DOIs (Digital Object Identifiers) are often used for publications like journal articles, book chapters, reports or white papers, and other academic literature. However, they can be applied to many other research outputs as well, such as software, code, and datasets.
The DOI is a unique identifier with two parts: the prefix and the suffix. These parts are separated by a forward slash (an example DOI might look like this: 10.1000/101). A best practice is to display the full DOI link, e.g. https://doi.org/10.1000/101. You may have already seen them in journal articles you have cited.
Image credit: Gail Clement and Tom Morrell, Author Carpentry: Persistent access for research outputs with Digital Object Identifiers, https://authorcarpentry.github.io/dois-citation-data/
Creating a DOI comes with a commitment to keep it updated: when the web location of the resource changes, the maintainer must inform the DOI service of the new address so the DOI link continues to work. NYU is a member of two different organizations that allow us to create and maintain DOIs: Crossref and DataCite.
Crossref is an international membership organization that registers DOIs, distributes metadata, and builds tools for discovering research connections, like Crossref Metadata Search.
NYU Libraries is a Crossref member authorized to create and register DOIs. NYU’s Crossref service is primarily geared toward scholarly publications, like journals, reports, and white papers. NYU-affiliated publications can request this service to receive DOIs with NYU Libraries DOI prefix.
Just getting started with your journal? Check out our Journals Guide.
Review the NYU Crossref DOI Regulations (Google Doc)
Reach out to Digital Scholarship Services (digital.scholarship@nyu.edu) for a consultation
Once approved, a Google Sheet template will be sent for each journal issue/volume or single-issue web publication for which DOIs are requested. Please review full instructions for filling out the Google Sheet: CrossRef DOIs Template Instructions for Patrons (Google Doc)
DataCite is a global community that creates DOIs, maintains a dedicated metadata schema, and builds tools like the search tool DataCite Commons.
By depositing your research outputs to UltraViolet or Databrary, you will automatically receive a DataCite DOI.