Long-term storage and access
Uploading your paper to MURAL ensures that it is stored and preserved for the long-term.
By submitting your paper, you are also ensuring that the institution has a copy of your work. Libraries can't subscribe to everything, and if journal subscriptions are canceled in the future, we may also lose access to back copies.
If your paper is in MURAL, you are ensuring that it stays accessible and usable for years to come.
Research impact and citation advantage
Depositing your work in an Institutional Repository like MURAL makes your research available in an Open Access format. It can then be found through Google and Google Scholar.
This increases the visibility and impact of your work. Research has shown that Open Access publications receive more citations than those published only in traditional journals. A report on these benefits can be found here.
This citation advantage is even more prominent in papers which are published through 'Green' Open Access (i.e.published in a repository like MURAL).
One study found that:
- On average, open access papers produce a 50% higher research impact than strictly pay-walled papers.
- Having a green copy of a paper is the most impactful research communication strategy overall and the best strategy in 19 fields out of 22.
The full study is available here.
There are many other benefits to Open Access publishing, which you can read more about in our guide to Open Access.
Increased visibility and downloads
Tens of thousands of publications are downloaded from MURAL every month -- depositing your article means that your work will be more visible.
Benefits for Maynooth University
- Provides a showcase of MU research publications
- Raises the profile of MU research internationally through broader access and citations
- Provides a space for individuals, research groups, schools and colleges to display research work
- Increases potential collaboration and synergies between Irish and international researchers
