Depositing theses FAQs

General questions

Files

Supplementary material and images

Copyright

Publishing

General questions

• What are the advantages of making my thesis available in the University Research Repository, ResearchSpace?

  • Your profile is lifted internationally as open access theses in the University Research Repository are harvested by Google and other major search engines.
  • Your thesis has a permanent URL. You can direct requests to this URL.
  • You retain copyright as the author.
  • Your work will be cited and used more often. Material only in printed form has less exposure than an online thesis.
  • Putting a thesis in digital format facilitates preservation. Print copies may eventually deteriorate beyond repair.
  • Making your work freely available online can serve in some measure to guard against plagiarism.

• Is it compulsory to deposit a digital copy of my doctoral or masters thesis?

PhD students enrolled from 2007 are required to deposit a digital copy of their thesis on completion of their studies. The requirements are outlined in the PhD statute. Students enrolled prior to this date may deposit a digital copy of their doctoral thesis if they wish, provided the permissions and access options for deposit are completed. More PhD deposit information.

After 1 January 2011, masters students are required to deposit a digital copy of their thesis on completion of their studies. The requirements are outlined in the General Regulations. Students who completed their thesis prior to this date may deposit a digital copy of their thesis if they wish, provided the permissions and access options for deposit are completed. More masters deposit information.

• The digital copy of my thesis has different page numbers and fonts from the printed copy. Is this acceptable?

Yes - on your permission form you certify this, "I recognise that minor variations in formatting may occur as a result of the conversion to digital format."

• Who can access material in the University Research Repository, ResearchSpace?

If you choose an Open Access option, your work will be freely available to anyone over the internet. See more about access options and restrictions below.

• Is it possible to limit access to my thesis?

Yes, there are various options for doctoral theses:

• Open Access - the default option - your thesis is fully available online for public access and has maximum internet exposure.
• No access (Embargo) - the thesis is placed in a closed collection if an embargo has been granted by the Dean of Graduate Studies. Only your name, title of thesis and date will appear in the University Research Repository but no other details will be viewable (up to 2 years).

The options for masters theses are:

• Open Access -  the default option - your thesis is fully available online for public access and has maximum internet exposure.
• No Access (Embargo) - the thesis is placed in a closed collection if an embargo has been granted by the Dean of Graduate Studies. Only your name, title of thesis and date will appear in the University Research Repository but no other details will be viewable (up to 2 years).

• How do I contact the University Research Repository staff?

Web: researchspace.auckland.ac.nz
Online query: Ask us
Mail: Thesis Deposits
Acquisitions Department
University of Auckland Library
PO Box 92019
Auckland

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Files

• What is a PDF and how do I create a PDF?

PDF stands for Portable Document Format. Documents are converted to PDF and a universal reader can view them. There are many software programs that convert documents to PDF. The University of Auckland has Adobe Acrobat Professional installed on machines in the Information Commons and other student labs. See our Guidelines for more information about formatting a digital thesis.

For digitisation projects we scan print copies of theses, however the files are much larger and it is difficult to get the text 100% accurate without correcting it manually, so if you have digital originals these are preferred.

• I would like to put my thesis online but I don't have a digital copy. What do I do?

The Library will make a digital copy from one of the paper copies. Please fill in a Permission Form (PhD) or Permission Form (Masters) and send them to us.

• My thesis from 1996 is a collection of files created with programs I no longer have on my computer. Will you accept these files and create the PDF for me?

Yes - absolutely. Most document formats are accepted. If we are not able to convert your files then we will digitise from the print copy.

• My thesis is in Latex format and does not convert well to PDF because of the embedded fonts. Will you still accept it?

Yes - we will attempt to convert it for you. If this is not successful we will create an image copy of the work in PDF format. We will also retain the original Latex format files.

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Supplementary material and images

• Will you accept my supplementary material and display it on the internet, as some of the files are very large?

Yes, we will. Users will be able to see the file size, it will be their choice if they want to download it. If you wish to restrict download access to these files the University Research Repository administrator will apply this according to your conditions on the permission form. Example http://hdl.handle.net/2292/3431. We also have the option to archive datasets created in the course of your research. Please contact us about this option.

• My thesis contains images that were obtained from an online journal. Do I need to get permission?

If you select an access option which makes your thesis available online (internet exposure), then yes, you need to obtain permission. Details are outlined in the guidelines from School of Graduate Studies.

• I have a dataset that was part of my thesis. Can you accept this?

We are able to archive datasets created in the course of your research. Please contact us about this option.

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Copyright

• Do I retain copyright over my thesis?

Yes, the copyright belongs to you - the author. You grant a non-exclusive license for the University of Auckland to make available the thesis in the University Research Repository, ResearchSpace. You may also choose to use a Creative Commons license for extra protection of digital content. See our Copyright pages for more information.

• What is the duration of copyright?

In New Zealand the author's copyright in a work exists for 50 years from the death of the author. This term varies from country to country so be aware that works from other countries (eg, USA, Australia, EU) the term of the author's copyright is 70 years from the death of the author. New Zealand law applies when copying and publishing a work in New Zealand. Authors often assign their rights in a work to a publisher as part of the publication contract and this will mean any request to copy/use the work will need to be made to the publisher.

• What does the term Third Party Copyright mean?

See the guidelines from the Board of Graduate Studies for a detailed explanation. Third Party Copyright is copyright material other than your own. Students may include in a thesis quotations or short extracts taken from a copyrighted work under the fair dealing provisions of the Copyright Act 1994 provided that such fair dealing is accompanied by a sufficient acknowledgement (ie, properly attributed).

However, you will have to get written permission from the copyright owner for any diagram, chart, graphic or image that has been directly copied as a whole from another publication.

Note that a diagram or image is considered as a 'whole work' in its own right and is not just a part of the publication from which it has been taken.

There is also copyright in the print layout of a publication so "layout" copyright will continue for 25 years from the end of the calendar year in which the item was first published. Works in which copyright has expired may be copied without limitation.

• How can I be sure that my work is not plagiarised?

We use a cover sheet on every copy of the thesis. We also have a copyright notice on the system, and also at the record level in a metadata field called dc.rights. We can also limit access to the thesis in a number of ways to make your rights clear on re-use.

As the copyright remains with you it should be up to you (the author), with the advice of your supervisor, to choose the appropriate restriction rather than the institution.

• What is a Creative Commons License?

For authors who deposit online into the University Research Repository, ResearchSpace, there is an option to choose a Creative Commons license. This gives extra protection for copyright holders of content in the digital world. We recommend that authors use the license, allowing non-commercial and share alike reuse. Normal fair dealing copyright applies in addition to Creative Commons. For more information about Creative Commons see the following websites:

• creativecommons.org/ International Creative Commons
• www.tohatoha.org.nz/ Tohatoha (formerly New Zealand Creative Commons)

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Publishing

• I want to publish material from my thesis after I graduate. Should I put my thesis online?

Yes, definitely! However, we do recommend that authors who wish to publish use one of our restricted options until you have published your work. Publishers' policies can vary about making pre-publication material available online. Please contact us if you have any queries.

• I put a digital copy of my thesis online a few years ago and have now published this as a book or a journal article. Can you link to my published version?

Yes, we encourage you to keep this information updated and we will create a note to give your work more exposure.

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Further information

• Queries?

Contact the ResearchSpace staff using the Ask us form.

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