[ILL-L] Electronic theses summary

[Schwartz, Andrea]

I posted last week about making our institution's theses available online.  Got a number of responses & have been asked to summarize them for the list(s).  If I've misinterpreted any info, feel free to correct.

There's  now a page on Electronic Thesis Depositories at ShareILL:  http://www.shareill.org/index.php/Electronic_Theses_Depositories

Several libraries provided their copyright release forms to me.  I'll list them here if anyone wants to contact them or check their websites:
-Oregon Health & Science Univ.
-Univ. of Wisconsin-La Crosse
-Univ. of Montana
-Univ. of Central Florida (http://library.ucf.edu/systems/Digitalcollections/rtd.asp)
-Simon Fraser Univ. (http://www.lib.sfu.ca/researchhelp/writing/thesesregulations/pcl_pdf.pdf)

One university reported that their university attorney determined that no permission/release form was needed, since the theses were produced as part of degree work at the university.  Essentially, the theses belong to the university & they can do as they please w/ them.

One library in Canada (Simon Fraser) has been digitizing all their theses.  Attempts were made to contact all authors before making them available.  If they couldn't find an author, they still digitized it, but will remove it if contacted by author at later date.  Their theses are not printable or downloadable-they are read-only PDF files.  If they are contacted by someone wishing to have a print or electronic version, they contact author for permission and then send requestor an electronic file.  Their institutional repository of theses can be viewed here:  http://ir.lib.sfu.ca/handle/1892/112

Another Canadian library (Brock Univ.) reports that they have been digitizing theses for which they have permissions, and (if I understand correctly) making them available via Scholars Portal (http://www.scholarsportal.info/)

Many people suggested various websites for schools who are currently digitizing their theses or other interesting sites:
-Virginia Tech  http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/
-Cal Tech  http://library.caltech.edu/etd/ETD_FAQ.htm#book
-Glasgow Univ.  http://theses.gla.ac.uk/gettingstarted/
-Purdue Univ.  http://www.gradschool.purdue.edu/thesis.cfm
-British thesis service:  http://www.ethos.ac.uk and  their model deposit agreement http://ethostoolkit.cranfield.ac.uk/tiki-index.php?page_ref_id=68
-Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations  http://www.ndltd.org
-ETD Bibliography  http://www.digital-scholarship.com/etdb/etdb.htm

Other misc notes:
-Suggestion to work with the Alumni office of your university to locate authors & obtain permission from them to have thesis digitized or otherwise made available.
-Not only be we need to be concerned with permission from the thesis author, but there's a wider issue of information *within* the thesis itself.  Students need to be warned that they may need to seek author's permission to include certain info within their thesis (esp. if thesis were available free online).  I'm still a little vague on this point, maybe someone can help clarify?

Hope this will help some of you out there who are struggling with this issue.  Thanks to all of you who responded!


Andrea Schwartz
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania
Andruss Library, Interlibrary Loan
570-389-4218 (voice)
570-389-3895 (fax)
aschwart at bloomu.edu<mailto:aschwart at bloomu.edu>




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