Open access policies
Preprint policy at Cambridge University Press
A ‘preprint’ is an early version of a manuscript, created prior to the version submitted for publication. Cambridge's preprint policy permits you to share any pre-submission version of your manuscript anywhere, at any time, under any licence.
It is best practice to link preprints to the final published work (the ‘Version of Record’). If you have posted your preprint online, we encourage you to cite your preprint in your submitted manuscript, including details such as a DOI or other persistent identifier. If your manuscript is accepted and published by Cambridge, we also encourage you to update your preprint’s records to link it to your final published Version of Record, using a DOI and URL to link to the version published by Cambridge.
For information about sharing other versions of your manuscript, please see our Green Open Access policies linked below, or contact openresearch@cambridge.org .
Frequently asked questions
No. Our editorial guidelines require that manuscripts submitted to Cambridge must not be previously published, or be under simultaneous review for publication, in part or in whole within an academic journal, book or similar entity. However, sharing your preprint anywhere else shall not be viewed as prior publication.
Yes. Publishing content in a thesis or dissertation is not considered prior publication, and is permitted under this preprint policy.
Please refer to our Green Open Access policies for books, journals, and Elements linked below for full details of how you may share submitted or accepted manuscripts.
You may share your preprint under any licence you like. We recommend Creative Commons licences, in particular CC BY, for maximum openness and re-usability of research outputs.
The licence applied to your final published Version of Record does not affect how you may share your preprint. You may still share any pre-submission version of your manuscript under any licence, in accordance with this preprint policy.
Many preprint servers and online repositories will provide you with a DOI for your preprint, enabling it to be cited elsewhere. We recommend citing your preprint in your reference list, the same way you would cite other publications.
Green Open Access policies
Our Green Open Access policies provide further information about how authors are permitted to share various versions of their manuscripts online.

Green Open Access policy for journals
Discover details of how our Green Open Access policy permits authors of journal articles published by Cambridge to share versions of their work online.
Learn more
Green Open Access policy for journals
Discover details of how our Green Open Access policy permits authors of journal articles published by Cambridge to share versions of their work online.
Learn more
Green Open Access policy for books
Discover details of how our Green Open Access policy permits authors of books published by Cambridge to share versions of their work online.
Learn more
Green Open Access policy for books
Discover details of how our Green Open Access policy permits authors of books published by Cambridge to share versions of their work online.
Learn more
Open access Elements
Discover information about how to publish an Element Gold Open Access, as well as details of our Green Open Access policy for Elements.
Learn more
Open access Elements
Discover information about how to publish an Element Gold Open Access, as well as details of our Green Open Access policy for Elements.
Learn more
Green Open Access policy for journals
Discover details of how our Green Open Access policy permits authors of journal articles published by Cambridge to share versions of their work online.
Learn more
Green Open Access policy for journals
Discover details of how our Green Open Access policy permits authors of journal articles published by Cambridge to share versions of their work online.
Learn more
Green Open Access policy for books
Discover details of how our Green Open Access policy permits authors of books published by Cambridge to share versions of their work online.
Learn more
Green Open Access policy for books
Discover details of how our Green Open Access policy permits authors of books published by Cambridge to share versions of their work online.
Learn more
Open access Elements
Discover information about how to publish an Element Gold Open Access, as well as details of our Green Open Access policy for Elements.
Learn more
Open access Elements
Discover information about how to publish an Element Gold Open Access, as well as details of our Green Open Access policy for Elements.
Learn more