Thesis and Dissertation Resources

Spring Thesis Submission Deadline: Monday, May 6

 

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Thesis track master's students and all PhD students are required to submit their final thesis or dissertation to the Graduate School after the work has been successfully defended and deemed complete by the committee.  All students must complete  the submission process by the deadlines posted on the academic calendar for the desired semester of graduation. 

Details on the submission and formatting process can be found below.  The Graduate School has not prescribed a particular style to be followed in writing a thesis/dissertation. The style chosen must be appropriate to the student’s field of study. However, the Graduate School has adopted standards for form and organization. These standards are outlined in the formatting manual linked on this page.  

Formatting Requirements

 

Formatting Review

The Graduate School offers a free formatting review to all students submitting a thesis or dissertation.  This review is not required, but is strongly suggested.  To obtain a review, please email your thesis/dissertation, either in PDF or with a sharing link, to grad.studentrecords@unh.edu with 'Thesis Review' as the subject line. Reviews may take up to a week depending on the time of year. 

Thesis Manual

Students should become familiar with the formatting requirements that are outlined in the thesis manual.  The formatting specifications are based on universal formatting required by many colleges and universities around the country.  These requirements are also mandated by the publisher to ensure that all thesis and dissertations have a consistent format.

Students should not rely solely on previously bound copies of theses for answers on formatting issues. While bound copies may provide ideas for possible procedures, format requirements may have changed. If you have a question, please contact the Graduate School. 

Templates

The Graduate School does not create or host any formatting templates (Overleaf, LaTeX, etc.).  Any templates that may exist were created by prior students.  Students are advised caution when using previously created templates as formatting requirements may have changed. 

Final Submission

 

The final approved thesis/dissertation must be submitted to the Graduate School through ProQuest via the UNH ETD Administrator website by the appropriate deadline as published in the Graduate School calendar. Publishing options include traditional publishing (free) as well as open access publishing (additional cost).  The benefits of each can be found on the ProQuest website.  Students can opt to embargo their thesis (hold publication) if needed, which will delay publishing for a specified period of time.  Bound copies are available for purchase through ProQuest at the time of submission. Students should check with their department to determine if a bound copy is required. All fees are to be paid by the student at the time of submission.

Deadlines
 

Students are advised not to wait until the last minute to submit their work. Submissions must be received by the published deadline for your intended graduation term unless the Graduate School has granted an extension. The specific deadline for submission for each graduation date is published on the UNH Academic Calendar as well as on our calendar page.

*Under no circumstances will a submission be accepted after the graduation date has passed.

Submission Process
 

The final version of the thesis must be submitted electronically to the Graduate School via the secure UNH ProQuest ETD Administrator website: http://www.etdadmin.com/unh. Submissions should be made only after a student has successfully passed the defense and has made all the necessary corrections required by their committee. In addition to the ProQuest submission, students will also need to submit the Thesis Submission Form as well as a copy of their signed signature page to the Graduate School Dean's Office .  

Submission Requirements
 

ProQuest Thesis/Dissertation submission: Submit the completed and approved thesis/dissertation through ProQuest.  You will be able to choose from two publishing options and will be able to purchase bound copies if desired.

Signature Page: The signature page is created by the student and should be based on the sample template that we provide in the thesis formatting manual.  This page should be signed by all committee members as confirmation that the thesis/dissertation has been approved.  As we understand that not all faculty may be local or able to sign in person, digital or otherwise electronic signatures are permitted.  A hard copy signature page is not required.  The final page should be submitted to the Graduate School as  PDF file. 

Final Submission Form: This form/checklist, found linked at the top of this page, is to be filled out and submitted by the student as confirmation that all steps in the process have been completed.

The submission form and signature page can be submitted as PDF files to grad.studentrecords@unh.edu (preferred).  Pages can also be submitted in person or mailed to the Graduate School Dean's Office in Thompson Hall.

These materials can be submitted in any order.  Once all materials have been received the Graduate School will review the submission.  If there are changes needed, the student will be notified and will be able to make the necessary changes and resubmit.

Publishing
 

Students can choose between Traditional Publishing (no cost) or Open Access Publishing.  More information about the publishing options can be found on the ProQuest website at the time of submission.   All publishing fees are the responsibility of the student. 

Thesis/dissertation submissions will be sent for publishing after all degrees are awarded.  Publishing normally takes 8-10 weeks.  Once published, the thesis/dissertations will be made available online through ProQuest as well as through the UNH Library Scholar's Repository.  

Note: If the student opted for an embargo, then release will not be completed until the embargo expires.  In the case of an infinite embargo, the submission will never be made available. 

Bound Copies
 

Students can request bound copies at the time of submission.  The Graduate School does not require students to purchase copies to complete the submission process.  However, some departments may still require/request copies.  Students can select any format for personal bound copies, however, for university use the 8 1/2 x 11 hardcover is recommended.  Payment for any bound copies is the responsibility of the student. 

After publication, bound copies will be printed and mailed to the address the student provided at the time of submission. Students can also order additional bound copies at any time through the ProQuest portal once publication is completed. 

Questions

Please contact grad.studentrecords@unh.edu with any questions.

Thesis and Dissertation Credit

Thesis Credits

A thesis requires the completion of between 6-10 thesis credits.  Some departments have more specific requirements.  Students who enrolled for more than 10 credits will need to work with the Graduate School to withdraw the excess credits.  

Once the thesis is approved and submitted the department will submit a request to award the CR grade for thesis completion.  The Graduate School monitors thesis grades closely, but it is not unusual for thesis grades to remain incomplete until immediately before the degree is awarded. 

Doctoral Research

PhD students are required to register for Doctoral Research (999) each semester until their degree is awarded.  Once the dissertation is submitted and approved the department will submit a request to award the CR grade for the dissertation.  Please note that only the most recent registration of 999 will be given a CR.  All other registrations will have a IA grade.