the ZIP file is created, download it to your local computer. Access the Database: You'll need access to the database associated with your Omeka site. the ZIP file is created, download it to your local computer. Access the Database: You'll need access to the database associated with your Omeka site. the ZIP file is created, download it to your local computer. Access the Database: You'll need access to the database associated with your Omeka site.Typically, this is done through a tool like phpMyAdmin or the command line if you have server access. Export the Database: Use the database management tool to export your Omeka database. Here are the general steps: In phpMyAdmin: Select your Omeka database in the left sidebar. Click on the "Export" tab. Choose the export method (usually "Quick" is sufficient). Click the "Go" button to initiate the export. This will generate a .sql file. Using the Command Line (if you have SSH access): Use the mysqldump command to export your database. Replace your-database , your-username , and your-password with your actual database information: mysqldump -u your-username -p your-database > omeka-database.sql Download the Database Backup: After exporting the database, download the .sql file to your local computer. This file contains your Omeka site's database.


nload the Database Backup: After exporting the database, download the .sql file to your local computer. This file contains your Omeka site's database.For the purposes of submitting your digital material to the CUNY institutional repository, a GitHub (or GitLab, or etc.) repository is about as simple as it gets! How to Download a GitHub Repository Archive: Log in to GitHub: Ensure you are logged in to your GitHub account. Go to the Repository: Navigate to the GitHub repository you want to archive. Click on the "Code" Button: On the repository's main page, click the green "Code" button. Download ZIP: To create a snapshot of the entire repository, click "Download ZIP" to download a ZIP archive.


main page, click the green "Code" button. Download ZIP: To create a snapshot of the entire repository, click "Download ZIP" to download a ZIP archive.Unfortunately Tableau does not provide a built-in feature to directly archive or export entire Tableau projects as standalone files. However, you can achieve a form of archiving or backup by exporting the contents of a Tableau project individually. Here's how: 1. Export Workbooks and Data Sources: Tableau projects typically consist of workbooks, data sources, and other related resources. You can export these individually as follows: Workbooks: To export a Tableau workbook, open it in Tableau Desktop, go to "File" > "Export," and choose "Tableau Package (.twbx)." This will create a packaged workbook that includes the workbook and the data source it's connected to. Data Sources: For data sources, you can export them from Tableau Desktop by going to "File" > "Export Data Source" and selecting "Tableau Data Source (.tds)" or "Tableau Packaged Data Source (.tdsx)." Similar to workbooks, these files can be stored for archiving. 2.


nd selecting "Tableau Data Source (.tds)" or "Tableau Packaged Data Source (.tdsx)." Similar to workbooks, these files can be stored for archiving. 2.nd selecting "Tableau Data Source (.tds)" or "Tableau Packaged Data Source (.tdsx)." Similar to workbooks, these files can be stored for archiving. 2.nd selecting "Tableau Data Source (.tds)" or "Tableau Packaged Data Source (.tdsx)." Similar to workbooks, these files can be stored for archiving. 2.Export Data: If your Tableau project includes custom data sources that are not packaged within workbooks, you should also export the data itself if you want to archive it. Depending on the data source, you might need to use database backup/export tools. 3. Save Metadata and Documentation: To ensure future users understand the context and purpose of your Tableau project, it's a good practice to save metadata and documentation. This includes descriptions, data lineage, and any custom documentation you've created within the Tableau project. 4. Compress Materials into a ZIP File: On Windows: Select the files and/or folders you want to compress. Right-click on the selected items. Choose "Send to" from the context menu. Select "Compressed (zipped) folder." A new ZIP archive will be created with the selected files and/or folders inside it. On macOS: Select the files and/or folders you want to compress. Right-click on the selected items. Choose "Compress" from the context menu.


inside it. On macOS: Select the files and/or folders you want to compress. Right-click on the selected items. Choose "Compress" from the context menu.inside it. On macOS: Select the files and/or folders you want to compress. Right-click on the selected items. Choose "Compress" from the context menu.inside it. On macOS: Select the files and/or folders you want to compress. Right-click on the selected items. Choose "Compress" from the context menu.A new ZIP archive with the same name as the selected items will be created in the same location.


