INFORMATION ABOUT THE WEST GERMAN UNIVERSITY PRESS (FORMERLY CALLED BOCHUM UNIVERSITY PRESS)


The West German University Press is a spin-off of the Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB). The spin-off was funded by the Ministry of Innovation, Science and Research NRW. One of the conditions of the spin-off was that the Press (as a corporation) is independent from the Ruhr-Universität Bochum (as body of public law) in legal terms. The West German University Press is a university press in West Germany in the city of Bochum. RUB-authors publish their research worldwide and are supported by the Ruhr-Universität Bochum and publishing houses such as the West German University Press. Normally, a significant work will be published by the publishing house (books and / or E-books). The publication will receive an ISBN and will be 'quotable'. A publication entitles the author to a royalty of about 1000 Euros per book. Moreover, the publishing house spreads publications across libraries, New Release services, mailing lists and databases. The West German University Press particularly encourages PhDs with best grades in both reviews with a free publication (up to 200 pages black and white, softcover). The West German University Press also supports Open Access Publications. PhD regulations of individual faculties require a publication, but will also allow theses to be published online at the university library of the Ruhr-Universität instead of a publication with the publishing house. This online publication will maintain a comprehensive repository of gray literature (no ISBN, no royalties).

The university maintains its neutrality for competitive reasons, whilst not reacting to individual publishing houses.

The University Press serves as a model: It finances itself, within just 15 years it has become the fourth-largest university press with a university connection in Germany and it publishes both on paper, online and also as Open Access, it maintains a repository with numerous dissertations, complete with an ISBN, new with a digital object identifier (DOI). In addition, over the years it has successfully raised more than 200,000 Euros (some from public funds) in printing cost substitution for RUB-authors. The University Press is a model that has shown that universities do not have to spend any tax money directly, but still can maintain a university press, the university press can finance itself through applications for printing costs, book sales and a university bookstore. The research results of their employees will still be spread worldwide across databases and libraries and their graduates and employees can partly publish free of charge in the publishing house.

The publishing house’s program of 300 books, exclusively by RUB-authors shows that the publishing house makes an important contribution to the dissemination of the research results of the RUB. The West German University Press is the 4th biggest (after Karlsruhe, Leipzig and Göttingen) and the 10th oldest (after Heidelberg, Weimar, Konstanz, Osnabrück, Hildesheim, Kassel and others) university press with a university connection in Germany. The publishing house is represented every year at the Frankfurt Book fair, for example at joint stands and with lectures or events. The university press has co-operation agreements within and around the University on numerous levels.

The Press supports the idea of Open Access Publications, controls elements of quality assurance and develops innovative online platforms.
The advantages of the publishing house are:
  • Low printing costs through the company´s own digital printing facilities
  • Encouragement for dissertations with best grades in both reviews (free of charge)
  • Short-term realization (in urgent cases, one-off production of books with colored cover on the same day)
  • Small print runs from 1 copy possible
  • Support is given to the authors in obtaining the royalties (exact German term: Tantieme) from VG Wort
  • 5% royalties for Authors
  • Copy editing available on request (some dissertations have to be published exactly as submitted during the exam)
  • Reviewing of magazines and also when requested reviewing of monographs
  • Open Access Publications (abstract or full text) on request.