Would you like to learn more about good research practice or academic papers in general? JGU offers various courses and self-study materials:

You can attend courses on scientific work via the Gutenberg Academy (GA). A course on good scientific practice (in English) also takes place regularly. All dates and information can be found on the GA website.

In the toolbox you will find various teaching and information materials from the Academic Integrity Competence Center and the JGU campus-wide writing workshop on academic integrity and academic working techniques.

The university library offers a variety of courses on the topics of research, reference management software and citations and plagiarism. You can find more information directly on the pages of the university library.

Important tips for authors can also be found on the university library‘s website.

In this approximately 2.5-hour self-study course, you will learn more about the life cycle of research data, data management plans, metadata and metadata standards, FAIR and CARE principles, data quality, data organisation, data storage and archiving, and legal aspects of research data management. The course is based on a self-study course developed by HeFDI (Hessian Research Data Infrastructure) and has been adapted for JGU. Access via JGU Moodle.

The Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) has developed a comprehensive self-study course for publishers of scientific publications(An Introduction on Publication Ethics). The 1st module is freely available, the other modules are only accessible to COPE members.

“Like in any profession, scientists are frequently faced with dilemmas: Can I exclude particular observations from my research? Can I use exactly the same data set for multiple papers? Should I agree on a colleague being a co-author on a paper to which she has not made a significant contribution? The Dilemma Game confronts researchers with difficult dilemmas in the context of a critical dialogue, supporting them in further developing their own ‘moral compass’.”

The Dilemma Game of the University of Rotterdam gives you the opportunity to deal with various dilemmas in the context of academic papers. The game is available in card format (pdf) or as an app.

KIT offers free self-study courses in the field of good scientific practice. You can access the courses directly via KIT Open Courses.

The Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) aims to firmly anchor ethical aspects in the publication process and supports publishers, publishing houses, higher education institutions and research institutions, for example by advising and offering mediation services, as well as providing various guidelines, including “Text recycling guidelines for editors”, “Ethical guidelines for peer reviewers”, “Retraction guidelines” and “How to handle authorship disputes”.

The European Network of Research Integrity Offices (ENRIO) is a network of experts who deal with MLA and research misconduct at national level. In the ENRIO Handbook on Whistleblower Protection in Research they present recommendations and best practice examples on how to best ensure whistleblower protection.

At https://ga.uni-mainz.de/en/ you will find extensive information and support services for the entire academic training phase.

Comprehensive information on Open Access and funding opportunities for publication costs can be found on the Mainz University Library website.

This includes “Tips for authors” on licensing models (Creative Commons licenses), copyright, etc.

Think!Check!Submit! takes you to a checklist that helps you to assess whether the journal you want to publish in is really trustworthy.

Here you can find information on Predatory Publishing at Mainz University Library(German and English version)

On the website of the DFG’s Permanent Senate Commission on Animal Research, you will find information on the topic as well as guidelines and current statements from the DFG (e.g., on the framework conditions for approval processes, October 2025).

The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has published a comprehensive handout on copyright in science (2021) with information for the areas of teaching, research and libraries. The University Library Mainz also provides extensive information on its website and offers consultation (contact: urheberrecht@ub.uni-mainz.de) as well as regular workshops [in German] on the topic.

Information film from the DFG on the subject of unbiased assessment

Anti-Bias Sensitization: Learning Tool “Unconscious Bias at the Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz” (by Gender- and Diversity Sensitive Organizational Development)

About the National Institute of Science Communication you can obtain comprehensive information on the subject of science communication.

Are you planning a course on the topic of good scientific practice or would you like to integrate the topic into your passing course? Are you looking for ideas and practice classes on the topic of research misconduct? Or would you like to find out more about plagiarism detection software? Then take a look at the linked pages.

You can find comprehensive guidelines for creating courses on good research practice in the Curriculum for courses on good scientific practice by Gerlinde Sponholz.

In the toolbox of the Academic Integrity Competence Center and the campus-wide writing workshop you will find, among other things, practice classes on the prevention of academic misconduct. Misconduct and information material on the topic of control and sanctions. To access these materials, you need a JGU employee account.

On Being a Scientist is a film from Leiden University that deals with the question of what makes a (good) scientist, what everyday research looks like and also deals very vividly with various aspects of good scientific practice and research misconduct. It is divided into thematic episodes that can be incorporated into courses as case studies.

At Integrity Games students can interactively play through various scenarios on topics of good scientific practice (currently only available in English). Ideally, the work with the self-learning tool is followed by a discussion of the cases and problems in class. However, the case studies can also be used individually in class to address specific topics.

English-language platform on research ethics and scientific integrity with teaching and information materials:“The Embassy is a community platform offering support in handling day-to-day research practices and dilemmas. The platform is a wiki – allowing users to contribute their knowledge and expertise.”

Within the EU project Path2Integrity, a series of teaching materials were developed that can be used in courses for BA or MA students.