lected items. Choose "Compress" from the context menu.A new ZIP archive with the same name as the selected items will be created in the same location.Squarespace, Wix, and other 'no-code' site creating apps purposefully make it difficult to export and archive content, and will not work with Conifer. Using Conifer to Archive a Website: Visit the Conifer Website: Go to the Conifer website ( https://conifer.rhizome.org/ ). Enter the URL: In the provided field on the Conifer homepage, enter the URL of the website you want to archive. Adjust Capture Settings (Optional): Conifer offers options to adjust capture settings, such as specifying the date and time of the capture or selecting specific pages within your site. You can choose to leave these settings as they are or customize them to your preference. Start the Capture: Click the "Capture" button to initiate the website capture process. Conifer will load the specified webpage and take a record of it. Review and Download: After the capture is complete, you'll be presented with a preview of the recorded page. You can review the recording to ensure it looks as expected.


: After the capture is complete, you'll be presented with a preview of the recorded page. You can review the recording to ensure it looks as expected.: After the capture is complete, you'll be presented with a preview of the recorded page. You can review the recording to ensure it looks as expected.: After the capture is complete, you'll be presented with a preview of the recorded page. You can review the recording to ensure it looks as expected.Download the Archived Page: Once you're satisfied with the capture, click the "Download" button to save the archive to your local computer. Repeat for Other Pages (if needed): If you want to archive multiple pages of your website, you can repeat the process by entering the URLs of those pages and capturing pages one by one. Organize and Store: Save the downloaded recordings in an organized folder structure on your computer.


s of those pages and capturing pages one by one. Organize and Store: Save the downloaded recordings in an organized folder structure on your computer.To capture videos for archiving purposes, especially those hosted on websites like YouTube or Vimeo, you can use screen recording software or specialized video downloaders. Here's how: Method 1: Using Screen Recording Software: Install Screen Recording Software: Choose a screen recording software that suits your needs. Some popular options include OBS Studio (Open Broadcaster Software), Camtasia, or ScreenFlow (for Mac users). Download and install the software on your computer. Open the Video You Want to Capture: Navigate to the webpage or platform (e.g., YouTube) where the video is hosted and open the video you want to capture. Configure Recording Settings: Launch your screen recording software and configure the recording settings. Set the recording area to capture the video player on the webpage. Start Recording: Start the recording process in your screen recording software and then play the video on the webpage. Ensure that you capture both the video and audio.


tart the recording process in your screen recording software and then play the video on the webpage. Ensure that you capture both the video and audio.tart the recording process in your screen recording software and then play the video on the webpage. Ensure that you capture both the video and audio.tart the recording process in your screen recording software and then play the video on the webpage. Ensure that you capture both the video and audio.Stop Recording: After the video has finished playing, stop the recording in your screen recording software. Save the Video: Save the recorded video to your computer in a suitable format. Make sure to name and organize the file appropriately for archiving. Method 2: Using Video Downloaders: Install a Video Downloader: There are various video downloader browser extensions and standalone software available for this purpose. Examples include 4K Video Downloader, YouTube-DL, or browser extensions like Video DownloadHelper for Firefox. Open the Video Page: Go to the webpage where the video is hosted (e.g., YouTube) and open the video you want to download. Use the Video Downloader: Activate the video downloader tool or extension while you are on the video page. In most cases, you'll see an option to download the video. Click it. Choose Download Settings: Depending on the downloader you're using, you may have options to choose the video quality and format. Select the desired settings.


Download Settings: Depending on the downloader you're using, you may have options to choose the video quality and format. Select the desired settings.Download Settings: Depending on the downloader you're using, you may have options to choose the video quality and format. Select the desired settings.Download Settings: Depending on the downloader you're using, you may have options to choose the video quality and format. Select the desired settings.Download the Video: Start the download process. The video will be saved to your computer once the download is complete. Organize and Store: After downloading, save the video file to a location on your computer or external storage device, and organize it for archiving. Please be aware of copyright and fair use laws when downloading and archiving videos, especially if the content is not your own or if it is subject to licensing restrictions. Always respect the terms of service of the video hosting platform and obtain the necessary permissions if required.


Creating a Data Dictionary:
A data dictionary is a structured guide that describes the data used in a project, outlining its meaning, format, and relationships. It serves as a reference for understanding and using data effectively. Identify Your Data : List the key data elements you'll use (e.g., variables, fields, columns in a dataset). Define Each Element : For each data element, provide: Name : The title of the data element. Description : A brief explanation of what it represents. Data Type : Specify the format (e.g., integer, text, date). Value Range or Categories : If applicable, list possible values or ranges. Source : Note where the data came from or how it was collected. Organize : Arrange your data dictionary in a table or spreadsheet for easy reference. By creating a clear data dictionary, you ensure that anyone working on or reviewing your capstone can understand your data structure and usage.


