ORCID at a glance
ORCID gives you a free, unique, persistent iD – controlled by you – that links your contributions across publishers, funders, and institutions.
ORCID is the most widely adopted persistent identifier for researchers worldwide.
Why use ORCID?
- Track: All your scholarly work in one place
- Share: Seamlessly with funders, publishers, and systems
- Save time: Many forms auto‑populate from your ORCID record
- Simplify: Grant applications, reporting, and submissions
- Disambiguate: Prevent name confusion and ensure correct attribution
- Visibility: Increase credit for diverse contributions
Create or update your ORCID iD
Whether you’re registering for the first time or reviewing an existing record, keeping your ORCID iD current ensures your contributions are accurately connected.
The value of ORCID (even if you're not currently doing research)
What is it? ORCID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) is a global, non‑profit that provides unique, persistent identifiers (ORCID iDs). Your iD connects you to publications, grants, affiliations, peer reviews, and other outputs. It’s widely used in journal submissions, grant applications, and researcher profiles.
Who is the ORCID system for? (click to expand)
ORCID is primarily designed for people engaged in research, scholarship, and innovation. If your work includes scholarly or innovative activities - teaching scholarship (SoTL), open education, creative practice, service with scholarly outputs, or administrative leadership with documented contributions - ORCID can help you capture and share them. Your record stays with you for life and connects your contributions wherever you go.ORCID use among academics (click to expand)
Recent research in North American universities reports that most faculty (≈72%) have an ORCID, with near‑ubiquity among newer scholars in many disciplines. Those who don’t often cite time or perceived relevance for their field or career stage; a smaller group prefer not to share certain information (Porter, Umbach & Willis, 2025).
How ORCID can support different roles (click to expand)
- Students – Build an academic presence early
- MRU tip: Add an honours thesis, Student Research Day poster, or co‑authored project—ORCID grows with you.
- MRU tip: If your project is in MROAR, add it using its DOI.
- Faculty (including teaching‑focused) – Capture publications, grants, peer reviews, OER, SoTL projects, awards, and service
- MRU tip: Add open textbooks or conference presentations via DOI or manual entry.
- Administrators & staff – Highlight leadership, governance, and scholarly support roles when they produce documented outputs
- MRU tip: For major initiatives (e.g., strategic planning), add reports or outputs under “Works” or record roles under “Service,” using persistent links where available.
- Everyone – ORCID connects contributions to you, even across name changes or institutions.
ORCID and Persistent Identifiers (PIDs) (click to expand)
Your ORCID iD is a PID, a stable, unique ID that reliably links you to your contributions.
Like other persistent identifiers, an ORCID iD identifies people, while DOIs identify articles or datasets, ISBNs identify books, and RORs identify institutions (MRU’s ROR).
How PIDs help- Attribution: Accurate credit; less duplication
- Connections: Link work across platforms/systems
- Infrastructure: Support open, interoperable research
- Discoverability: Make outputs easier to find and report
MRU tip: ORCID reduces duplicate data entry across systems (grant portals, repositories, internal reports). Even when manual entry is needed, a complete record showcases your full contributions.
Learn more about PIDs
🔗 McGill Libraries: Persistent Identifiers (PIDs)
🔗 How PIDs work together in the research ecosystem
Your ORCID, your control
- Ownership: Your ORCID account belongs to you. You choose what to share (public, trusted parties, or private) and can remove or edit entries at any time.
- Accuracy: ORCID works best when kept up to date. Duplicate or inactive accounts can reduce its value; you can merge accounts if needed.
- Openness: Anyone can register for ORCID, which means some fake or joke accounts exist, but they don’t affect legitimate profiles.
- Choice: Using ORCID is voluntary. Convenience features work best with more complete, public records, but participation level is up to you.
How to use ORCID
Get started with ORCID
Claim your ORCID iD, add your basic info, and connect it to the systems you already use. Once connected, many details—like publications, funding, and affiliations—can update automatically.
Set up and manage your account 🔗 ORCID Researcher Support Page
- Create your account and add basic details
- Add biographical information, keywords and links to your record
- Manage notification settings
- Set visibility preferences
- Add MRU or other institutional email addresses
- Reset your password, recover your iD, or enable two‑factor authentication
- Find out more - Watch ORCID video tutorials and webinars (multiple languages)
MRU tip: Using your ORCID iD when you publish or apply for funding links the right researcher (you) to the right works (DOIs) and institutions (RORs). These identifiers work together to reduce errors and improve discoverability.
