty ofLibrary, Archival and Information Studies (SLAIS), School ofUnreviewedGraduat