Step 1 of the Thesis Process: Development
Registration
Graduate College requirements
Registration is not required for thesis deposit. For further information on Graduate College registration requirements for research credit, including registration for the doctoral final examination (defense), registration for 0 hours of credit, and more, please refer to the Graduate College Handbook. Students with additional questions regarding registration should contact Graduate Student Academic Services.
Program requirements
Students should contact their departmental office directly with questions regarding specific registration requirements for their program of study.
Requirements for international students
Students with questions regarding registration issues related to visa status should contact the office of International Student and Scholar Services.
Resources for research and writing
- Institutional Review Board (IRB)
- Thesis Support (Writing tips and resources provided by the University Library)
- The Writers Workshop (Provides free writing assistance for students and maintains a list of proofreaders for hire)
- "Dissertation Success Strategies" (Helpful suggestions from the Counseling Center)
- Dissertation Writing Workshop (Occurs annually during the fall term; see Student Events Calendar for date)
- Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship (IDEALS)
Copyright information
The Thesis Office encourages students to read the Graduate College's statement on the use of previously copyrighted material in a thesis and the responsibility of students to exercise sound authorship practices.
The Thesis Office does not advise students on what can or cannot be considered "fair use." However, students may find the following resources helpful in making and documenting their own determination of whether permission is required for the use of previously copyrighted material in a thesis:
- Fair Use Checklist, offered by Columbia University's Copyright Advisory Office
- Fair Use Evaluator, offered by the American Library Association
Additional copyright resources are listed below:
- A Student's Guide to Copyrights and Fair Use (includes sample permission request letter), published by the Office of Technology Management
- Your Intellectual Property, University Library resources for graduate students
- U.S. Copyright Office
- Copyright Law & Graduate Research: New Media, New Rights, and Your New Dissertation, by Kenneth D. Crews
- "How to Investigate the Copyright Status of a Work," (PDF) U.S. Copyright Office Circular 22
- SPARC Author Addendum (PDF)
- SHERPA/RoMEO, an online database of journal and publisher copyright agreements
- Facilities & Services Printing Department, (217)-333-9350. (The Printing Department provides a copyright clearance service for a fee. Material that requires copyright clearance must be identified by the student.)
In Fall 2009, Kenneth Crews, Director of the Copyright Advisory Office at Columbia University, gave a presentation on copyright to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus. The presentation, "Who Owns Your Scholarship: Copyright, Publication Agreements, and Good Practice" is available in video and audio formats from the Center for Advanced Study.
Formatting the thesis
Graduate College thesis requirements
All theses and dissertations must satisfy the Graduate College thesis requirements in order to be accepted for deposit.
Departmental requirements
Students should check with their departments early in the writing process so that they are aware of any program- or department-specific format requirements as the thesis or dissertation is developed.
Style guides
The Graduate College does not require the use of any particular style, although some departments do. Students with format-related questions that are not specifically covered by either Graduate College or departmental requirements are encouraged to consult a style guide relevant to their discipline. Examples of informative style guides are
- Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th Ed.)
- The Chicago Manual of Style (16th Ed.)
- IEEE Editorial Style Manual