Once you’ve set up your account, explore the tabs above to add affiliations, professional activities, funding, works, and peer review.
Note: ORCID’s categories are designed for global use and may use different labels than internal systems. Choose the section that best fits your activity so it’s easy for others, and other systems, to find.
Adding affiliations: Employment and education in your ORCID record
Your ORCID record can include self‑added or institution‑verified information about your employment and education. This strengthens your professional identity and helps grant portals, publisher sites, and researcher profiles recognize your contributions automatically.
MRU tip: If department or role names have changed, use the title that matches your current CV or official records. Add details or older names in the description or date fields.
▶ Employment
Add your current or past roles at MRU or other institutions. 🔗 ORCID instructions
Why add employment? Verified affiliations help confirm your institutional connections and are recognized automatically in funding and publishing systems.
Manual entry: You can list roles such as:
- Faculty or staff
- Postdoctoral fellow
- Intern or contract position
Request a verified MRU affiliation: If you want MRU to add an official (trusted) version of your affiliation—which boosts credibility and enables ORCID integrations to detect your MRU role—email us.
▶ Education & qualifications
Record your degrees and professional certifications. 🔗 ORCID instructions
Types of entries:
- Education: Degrees (BA, MA, PhD)
- Qualifications: Programs such as teaching certificates or project management credentials
- Programs can be listed even if in progress or incomplete
Tips:
- Search first: Start typing the institution name and choose from the list
- Optional link: Add a program or certificate URL for context
Adding professional activities to your ORCID record
The Professional Activities section lets you capture academic and service roles that help tell your full story.
MRU tip: Add invited talks, committee work, mentorship, or editorial roles. These often go unrecorded but help show the full range of your contributions.
See ORCID’s standard activity types (Memberships, Service, Invited Positions, Distinctions).
▶ Use this section to:
- Highlight contributions beyond publications (committees, awards, guest lectureships, editorial roles)
- Add affiliations that don’t fit under employment or education
- Manually enter invited positions, distinctions, or service roles if not added automatically
▶ You might skip this section if:
- You only want to add works, datasets, or education/employment
- Your affiliations are already updated automatically and need no edits
Examples of professional activities
Roles you can add to your ORCID record, with suggested sections, grouped by focus area.
▶ Teaching-focused roles
- Curriculum committee membership (Service)
- Program coordination or course leadership (Service)
- Mentorship (faculty mentor for student research or teaching) (Service)
- Reviewer or editorial board member for teaching-focused journals (Service)
- Leadership in OER or SoTL communities (Service or Membership)
- Invited speaker on teaching practice or innovation (Invited Position)
▶ Research-focused roles
- Editorial board member or peer reviewer (Service)
- Conference organizer, chair, or discussant (Service)
- Panelist or invited research speaker (Invited Position)
- Grant adjudication or funding review panel service (Service)
- Membership in a research network, consortium, or scholarly society (Membership)
- Distinctions or awards for research excellence (Distinction)
▶ Student-focused roles
- Membership in student academic societies (Membership)
- Peer mentorship or tutoring (Service)
- Volunteer roles in academic events (Service)
- Participation on student advisory or governance bodies (Service)
- Awards or recognition for leadership or contributions (Distinction)
▶ Leadership & Administration
- Chairing committees, departments, or governance bodies (Service)
- Leadership in EDI initiatives (Service)
- Organizing institutional workshops or speaker series (Service)
- Representing your institution on external advisory panels (Invited Position)
- Receiving distinctions for service, leadership, or academic citizenship (Distinction)
Funding and awards
Include grants, awards, or other funding you have received to support your research or scholarly work.
One of the easiest ways to add this is to let a trusted organization—such as the Tri-Agency—update your record automatically.
Tip: Look for the green ORCID iD icon when you submit a grant application. ORCID instructions for adding funding
MRU tip: If local or internal grants (e.g., MRU institutional grants) aren’t listed through auto-updates, you can add them manually.
Research resources
This section is for specialized resources you use in your research—such as special collections, national laboratory facilities, or specialized equipment.
Note: Like peer reviews, research resources can only be added to your ORCID record by a trusted organization with your explicit permission—you cannot add them manually.
Add your works to your ORCID record
Use your ORCID record to bring together your scholarly and professional outputs in one place. Add publications, presentations, datasets, peer review, and more. You stay in control, and ORCID helps keep things connected.
