Central Library

Why use an author ID?

Even if you don't have a common surname, author IDs help uniquely identify you and your publications. IDs ensure you aren't confused with another researcher with a similar name, and that citations aren't "lost" due to name misspellings (it happens more often than you think!).Author IDs help promote you and your research: they provide an easy way for you, and scholars interested in your work, to see a complete list of works. Some author ID systems make it easy to generate citation counts and other metrics. Author IDs also ensure your publications and citations are appropriate credited, even if you change names or move to another institution.

Which ID system should I use?

All of them! The various ID tools on left are not mutually exclusive, and some (ORCID and ResearcherID) have linkages to share information. We also suggest checking with other researchers: journals in your field may prefer a specific author ID system. 

Will my publication list and author information update automatically?

Generally, you have to add publications and update biographical information yourself. (Exception: Google Scholar has an option to automatically add new articles.) However,  most systems allow for searching and importing citations from existing article databases:

• ORCID: MLA Bibliography, Web of Science (via linked ResearcherID), CrossRef, Airiti (Chinese articles), BibTeX

• ResearcherID: Web of Science, EndNote, RIS, ORCID (via linked ORCID)

• Scopus Author ID: EndNote, RIS, ORCID (via linked ORCID)

• Google Scholar Citations: Google Scholar

All ID tools also allow researchers to manually add citations by hand.

Can I generate citation counts with an ID tool?

Once you have added articles to your author profile, ResearcherID and Google Scholar Citations can generate citation counts (using Web of Science and Google Scholar, respectively).

ORCID cannot generate a citation count natively (within the ORCID system), but several third-party metric tools can import and track an ORCID publication list. (See our Citation Metrics page for more information.)

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Author ID Tools

 

• ORCID

  ORCID provides a persistent digital identifier for researchers. The ORCID system is open access and community based. Your ORCID can be linked to ResearcherID, another author ID system.

• ORCID Name Search

• ResearcherID

  ResearcherID, developed by ThomsonReuters (the company behind Web of Science), provides persistent author identification to Web of Science subscribers and other invited scholars. Registration is free to GU students and faculty. Your ResearcherID can be linked to your ORCID.ResearcherID Search

• SciENcv

  SciENcv (Science Experts Network Curriculum Vitae) is an author identification system developed by the National Institutes of Health and other Federal agencies. You will need a My NCBI, eRA, or NIH account to access SciENcv.

• Google Scholar Citations

  Google Scholar Citations allows authors to set up profiles and track their citations in Google Scholar.

• Scopus Author ID
  Scopus Author ID is automatically generated if you have a paper in the database so registration for a Scopus Author ID is not required.Having a Scopus Author ID allows you to easily see a list of your publications and view citation metrics such as h-index measures, citation counts, publications and co-authors. Scopus Author ID can be linked to ORCID so publications can be imported into your ORCID

Author Profile Services​

• Academia.edu

  Academia.edu enables researchers to create profiles and upload their publications. Academia.edu provides some metrics (views and downloads) of uploaded works.

 

• ResearchGate

  A social media site for reseachers, ResearchGate aims to "connect researchers and make it easy for them to share and access scientific output, knowledge, and expertise." Allows uploading and tracking of papers and other work.