Finding Dissertations:
There is no single source for a comprehensive dissertation search. WorldCat and ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global include most American dissertations. Dissertations @ The Center for Research Libraries lends non-American dissertations to member borrowers. Library catalogs and specialized repositories contain other titles. Request any dissertation through Interlibrary Loan . Though not every title is available through ILL, it is worth a try.


Dissertation Databases & Repositories:
Graduate Center Dissertations in Academic Works, 2014-present: As of 2014, all Graduate Center dissertations, theses, and capstone projects are posted to CUNY Academic Works. Some are immediately available to read and download, and some become available after an embargo period set by the author.

Graduate Center Retrospective Dissertations, 1965-2013: Current CUNY students, faculty and staff can log in with their CUNYfirst credentials to access GC dissertations and capstones from 1965-2013. (Pre-2014 master's theses are available only in print). If you want to move your dissertation or capstone into the publicly accessible CUNY repository, Academic Works, email the GC Dissertation Office at deposit@gc.cuny.edu . Making your dissertation free to the public helps broaden the reach of your scholarship and supports CUNY's mission of public service.


t@gc.cuny.edu . Making your dissertation free to the public helps broaden the reach of your scholarship and supports CUNY's mission of public service.CUNYfirst credentials: used to log into Blackboard, CUNY-wide electronic resources, and other services. More information about the various CUNY accounts: https://libguides.gc.cuny.edu/cuny_accounts .

Dissertations & Theses @ City University of New York Graduate Center: CUNY dissertations dating back to 1965. Full text available except for embargoed works.

Dissertations & Theses Global: Indexes two-million dissertations from over one-thousand institutions, with citations from 1861-1980 and abstracts from 1980 to present. Includes the full text of most post-1996 CUNY dissertations and many post-1996 dissertations from other institutions, as well as thousands of earlier ones. To limit your search to CUNY dissertations, include 0046 in your search statement, selecting the school name/code search field. Non-U.S.dissertations can be searched in the Center for Research Libraries' catalog.


ur search statement, selecting the school name/code search field. Non-U.S.dissertations can be searched in the Center for Research Libraries' catalog.Center for Research Libraries (CRL) Online Catalog: The Center for Research Libraries provides a shared collection of five million books, journals, documents and newspapers to supplement member libraries’ holdings in the humanities, science, and social sciences. With a strategic emphasis on expanding electronic access to international primary source collections, CRL participates in a number of cooperative digitization efforts, yielding millions of pages of digitized content to date. CRL resources include:


ons, CRL participates in a number of cooperative digitization efforts, yielding millions of pages of digitized content to date. CRL resources include:The largest circulating collection of newspapers in North America – more than 16,000 newspaper titles from all world regions and from every U.S. state – mainstream dailies, underground and alternative press titles, rare publications from international conflict zones, U.S. ethnic titles, early African-American newspapers, and radio broadcast reports and transcripts Foreign journals rarely held in U.S. libraries, with a focus on science and technology Access to rich holdings in science, technology, and engineering print serials through a partnership with the Linda Hall Library More than 800,000 non U.S. dissertations Area Studies: major collections of news, government documents, and archives from Africa, Latin America, Middle East, Europe, Asia, and Southeast and South Asia Millions of pages of primary source documents, including major sets from the National Archives of the U.S. and the U.K., and many special collections from around the world U.S.


ry source documents, including major sets from the National Archives of the U.S. and the U.K., and many special collections from around the world U.S.ry source documents, including major sets from the National Archives of the U.S. and the U.K., and many special collections from around the world U.S.ry source documents, including major sets from the National Archives of the U.S. and the U.K., and many special collections from around the world U.S.and international legal and government resources


he National Archives of the U.S. and the U.K., and many special collections from around the world U.S.and international legal and government resourcesBiblioteca Digital de Teses e Dissertações da USP: Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations of the University of São Paulo

Colección de Tesis Digitales Universidad de las Américas Puebla: Tesis digitales Universidad de las Américas, Puebla, México

DART Europe E-theses: Europe except France

Deutsche Nationalbibliothek: Hochschulschriften in the German National Library

Dissonline.de: Full-text dissertations from the German and Swiss National Libraries

E-theses: University of Helsinki, Finland dissertations; all free full-text

EThOS British Library Electronic Theses Online: Searches 250,000+ theses, many available in full text with a free online account. Theses not available for immediate download take 30 days to digitize. Order via CUNY Graduate Center interlibrary loan to cover any digitization fees. Most UK universities participate except Oxford, Cambridge, and Univ of Southampton.