▶ Search & link (recommended)
Import works from trusted databases like CrossRef, MLA, DataCite, and more. 🔗 ORCID instructions
Why use Search & Link? It’s fast, reliable, and reduces manual entry.
| Pros | Considerations |
|---|---|
| Validated metadata from trusted sources | You can’t edit these entries directly (but you can hide or remove them) |
| Saves time and reduces manual entry | Not all work types or sources are covered |
| Shows attribution (e.g., “via CrossRef”) | May require signing in to external platforms |
▶ Other ways to add and manage works
Auto-fill from databases, add by DOI, or manually. 🔗 ORCID instructions
- Add by DOI or ID – paste an identifier to pull metadata
- Upload BibTeX citation files
- Manual entry – add details yourself
- Edit or remove works
- Group duplicates or related versions
- Add contributors and roles (e.g., co-authors)
MRU tip: If an output from MRU’s repository has a DOI, use “Add by ID” to include it in your record.
▶ What counts as a work?
Your record can include more than journal articles. Grouped by focus area:
▸ Teaching-focused contributions
- Open Educational Resources (OER)
- SoTL projects
- Instructional videos or tutorials
- Case studies, lesson plans, pedagogical frameworks
- Conference presentations on teaching innovation
▸ Research-focused contributions
- Journal articles, preprints
- Books and book chapters
- Conference papers, presentations, posters
- Datasets
- Software/code with DOIs
- Reports, policy briefs, white papers
- Digital humanities or web-based projects
- Scholarly blog posts (e.g., The Conversation)
- Patents
▸ Student contributions
- Theses, dissertations, honours projects (if public)
- Posters or presentations from research days
- Student journals or co-authored publications
- Research group contributions (e.g., data analyst, co-author)
▸ Leadership & administration
- Strategic plans, discussion papers, toolkits (shared publicly)
- Presentations on leadership, EDI, Indigenization
- Public scholarship or advocacy outputs
Note: ORCID “Works” may not match MRU evaluation categories. Use this section to highlight outputs that are public and citable.
Add peer review to your ORCID record
▶ Peer review
Verified reviews can be added by journals or funders with your permission. 🔗 ORCID instructions
Why include peer review?
- Highlights service to journals, conferences, or funding panels
- Recognizes often-invisible academic work
- Can be cited in CVs or narrative assessments
How it works: You can’t add peer reviews yourself. Trusted organizations submit them with your permission.
Manage your data in ORCID
Share your ORCID iD
Make your ORCID iD easy to find by adding it wherever your work appears:
- Email signatures
- CVs, résumés, and bios
- Personal webpages and profiles
- Grant and journal submissions
How: Sign in at orcid.org. Copy the full link at the top of your record (example:https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1825-0097) and paste it wherever you need it.
MRU tip: To help make your work easier to find for collaborators, students and others you can share the full clickable link (not just the number) in email signatures, course materials, profiles, or slides. Including the green ORCID icon is encouraged.
Advanced display options
Display your ORCID iD on your website
Add your ORCID iD with the official icon using this code (replace the iD with your own):
<a href="https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000"
target="orcid.widget" rel="me noopener noreferrer">
<img src="https://orcid.org/sites/default/files/images/orcid_16x16.png"
style="width:1em; margin-inline-start:0.5em"
alt="ORCID iD icon"/>
https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000
</a>
This displays the ORCID icon followed by your link. Adjust the font and colour to match your site.
Get a QR code for your ORCID iD
Download a QR code from your ORCID account and use it on posters, presentations, stickers, or business cards. Scanning it takes people to your public ORCID record.
How:
- Sign in at orcid.org
- Go to Account settings
- Select Create QR code and download it
Print or save your ORCID record
Create a clean printout or PDF of your ORCID record for use in CVs, reports, and applications.
How:
- Sign in at orcid.org
- Click your name in the upper-right corner
- Select Print view
- Use your browser’s print command (or save as PDF)
MRU tip: A print view is handy to attach to grant applications, annual activity reports, or as a supplement to a CV.
Download your ORCID data
Download a complete backup of your ORCID record as a ZIP file. This file includes XML for every section of your record—including private entries, which only you can access.
▶ Download your data
Export your full ORCID record. 🔗 ORCID instructions
How:
- Sign in at orcid.org
- Open Account settings
- Scroll to “Download all my data”
- Click the button to download a ZIP file
MRU tip: Keeping a complete copy of your data now can make it easier to migrate or reuse in MRU systems in the future.
