Library resources
Library sites and services
The University of Manchester Library, one of five designated National Research Libraries, offers a range of services that directly underpin research at Manchester.
These services cover research support facilities across campus and access to an unparalleled range of electronic resources. This includes over 40,000 e-journals and a comprehensive range of research datasets.
In addition to the Main Library, there are specialist libraries located throughout the campus. The Alan Gilbert Learning Commons provides a flexible study and learning centre. See information on opening hours.
See more information for all library locations and opening hours.
Getting started with Library services
Your student card is required to access all Library sites around campus. You will need your university username and password to access the electronic resources.
You can find more information on the Library website: Get started.
Library training
Training for academic skills and finding/searching Library resources is available all year round, either online or via face-to-face workshops.
A programme of workshops, information sessions, and online resources designed to support development for researchers at all career stages. A development pathway for PGR students is also available.
Find out how copyright affects your work, research and study at the University.
Library research
The Library has a dedicated Research Services team offering support and guidance on:
- Pure profiles
- open access
- citation analysis
- research data management.
The research data management page provides detailed information about:
- information security
- data protection policies and regulations
- how to organise data
- where to store research data
- what to do if you need to increase storage capacity.
Open access funding options
Transformative Agreements
In support of aims to move towards a more open and equitable model of scholarly publishing, the University of Manchester Library has signed up to transformative agreements with a number of publishers including Elsevier, Wiley, Springer, and SAGE. Unfunded authors can benefit from these deals and publish their work Open Access free of charge.
Please visit our Transformative Agreement page for a list of our current agreements with publishers and details of which journals are covered. If you’re not sure if the journal you're submitting to is included in a transformative agreement, you can contact the Library’s Open Access Team using our Open Access Enquiry Form.
Please note, some agreements are restricted to authors funded by UKRI or the medical charities or are limited to certain journals.
University Open Access Fund
In addition, unfunded authors can also request that Article Processing Charges (APCs) for Gold OA journals not covered by existing agreements be paid from our University Open Access Fund. The University Open Access Fund is a limited fund allocated to supporting various Open Access initiatives, transformative agreements, and the payment of Gold OA APCs. For more information about this fund, please visit our Open Access Funding page.
Authors can request funding from the University Open Access Fund via the Open Access Enquiry Form. Please note, this fund cannot be used to pay APCs in subscription-based journals as per the Library’s Hybrid Open Access Statement.
Please be aware, this University Open Access Fund is finite and attracts high demand. It is allocated on a first come, first served basis meaning that, based on the level of demand, funds could be exhausted quickly and before the end of the academic year.