JAIRO: Japanese Institutional Respositories Online: Open access; full-text


niversities participate except Oxford, Cambridge, and Univ of Southampton.

JAIRO: Japanese Institutional Respositories Online: Open access; full-textNARCIS: Dissertations from all Dutch Universities

Nauka Polska: Poland's dissertation repository

Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations Global ETD Search: NDLTD's Global ETD Search is a free service that allows researchers to find electronic theses and dissertations based on keyword, date, institution, language and subject.

OAIster: from open access digital archive world-wide

Open Access Theses and Dissertations: Metadata from over 1100 institutions, indexes over 2.5 million theses and dissertations.

Osterreichischen Bibliothekenverbundes: Austrian Hochschulschriften

Russian State Library Digital Library Dissertations: Over 650,000 free, full-text of dissertations from 1998

Systeme Universitaire de Documentation: French science theses from 1972; humanities, social sciences, law and health from 1983

Tesi-online: Italian university PhD theses; free full-text

Theses.fr: expanding index of French theses


es, social sciences, law and health from 1983

Tesi-online: Italian university PhD theses; free full-text

Theses.fr: expanding index of French thesesTheses Canada: Canadian universities voluntarily submit approved theses and dissertation to Theses Canada

Trove: Australian university digital and print theses


Dissertation Indexes (Print & Microformat):
Use these to supplement searches in online databases. Historical information in print indexes is sometimes more complete (i.e. abstracts appear in print before 1980 in Dissertation Abstracts International, but are not currently online). Print indexes may contain earlier works not included in online databases.

American Doctoral Dissertations 1933-1955: Digitized version of the print index, "Doctoral Dissertations Accepted by American Universities." Includes nearly 100,000 citations.

Comprehensive Dissertation Index 1861 - 1972: 37 volumes divided by subject with author index. Each subject has keyword index. Bibliographic citations include title, author, degree, year, institution. No abstracts. JFF 98-1512 in the NYPL Schwarzman Main Reading Room

Deutsche Bibliographie: Hochschulschriften-Verzeichnis 1972 - 1990: German dissertations NYPL OFFSITE JFM 93-99


the NYPL Schwarzman Main Reading Room

Deutsche Bibliographie: Hochschulschriften-Verzeichnis 1972 - 1990: German dissertations NYPL OFFSITE JFM 93-99Dissertation Abstracts 1938-1966: Index with abstracts to American doctoral dissertations. NYPL JFM 74-61 OFFSITE

Dissertation Abstracts International, 1969 -: These volumes succeed Dissertation Abstracts. Includes title, author, degree, institution, year, pages, and an abstract. Author and keyword indexes. Includes abstracts for pre-1980 works not abstracted in online version. Graduate Center 1970-1984 MIC-Per 164 NYPL Schwarzman Main Reading Room A: Humanities and Social Sciences JFM 74 - 62 B: Sciences and Engineering JFM 74 - 34 C: International/European 1977 - 2003 OFFSITE

Dissertation Abstracts International 1966 - 1969: Ser A: Humanities and Social Sciences JFM 74 - 63 OFFSITE Ser B: Sciences and Engineering JFM 74 - 60 OFFSITE

Dissertation Abstracts International Retrospective Index 1938 - 1969: Indexes Dissertation abstracts (v.1-26) and Dissertation Abstracts International (v.27-29); 1933 - 1969. NYPL: Offsite; request in avance.


