[ILL-L] Dissertations...to catalog or not to catalog

[Robinson, Arthur]

Thanks for posting this.  I may steal some of it.  I too often get dissertation requests rom students (and once from an instructor) who think they're requesting articles.  I have no problem with ordering dissertations for seniors writing a thesis, or for freshmen or sophomores who knew what a dissertation is (two out of about thirtysomething I've asked).  I've been using similar arguments--that dissertations are written by students, that they're usually highly specialized, that they're hard to get and even if we do get them they'll probably take more than a week, etc.  If these arguments don't work, I check the WorldCat record and tell them how many pages  the dissertation is.  That's usually the most effective way to dissuade them.  But a few freshmen have insisted on ordering dissertations, in at least one case because the student claimed not to have time to do any more searching.   (How that student thought she'd have time to read a 500-page dissertation, I don't know.)
 
When I started I used the argument that we probably couldn't get the dissertation, but actually I think we've been able to fill nearly two thirds of dissertation requests.  I haven't kept statistics; I may be wrong.  I don't send requests if the library that has it doesn't loan dissertations, if their catalog shows it's checked out, etc.  (Nor did I send a request when a student wanted a dissertation owned only by the University of Hong Kong, and wanted it FAST.)
 
Arthur Robinson (GLG)

________________________________

From: ill-l-bounces at webjunction.org on behalf of Koveleskie, Judith
Sent: Wed 2/6/2008 1:15 PM
To: Interlibrary Loan Listserv
Subject: RE: [ILL-L] Dissertations...to catalog or not to catalog


We also get requests for copies from Dissertation Abstracts and have decided that most undergraduates don't really know what they are asking for so we send this message before processing the ILL request:
 
Before I process this request, I wanted to let you know that this is only an abstract. It is a very brief descriptive paragraph, not the full dissertation and would not provide information that you could cite in a paper.
 
If you would like a copy of the dissertation, itself, you must request it using the book request form. In most cases, libraries do not lend their dissertations, but we have occasionally been able to get them.
 
Most of the time the full dissertation would also not be appropriate for research. Dissertations are written by students to fulfill the requirements for obtaining a degree. Sometimes really good ones are published later as books, but in the dissertation form they are seldom acceptable as a source.
 
If you still want me to request this abstract, just respond to this e-mail including all of the information below.
 
Most of the time, they decide that they don't really want it either the abstract or the dissertation.  In any case, I don't think we would every buy one just for a student, especially when it is something that we would not normally add to our collection.
 
 
Judith A. Koveleskie
Periodicals Librarian
Seton Hill University
Reeves Memorial Library
Greensburg, PA  15601
 
724-838-7828

 
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