Open Science Policy

The University of Tübingen supports open access publishing with the aim of making academic findings accessible and visible worldwide free of charge and without restriction. Researchers are encouraged to retain the rights of use to their publications and only transfer the rights necessary for publication to publishers. 

The publication market is dominated by the business models of commercial publishers, which make open access publishing an incalculable cost risk, especially for research-intensive institutions. To counteract this situation, the University offers central services such as open access publication funds, publish & read contracts and the University's own open access publication infrastructure.

The low-threshold option of using and integrating digital elements into classes in the sense of combined learning and blended learning promotes communication and interaction as well as the entire process of teaching and learning. The University's institutions offer advice and support on didactic and technical/organizational issues and provide various tools for the use, creation and publication of openly licensed teaching/learning materials. The University of Tübingen operates the Central OER Repository of Baden-Württemberg Universities (ZOERR) for this purpose. 

The University of Tübingen is committed to advancing the discussion on a fact-based and responsible evaluation of research performance in Germany. It thus supports the DFG's call to initiate a cultural change in the evaluation of research performance1, and welcomes the HRK's guest status in the CoARA National Chapter in order to follow these discussions more intensively. Purely metrics-based indicators should be questioned and, if possible, overcome in order to enable a fair assessment of performance, which is particularly important in the context of an academic career. The University is pursuing further discussionon reform goals and measures for European research assessment and is seeking an exchange of ideas with its partner universities, e.g. within the framework of CIVIS and The Guild.

Research Data Management (RDM) is the basis of good academic practice and an essential prerequisite for the secure storage and reusability of academic data. RDM should be carried out in compliance with the FAIR and CARE principles² and enable free access to research data while taking ethical and legal framework conditions into account. The publication of research data is based on licensing regulations, for which the use of suitable Creative Commons licenses is recommended.³

Researchers have access to a comprehensive range of RDM services and contact points in the form of central infrastructure, core facilities and an interdisciplinary data repository⁴. Project-specific facilities as well as participation in consortia of the National Research Data Infrastructure (NFDI) complete this service and at the same time form interfaces to national initiatives. Researchers and students are made aware of the importance of the topic early on in their academic careers through courses on data management and are supported by specific training opportunities and individual advice from the University's institutions in the RDM network⁵.

Open Methodology procedures can significantly increase the transparency, integrity and quality of research. Predefined page or character limits in academic publications often lead to an abbreviated presentation and description of the methodological approach. By transparently and comprehensibly reporting not only the research data but also the methods and processes used, such as data preparation and cleansing, analysis and evaluation methods, the trustworthiness and reproducibility of the research results is increased and the possibility of (interdisciplinary) collaboration is enhanced. The University of Tübingen welcomes the Open Methodology approach and encourages researchers to make their entire research process transparent and comprehensible and to preregister their research projects wherever possible.

The publication and free provision of software developed at the University under open source conditions, i.e. with publication of the source code, which can be viewed, modified and used by third parties and can therefore be used, improved and further developed more flexibly, is supported. In principle, software developed at the University should be made available free of charge under a GNU Affero General Public License (AGPL)⁶. If license compatibility or other reasons prevent publication under the AGPL, the University institutions will provide support in selecting a different open source license. In accordance with copyright law⁷, the University is entitled to exercise all property rights to software developed for official purposes⁸.

The University of Tübingen makes the methods, processes and findings of its research transparent and visible through dialog-oriented and participatory science communication. At the center of all activities in the field of science communication are the researchers themselves, who are supported by advice, coaching and training from central University facilities.

Aware that epistemic injustice, access barriers and social inequality impede the mutual exchange of knowledge, the University actively promotes dialog with social interaction groups in its public engagement. Where possible, the participation of citizens in various phases of the research process is supported, e.g. as part of citizen science projects.

With its outstanding public engagement infrastructure, the University offers open space, advice and support for collaboration between researchers and citizens, for example to jointly develop solutions to challenges. The University recommends that its researchers base their activities on the principles of the Public Engagement Code.

The Open Science Policy replaces the Open Access Policy of 21.02.2013. The policy is regularly evaluated and adapted to current standards as required. It is the responsibility of the individual University institutions to specify the aspects formulated here in more detail and to implement them.

¹ Positionspapier Publikationswesen Data
² The FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) focus on the technical implementation and facilitation of data exchange, whereas the CARE principles (Collective Benefit, Authority to Control, Responsibility, Ethics) aim to protect the interests of indigenous communities and the appropriate handling of corresponding data.
³ Creative Commons Germany
⁴ FDAT Research Data Repository
⁵ Research Data Management (RDM)
⁶ AGPL ensures the best possible use and further development of the software in the sense of open and generally accessible availability.
⁷ Copyright and Related Rights Act (Urheberrechtsgesetz) § 69a.
⁸ Software within the meaning of this guideline is all computer programs, including, but not limited to, microcode, subroutine and operating systems, regardless of the form of execution or the object in which the program is located. This also includes operating instructions and other accompanying and explanatory materials, as well as all databases.