University of British Columbia Repository: cIRcle
Depositing your research outputs in cIRcle, the official institutional repository of University of British Columbia, is a critical pathway to achieving green open access and satisfying funder mandates in Canada. This guide outlines the submission and curation workflows required to preserve and disseminate your academic publications and associated datasets in accordance with DSpace standards.
1. Institutional Archiving & Preservation Strategy
Operating on the DSpace repository platform, cIRcle at University of British Columbia utilizes a robust schema framework to index and serve research outputs. As leading institutional repository software, DSpace facilitates OAI-PMH harvesting, allowing global indexers to seamlessly ingest metadata records from Canada.
Managing digital materials over decades requires active digital preservation strategies at University of British Columbia to counteract media degradation and format shifts. Library archives at cIRcle embed rich preservation metadata (including bitstream characteristics and checksums) into every catalog record. Understanding the difference between a depository vs repository model is key; our system at cIRcle does not just archive files but actively maintains their accessibility over time in Canada.
Verified Institutional Impact Metrics
Based on independent indexing data from the open-science catalog OpenAlex, University of British Columbia has recorded a cumulative corpus of 373,460 publications which have received over 32,132,870 citations globally. This volume highlights the critical role of cIRcle in providing open access to a massive stream of global knowledge. With an institutional h-index of 1328 and a two-year mean citedness score of 3.04, submissions deposited here carry a highly visible citation trajectory.
All submissions to cIRcle undergo systematic verification by the university library team. This ensures compliance with publisher embargoes, rights-retention policies, and copyright licenses (predominantly Creative Commons CC-BY or CC-BY-NC).
2. Metadata Mapping: Simple Dublin Core Alignment
To maximize interoperability of cIRcle, University of British Columbia maps all fields to the universal Dublin Core metadata standard. Submissions from researchers in Canada are parsed into the 15-field Dublin Core metadata element set and enriched with extended Dublin Core metadata terms (such as dc.rights.license and dc.relation.isVersionOf).
To maintain schema health across cIRcle, University of British Columbia implements strict metadata repository quality controls. Each incoming manuscript or dataset is processed by a server-side metadata cleaner to enforce field completion, followed by a manual metadata scrubber review by dedicated data librarians. Resolving semantic errors before publication protects the repository's ranking in search indexes for Canada.
Subject classification at University of British Columbia's library utilizes a strict controlled vocabulary rooted in the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). By applying formal rules for thesaurus construction and entity linking inside cIRcle, the library creates a highly structured search experience in Canada. In addition, the catalog structures its index in the MARC21 format for immediate interoperability.
| Dublin Core Element | Preserved Value / Standard | Function & Mapping |
|---|---|---|
| dc.title | Full Article / Book Title | Main headline as registered in the publication record |
| dc.creator | Author(s) names & ORCID iD | Linked explicitly to the author's CRediT contribution roles |
| dc.publisher | University of British Columbia Library Services | The entity making the resource accessible in Canada |
| dc.identifier | Handles / persistent URLs | Local institutional handle mapping to OAI-PMH networks |
3. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is the correct protocol for co-author attribution during deposit?
When submitting to cIRcle, you must include all authors listed on the final manuscript. It is highly recommended to declare each co-author's CRediT roles in the metadata form or the publication description.
Are datasets supported alongside text papers?
Yes, cIRcle supports a wide array of file formats, including research datasets, code repositories, and supplemental documents. If your dataset is extremely large, the library services team will coordinate with your department to allocate specialized cold storage.
Repository Specs
Open-Science Mandates
In line with Plan S, the Nelson Memo, and regional mandates, all publicly funded publications produced at University of British Columbia must be deposited in cIRcle with no embargo. Ensure your metadata contains correct funder acknowledgements to avoid audit flags.