Adjust your visibility settings
You control who can see information in your ORCID record. Use the visibility icons beside each entry, or set a default level in Account settings.
MRU tip: Make outputs public if you want them discovered; keep drafts or sensitive work private until ready.
Who can see your ORCID record?
Your ORCID iD (the 16‑digit number) is always public, but you choose the visibility of all other details. Each field has an eye icon with these options:
Everyone – visible to anyone
Trusted organizations – visible only to groups you authorize
Only me – completely private
MRU tip: Review visibility settings when preparing your record for public viewing, grant applications, or reporting.
▶ Set a default visibility level
Choose who can see new entries by default. 🔗 ORCID instructions
- Click your name in the top‑right of your ORCID account
- Go to Account settings > Defaults > Visibility
- Select your preferred setting
MRU tip: Setting outputs and affiliations to “Public” helps systems and colleagues find and correctly link your work. You can keep sensitive items private.
Merge duplicate ORCID accounts
If you have more than one ORCID iD, merge them into a single record so all your information stays together.
▶ Merge duplicates
Combine multiple ORCID accounts. 🔗 ORCID instructions
- Sign in to the ORCID account you want to keep
- Open Account settings (top-right menu)
- Find Remove a duplicate record
- Enter the email or ORCID iD of the duplicate account and follow the prompts
After merging, all works, funding, and affiliations from the duplicate account move into your main account.
MRU tip: If you can’t access the duplicate account, try resetting your ORCID password first. If you still assistance after trying the steps outlined here, contact ORCID to open a ticket to receive further help.
Support from MRU Library
The Library provides ORCID support for employees and students. We can help you:
- Create/re‑activate: Set up a new ORCID iD or recover an existing one
- Add publications: Import works from trusted databases or add them manually
- Automate updates: Connect with trusted partners for automatic updates
- Adjust privacy: Set visibility and privacy preferences
- Delegate updates: Train a trusted individual you authorize in ORCID to manage your record
Contact the the Library for one‑on‑one help, or to request a session for your department or class.
Get help:
Email the Associate Dean, Research Contact your Subject Librarian
Common Questions
Common Questions
These FAQs cover the most common ORCID questions we hear at MRU, ranging from “why bother?” to “how do I use it?” Expand a topic to learn more, and see MRU focused practical tips.
Why and how to use ORCID
▶ Why isn’t my name enough to identify me? (Even rare names get mixed up)
Even uncommon names aren’t reliable. Databases shorten, translate, and misspell names—and over time new researchers with the same name appear, even in your field. ORCID assigns you a unique, persistent ID so that your work always stays linked to you, not someone else.
- Names can be inconsistent across systems
- Authorship mix-ups are common, even with rare names
- ORCID removes this guesswork with a permanent identifier
MRU tip: Use your ORCID iD whenever you submit grants, publish, or deposit in MROAR to make sure your work isn’t confused with someone else’s.
▶ Is it worth keeping my ORCID record up to date? (It saves time and boosts visibility)
A current ORCID record makes your work easier to find, attribute, and connect across systems. Many systems can automatically add new outputs, funding, and affiliations to your profile when it’s linked and up to date. Keeping your ORCID record current also supports the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) so your work can be discovered and used more easily.
- Improves discoverability and accuracy
- Reduces manual data entry for grants and publications
- Ensures others see the full picture of your contributions
MRU tip: Set aside a few minutes each year to review your ORCID record—especially before grant deadlines or annual reporting.
▶ How do I update my record or recover my login? (Quick links if you’re stuck)
Sign in at orcid.org/signin to add or edit information. If you’ve forgotten your password, email, or have more than one account, ORCID provides simple recovery tools.
- Reset a password or recover your account
- Find and merge duplicate accounts
- Browse all ORCID help guides
MRU tip: If you link your ORCID to scholarly systems you use regularly like your publisher accounts, updates will often sync automatically, other outputs (including teaching materials) will need to be added manually - more systems are adding features to automatically push updates to ORCID everyday.
▶ Can my ORCID record replace my CV? (Helpful but not a replacement)
Not exactly. ORCID connects and shares your contributions across systems, but it isn’t a formatted CV. It can auto‑fill forms for grants, publishers, and some reporting tools, but you’ll still need a CV for promotion, tenure, or job applications.
- Use ORCID to keep an up‑to‑date list of outputs and activities
- Export data from ORCID to help build your CV
- Some funders and publishers may pull your ORCID record directly instead of asking for a separate list
MRU tip: Think of ORCID as a companion to your CV. A well‑maintained record makes creating or updating a CV faster and ensures nothing is missed.
