Why Researchers Need an ORCID iD and How to Get One

Information is continuously being added to the current sea of scientific knowledge. In the biomedical field alone, more than 1 million papers have been added to the PubMed database every year, which is approximately two papers per minute, as reported by Esther Landhuis. [1]

Thus, there is a need for a viable system for registering and updating data continuously so that it can be accessed by researchers at any time.

Towards this goal, many organizations are exclusively performing the job of registering information from individual researchers, academics, research institutions, universities, publishers, data repositories, and other related international professional societies.

What is an ORCID iD account?

A highly successful nonproprietary organization based on Thomson Reuters' ResearcherID system called ORCID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) was introduced on October 16th, 2012 by ORCID, Inc. The ORCID iD is a unique sixteen digit alphanumeric code upon registration that is distinctive for every researcher, academic author, or contributor.

What is the ORCID iD used for?

The system automatically updates, registers, and keeps a record of all the research activities of all ORCID account holders. It easily distinguishes records regardless of whether the author or researcher has a similar or the same name as another researcher.

This system is being used to trace the related literature, patents, project fundings, blogs, evaluations, affiliations, awards, Wikipedia entries and other supplementary information from various authors.

The ORCID account streamlines scientific processes and evaluations, e.g., during the submission process of manuscripts, patents or grants. The ORCID code automatically links personal and professional information, thus eliminating the laborious job of manually registering or adding your details every time you make a new submission. Additionally, it makes it easy to cite original research articles and other published work.

Why do researchers need an ORCID iD?

All researchers are encouraged to have an ORCID iD to keep track of your own research, to distinguish yourself from other authors, and to keep track of citations of your published articles. Colleagues can also easily keep track of a particular author or researcher that they are interested in following. This can be especially useful for authors with very common first names and surnames (e.g., Smith, Nguyen, Garcia, etc.).

Do publishers require authors to have an ORCID iD?

Many publishers now require authors and reviewers to have an ORCID iD. In 2016, eight publishers, including the Royal Society, the American Geophysical Union, Hindawi, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, PLOS, and Science made it mandatory for authors to have an ORCID iD, which was later followed by seventeen publishers, including the American Chemical Society, Nature, the Royal Society of Chemistry, and Wiley.

Different universities and research institutions in many countries have implemented the use of ORCID as a convenient medium of sharing and updating publication information. In Australia, many funding agencies encourage all researchers to have a ORCID iD when applying for funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and Australian Research Council (ARC). [2]

In Italy, several universities and research centers have similarly implemented ORCID on a national scale, and the registry is meant to provide easy to access the literature and evaluation processes. [3] Some funding agencies, such as the Wellcome Trust and NIH (National Institute of Health, USA) have started integrating their system with ORCID accounts, making the process of evaluations smooth via an automatic link with the applicant's accomplishments.

How do I open an ORCID account ?

To open a personal or an institutional ORCID account, the process involves registration on the ORCID website ( https://orcid.org/register ) by simply filling out your personal details. This process usually takes less than a minute.

Once an account is opened, all your details, e.g., education, employment, publications, awarded grants, and other professional accomplishments, must be added or imported directly through link wizards, which are integrated with services, such as Scopus and CrossRef.

Recently, the registration has been streamlined by linking with Facebook, Google, or a university/institutional account, and new services are continuously being added to improve the website.

There are also provisions for the exchange of data between the ORCID service and other web search engines, such as Google Scholar, Mendeley, figshare, Thomson Reuters, Ariti, the Australian National Data Service, the ResearcherID system, Researchfish, the British Library, ProQuest, and Frontiers Loop.

Final thoughts

In conclusion, an ORCID account is used to keep your digital curriculum vitae and profile updated, which can be accessed anytime anywhere, thus saving time. [4] The data is mostly stored in RDF/XML, RDF Turtle, XML or JSON formats and uses GitHub as the code repository.

What are your thoughts?

Is this system of researcher classification a good idea?

Is it necessary in today’s sea of researchers? Or do you think there are disadvantages to such a system?

We are interested in hearing your ideas!

Message us or complete our Blog Feedback Survey for 10% off your next order!

Other articles that may interest you:

Origin of the Journal Impact Factor and Its Importance for Researchers Today

5 International Funding Opportunity Websites for Young Researchers

11 Tips for Impressing the Journal Editor with Your Cover Letter

References:

[1] Esther Landhuis, Scientific literature: Information overload , Nature 535, 457–458 (21 July 2016).

[2] NHMRC and ARC Statement on Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID). National Health and Medical Research Council. 10 April 2015. Retrieved 29 June 2015.

[3] Meadows, Alice (22 June 2015). " Italy Launches National ORCID Implementation ". ORCID. Retrieved 29 June 2015.

[4] Credit where credit is due , Nature 462, 825 (17 December 2009), doi:10.1038/462825a.

About the Author:

Abdul Rouf is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Florida in the U.S. Previously, he also worked in Brazil and Turkey as a Postdoctoral Research Associate. In 2013, he completed his Ph.D. from the CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine in Jammu, India. His expertise is organic chemistry, and his current interests include the chemical synthesis of pheromones and hormones. Additionally, he is actively involved in writing, editing, and reviewing research articles for different journals, such as the International Journal of Chemistry. His publication list is available on Google Scholar .