Guides @ UF: The Institutional Repository at the University of Florida (IR@UF): Additional Repository Options

Choosing a Repository

Repositories can offer stable methods of preservation as well as dynamic tools for research and scholarly communication, depending on what a user needs. There are a number of scholarly repository options available. When choosing a repository for your research, think about the following:

Technical Specs
- Are there size limits?
- What types of materials can be uploaded?
Cost
- Are there charges to use the repository?
Discoverability
- Are there options for access (open, closed, restricted)? What is required for your project?
- How easy is it to find items in the repository?
- How about outside the repository?
Other Considerations
- Is a persistent identifier (like a DOI) needed for your materials? Is that service offered?
- Is your project collaborative? Will others need to upload files or add notes to the collection?
- Is deposit with a specific repository required (e.g., as a condition of a grant or award)?

Types of Repositories

Institutional Repositories

Institutional repositories (like the IR@UF) bring together scholarship, research, and creative materials from a specific academic community. Faculty, students, and staff are welcome to share materials in institutional repositories (though policies may differ from institution to institution). Institutional repositories work well for researchers who need or want to maintain a connection between their submitted item(s) and their institutional affiliation.

General Repositories

General repositories can be helpful for researchers looking to collaborate among institutions, or who want to maintain their scholarship independently (and without an institutional affiliation). Some options include Zenodo, Dryad, Figshare, and Humanities Commons.

Subject-Specific Repositories

Subject-specific repositories are an option if you want your work to be discoverable by a particular discipline. The Registry of Research Data Repositories is a great resource to explore options. You may also want to ask for recommendations from other researchers in your discipline, or check with your subject-specialist librarian.