▶ Can I use my ORCID record as a profile page? (Yes—but it’s simple)
Yes. Your public ORCID record is a simple, shareable profile that anyone can view, and it can serve as a lightweight professional webpage. However, it’s not a full personal site—you control what appears, but there’s no custom design or extra sections.
- Share your public ORCID link on email signatures, slides, and social media
- ORCID automatically displays works, affiliations, and funding you’ve added
- For a richer web presence, ORCID works best alongside a personal or departmental profile
MRU tip: Adjust your privacy settings so your public ORCID record shows what you want others to see.
▶ How does ORCID support equity and visibility?
ORCID offers a neutral, researcher-controlled platform that can help reduce bias:
- Ensures work is correctly attributed regardless of name changes, cultural naming conventions, or non-traditional publication paths
- Enables visibility for open and community-based research outputs
- Supports global interoperability for researchers working across borders or systems
MRU tip: Use ORCID to highlight work that may not appear in traditional bibliometric databases, like Indigenous scholarship, public-facing research, or community-engaged teaching.
▶ When will I actually use my ORCID iD? (Grants, publishing, profiles)
You’ll use your ORCID iD when applying for grants, submitting articles for publication, or participating in other reporting processes.
You can also include it in your web profile, CV, or any place where your research or academic work is referenced.
MRU tip: Watch for fields asking for your ORCID iD when using grant portals or journal submission systems. Some may pre-fill information if your ORCID is connected.
ORCID at MRU and beyond
▶ How does ORCID benefit MRU as a whole? (Better tracking and showcasing of work)
ORCID helps MRU:
- Track and showcase research across departments and disciplines
- Support faculty reporting through integration with systems such as the data repository and the open journal platform.
- Maintain accurate records for affiliations, funding, and institutional outputs
MRU tip: Use your ORCID iD when submitting grant applications or depositing in MROAR to help track and promote institutional scholarship.
▶ What happens to my ORCID if I leave MRU? (Your iD travels with you)
Your ORCID iD is yours for life. It isn’t tied to any specific institution.
You can continue using it to connect and manage your research, teaching, and scholarly contributions at any stage of your career, wherever you work.
MRU tip: You can update your affiliation manually or allow your new institution to update it if they use a trusted ORCID integration.
▶ How do ORCID iDs work with DOIs and other IDs? (All the IDs connect)
Persistent identifiers (PIDs) are unique, permanent IDs for things like people (ORCID), publications (DOIs), data sets, grants, and organizations. They link together across systems to make research easier to find, track, and reuse without confusion.
- ORCID = identifies you
- DOI = identifies a publication, dataset, or object
- ROR = identifies an institution
When these PIDs are connected, they create a network: your ORCID links to your works (via DOIs), which link to your institution (via ROR), and so on.
MRU tip: Use your ORCID wherever possible—many systems will then automatically connect your contributions to the right outputs and affiliations.
Learn more: How persistent identifiers work together
▶ How is Canada supporting ORCID? (Tri‑Agencies and the ORCID-CA)
The Canadian ORCID Consortium and the Tri-Agencies support ORCID adoption to:
- Streamline funding applications and reduce administrative burden
- Ensure accurate attribution of research
- Advance open science and interoperability
MRU tip: Consider linking your ORCID iD when applying to CIHR, NSERC, or SSHRC grants. This can simplify processes and pre-fill your information where possible.
▶ Where is ORCID information used? (Everywhere from journals to grants)
ORCID records aren’t a traditional citation index. Instead, ORCID iDs are connected and exchanged across systems. Many publishers, funders, and repositories use your ORCID to keep their own records accurate.
- Publisher systems (journal submission, peer review)
- Grant portals (Tri‑Agency, NIH, Horizon Europe)
- Institutional systems are increasingly using them when ORCID is available.
Your public ORCID record can also be searched directly on orcid.org.
Find out more about systems that integrate ORCID: ORCID Certified Service Providers List ( providers recognized as adhering to best practices) and Common systems for ORCID Integration (ORCID integration status of commonly used software systems)
MRU tip: Keeping your record up to date means these systems can pull in the right information automatically.
More help
▶ I still have questions—where can I go? (Help is a click away)
The ORCID Help Center has detailed answers to many common questions.
MRU tip: You can also contact the MRU Library if you're unsure how best to use ORCID in our local context.