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Thesis Information

On this page

• How to layout your thesis
• Copyright and your thesis
• Depositing your thesis with the University Library
• Finding a thesis

Related information

• OUR Archive
• Library Bindery
• Ordering a University of Otago thesis

These guidelines are for students who are in the process of completing higher degree theses.  Candidates for any degree should always consult their supervisor for any departmental guidelines as well as the University's Presentation of Theses Regulations.

How to layout your thesis

Consult thesis writing guides, previous theses in your discipline, and your supervisor as to preferred layout options. There can be variations within disciplines on content and style. See also: Organising your thesis (444K in PDF format).

Please also note the following: University of Otago's Format of the Thesis for PhDs and Format of the Thesis for Masters' degrees.

Completion of your thesis will require attention to paper type, layout, file printing and deposit preparations, copying, and binding: Completing your thesis (360K in PDF format).

Binding your thesis

The Library Bindery offers binding services to Otago students completing theses/dissertations at competitive prices and a maximum 10 day turnaround, depending on the time of year.

Margins required for binding theses:

• Verso (right-hand, odd numbered, pages) (28K in PDF format)
• Recto (left-hand, even numbered, pages) (28K in PDF format)

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Copyright and your thesis

The normal protection of copyright law, The New Zealand Copyright Act 1994, applies to your thesis.

Copyright: your obligations and your rights (475K in PDF format)

Intellectual Property Rights of Graduate Research Students Policy (at the University of Otago)

• Copyright Permissions Checklist (96K in PDF format)
• Sample Copyright Permission Letter (22K in RTF format)

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Depositing your thesis with the University Library

"After examination the degree for which your thesis is required shall not be awarded until two permanently-bound copies and a digital copy of your thesis, corrected if necessary, have been submitted." - Presentation of Theses Regulations.

The digital copy of your thesis is to be deposited in the Otago University Research Archive (OUR Archive). It must be an exact replica of the corrected thesis that was accepted for your degree - this is the version that was bound. Either PDF or word processed versions are acceptable.

To deposit your thesis (print and/or digital) you will also need to fill in either the Masters or PhD 'Thesis Declaration Form' and the 'Author Declaration Form':

• Masters Thesis Declaration Form - soft-bound copy (24K in PDF format).
• PhD Thesis Declaration Form - soft-bound copy (24K in PDF format).
• Author Declaration Form

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Finding a thesis

It can be helpful to consult previous thesis research. Below is a list of national and international theses databases. Search tips are available within Find a thesis (338K in PDF format).

New Zealand & Australia

• KRIS - a gateway to the open-access publicly funded research documents produced at universities, polytechnics, and other research institutions throughout New Zealand.
• New Zealand Educational Theses Database - funded by the Ministry of Education, through the Iterative Best Evidence Synthesis (BES) Programme. Over 9000 theses, dating back to 1970.
• OUR Archive - University of Otago's Institutional Research Repository, which includes University of Otago electronic theses.
• Te Puna or New Zealand Libraries Catalogue – NZ database that lists bibliographic details of theses submitted by NZ Universities, or consult the Union list of higher degree theses in New Zealand libraries held at Hocken Library Reference Z5055 .NK5 UK5 for 1910-1999.
• Trove - includes theses held in Australian libraries.

International

• Cyberthesis - thousands of full-text theses worldwide with a focus on Latin American universities.
• DART - Europe E-theses Portal - Access to 123,325 full-text research theses from 210 Universities sourced from 16 European countries.
• dissonline - Open access dissertations online, a service of the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek. The DNB collects all dissertations defended in Germany, as well as dissertations in German from institutions abroad.
• ETHOS - British Library's Electronic Theses Online Service. Search across 250,000+ theses. Login and order full text copies for free.
• Index to Theses (UK and Ireland)
• PhDdata - a new and developing site with a few thousand theses; has a databases of doctoral dissertation in progress around the world.
• Proquest Dissertations & Theses abstracts - Doctoral dissertations and master's theses from 1,000+ graduate schools and universities.
• Theses Canada - Canadian theses from 1965 with fulltext from 1998.

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Last revised:17 January, 2012