About Institutional Repositories and Scholar Commons
Institutional Repositories (IR) allow researchers and scholars to present their in-progress or finished work in an open access format available to a much wider audience than traditional paper and subscription sources. This is a free web based method of distributing information that is copyright free or has the approval of the copyright holder. By bringing together the output of the University of South Carolina in one place, an IR provides an excellent vehicle for working papers or copies of published articles, books and conference papers. Presentations, senior theses, and other works not published elsewhere can also be published in the IR. To learn more about Institutional Repositories, please read this IR research page.
Scholar Commons is hosted at Berkeley Electronic Press (bepress). This product was selected because it is the leading hosted Institutional Repository and features an innovative suite of publishing and software services. Over 500 institutions currently use this platform. As a hosted repository, all the hardware and software is maintained and supported by bepress at their site in Berkeley, California.
For Help with any of the following list of features contact dillarda@mailbox.sc.edu.
Submitting to Scholar Commons is possible from any internet connection through an easy to create account using the My Account link at the top of this page or on the Home page. You are also able to upload sound and video files, data sets, and executable files with your articles. A unique web page is generated automatically for each article that includes title, author, abstract, and citation information. Items uploaded are optimized for fast and accurate indexing by Google and Google Scholar. USC branded sites are available for each school, department, institute or center. Each will have a unique USC web page address.
Outreach and Download statistics are noted for each article and reported on a monthly basis. There is also a featured article of the day, a list of top 10 downloads and list of the 20 most recent additions. Contributors can keep a mailing list to announce new research and set up automatic email notification for reports of newly published content.
Search Capabilities include full-text, context sensitive searches (e.g., search this series vs. search the entire collection) and allows for saved searches. Search results can be exported to bibliographical software. There is also built in access to other bepress subscribers submissions.
A Peer-Review Journal Module is available to establish and manage such journals.