duke graduation thesis

ETD Availability

After you have submitted your electronic thesis or dissertation and The Graduate School has approved it, it will be available as follows:

• The full text will be openly available in  DukeSpace , Duke University Libraries’ digital repository, at a unique, permanent URL.
• A description will appear in the library catalog, with a link to the text in DukeSpace.
• Your thesis or dissertation will be indexed and available through search engines such as Google.

Open access to your thesis or dissertation as described above does not affect your copyright or ownership of the content of your thesis or dissertation.

Restricting Access to an ETD (Embargo)

While open access is the default, you will be offered several options for restricting access (referred to as an embargo) when submitting your thesis or dissertation through ProQuest. These same embargoes will be applied to the copy made available through DukeSpace. Embargo options should be discussed with your adviser, and both the adviser and the thesis or dissertation author must sign the availability options section of the  Nonexclusive Distribution License and Thesis/Dissertation Availability Agreement (PDF) .

When to Consider an Embargo

Some scenarios when you might want to restrict access to your thesis or dissertation:

• If your work is based on data generated through research that will support other publications from people on the research team (such as your adviser), it may be necessary to refrain from releasing that data, as it underlies your dissertation, while other publications are prepared. The embargo options in these situations should be discussed with your committee and research team.
• If you plan to apply for a patent based on research that is discussed in your dissertation, you should be aware of the rules governing prior publication of material for which a patent is sought. Generally, once patent applicants publish their ideas or invention, they have a one-year window. After one year, the applicant’s own publication may be considered “prior art” that could prevent the issuance of a patent. Since electronic distribution of your dissertation through either ProQuest or DukeSpace is publication for this purpose, an embargo will delay the beginning of this one-year time clock against a potential patent application. By selecting a two-year embargo, therefore, you will have a total of three years (two-year embargo plus one-year window after publication) to submit a patent application.
• If your thesis or dissertation contains data or material that was generated pursuant to a grant or contract and the thesis or dissertation is subject to review by the sponsor or grantor prior to publication, you should select at least a six-month embargo. If you are unsure whether your research falls into this area, contact Export Controls at the Office of Research Support (919-668-2711).

If you are planning to publish all or part of your thesis/dissertation and know that publishers in your field consider open access electronic thesis/dissertations to be a prior publication, you may want to consider an embargo or check on their open access policy before submitting your thesis or dissertation. For more information, see the ETD Availability page .

Embargo Lengths

Duke offers three embargo options: six months, one year, and two years. These options are available when you are  uploading your PDF to ProQuest . The embargo period begins from the date The Graduate School approves your thesis or dissertation and lasts for the selected time period. If you select an embargo, your thesis or dissertation will not be available through DukeSpace or ProQuest until the end of the embargo period. The title, abstract, attribution information, and subject classification will be available during and after the embargo in DukeSpace and the Library catalog.

Extending an embargo on DukeSpace

If you choose to embargo your thesis or dissertation when you submit it, and if at any time during the embargo period you subsequently decide that you wish to extend the embargo on electronic access to your thesis or dissertation on DukeSpace, write a brief e-mail requesting an extension to The Graduate School's Office of Academic Affairs ( [email protected] ). Provide your full name, the title of your thesis or dissertation, your graduation date, and your e-mail address.  Note that embargo extension requests should be initiated six weeks prior to the expiration of the existing embargo period.

If you exercise an extension, open electronic access to your thesis or dissertation through DukeSpace will not be available until five years after your defense. Be aware that this does not affect your embargo selection with ProQuest (six months, one year, two years), which is a separate distribution contract between the author (you) and ProQuest.

Paper copies

While the electronic copy is the official university copy kept by Duke University Libraries and University Archives, you still have several options if you, your family members, or your adviser would like a paper copy.

• Order a bound copy (paper or hardback) through ProQuest
• Take a paper copy to the University Bookstore, where it can be bound with a library-style binding
• Have a local copy center bind it for you

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DukeSpace: Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Includes full-text, open access dissertations, master's theses, and undergraduate honors papers from 2007-present.

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Depositing to the DukeSpace Repository

• Electronic Theses & Dissertations (ETDs) via ProQuest
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The Graduate School [email protected]

ProQuest Dissertations and Theses [email protected]

Introduction

Congratulations; it's time to publish your work! Electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs) by students in Duke Graduate School programs are submitted and managed via ProQuest. Graduate School policy requires all ETDs be made publicly available in both ProQuest and DukeSpace.

Availability in DukeSpace versus Proquest

Once ETDs receive final approval, they are made available via the  ProQuest Dissertation and Theses database . PDFs and data are then uploaded to DukeSpace by the end of the following semester. This means that your ETD will always be available in ProQuest before it is available in DukeSpace . Any embargo release date applied in ProQuest will be the same in DukeSpace. 

For more information on the Graduate School timeline and process for submitting ETDs, visit their Theses and Dissertations guide .

The maximum embargo for any thesis or dissertation is five years.  Initial embargoes of six, twelve, or twenty-four months are applied to ETDs during the ProQuest submission process. Duke Graduate School policy mandates that the embargo period must be the same for both ProQuest and DukeSpace.

• Requests must be submitted by students with advisor support and sent to Dean John Klingensmith  and the Graduate School's Office of Academic Affairs .
• Provide your full name, the title of your thesis or dissertation, your graduation date, and your e-mail address.
• If you want an extension, open access to your thesis or dissertation in DukeSpace automatically defaults to a period of five years after your defense. 
• E mbargo extension requests should be initiated six weeks prior to the expiration of the existing embargo period. 

Embargo Extensions | Duke Divinity School

• Email your  Divinity School academic dean and program director providing your  full name, the title of your thesis or dissertation, your graduation date, and your e-mail address.
• Once approved, the Divinity School administrator should email [email protected] with the student’s name, link to the ETD in DukeSpace, and the new embargo release date requested.
• The maximum embargo length is five years.

Quick Links

• ETD Availability - Information on embargoes for Graduate School students
• Find theses and dissertations  - Search the Library's catalog for all ETDs, including print and electronic
• ProQuest Dissertations & Theses  - Only accessible for Duke users
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• Last Updated: Nov 5, 2024 11:29 AM
• URL: https://guides.library.duke.edu/dukespace

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