938 - 1969: Indexes Dissertation abstracts (v.1-26) and Dissertation Abstracts International (v.27-29); 1933 - 1969. NYPL: Offsite; request in avance.Dissertation Abstracts [Microfilm] 1952-1964: MIC-Per 164 at the Graduate Center Library

Index to theses accepted for higher degrees by the universities of Great Britain and Ireland and the Council for National Academic Awards 1950 - 1985: NYPL OFFSITE JFM 88-379

Jahresverzeichnis der Deutschen Hochschulschriften, 1936 - 1964: German dissertations NYPL OFFSITE L-10 9257

Microfilm Abstracts 1938-1951: Graduate Center MIC-Per 164


CRL Dissertations:
Based in Chicago, the Center for Research Libraries was founded in 1948 by a consortium of Midwestern universities seeking to pool lesser-used resources. The collection holds over 800,000 dissertations from 90+ universities in Germany (66%), Netherlands (2%), France (16%), Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and the UK; also from Latin America, South America, and Africa. What CRL does not own, it will acquire for interlibrary loan to Graduate Center affiliates.


British Dissertations:
The Center for Research Libraries reviews all Grad Center ILL requests for loan or demand purchase of UK dissertations. If CRL finds the title accessible through EThOS or that it can be digitized free of charge (in approx 30 days), CRL will notify the requesting institution of its availability via the EThOS online venue. CRL will also place orders via EThOS and alert requestors when a dissertation is available for download. If EThOS requires a fee for digitization, CRL will place the order on behalf of the requesting institution and pay for digitization.


Attention! Deposits are currently closed. We anticipate re-opening on December 14, 2015. Please review the instructions on these pages for the revised deposit procedures. Students who plan to deposit for the February 2016 degree may continue to obtain required signatures on the approval page (see our Sample Pages for reference) and complete required surveys. When deposits re-open, graduates will be asked to upload electronic versions of their work and bring the signed original approval page to the library for authentication and safekeeping. The approval page may be printed on standard paper. Please ensure that the approval page includes the title and author of the manuscript; if necessary, a separate title page may be attached. November 20, 2015 was the last day that graduate work was accepted for deposit by the Dissertation Assistant, Judy Waldman, who retired after 28 years of service.


2015 was the last day that graduate work was accepted for deposit by the Dissertation Assistant, Judy Waldman, who retired after 28 years of service. 2015 was the last day that graduate work was accepted for deposit by the Dissertation Assistant, Judy Waldman, who retired after 28 years of service. 2015 was the last day that graduate work was accepted for deposit by the Dissertation Assistant, Judy Waldman, who retired after 28 years of service.When graduate work deposits re-open, graduates will be asked to upload electronic copies of their work for the Graduate Center Library to archive; paper copies of graduate work will no longer be archived by the library. Watch this space for updates and announcements.


Deposit Appointment Instructions:
Login to Banner , select Student Bill Payments , then Request an Appointment to Deposit . Clear all holds prior to your appointment.


Dissertation Research Librarian:
Roxanne Shirazi Room 2304 Graduate Center Library (212) 817-7069 Deposit@gc.cuny.edu


Deposit Your Dissertation:
UMI ETD Administrator: login to deposit your dissertation and supplementary files in any format, and to monitor or amend your publication options


Deposit Clearance Form:
Deposit Clearance Form: Print and complete just prior to your final deposit meeting.


Online/Digital Components:
Does your dissertation/thesis include a significant digital component that the library must archive? If so, complete please read the Submitting Online and Digital Component page well in advance of your deposit.


Suggested Reading:
Some titles may require GC network userid/pwd login through proxy server

Embrace and Ambivalence: Virginia Kuhn's 2005 UW digital dissertation was one of the first. Do we know yet how to review, archive, and manage digital grad work?

Writing and Defending Your Digital Dissertation: Join the Conversation!: HASTAC and CUNY's Cathy Davidson with NYU's Diana Taylor and Duke's Dwayne Dixon on his Scalar- based diss.

SAGE Handbook of Digital Dissertations and Theses: Guide to the processes of digital research.

The Dissertation Can No Longer be Defended: February 11, 2013 CHE

How Blogging Helped Me Write My Dissertation: January 29, 2013

Publish. Perish? The academic author and open access publishing: see especially CUNY GC Chief Librarian's 2013 final chapter on publishing graduate work online


Deposit Your Thesis or Dissertation:


Deposit Your Thesis or Dissertation:Deposit Your Thesis or Dissertation:PhD and Master's graduates are generally required to produce a dissertation or thesis to be preserved and shared publicly by the Graduate Center Library. Graduates must schedule a meeting with the Dissertation Assistant during a deposit period and (suggested minimum) five days after the PhD defense or MA advisor review to allow time for revisions. A preliminary review meeting prior to defense is optional. See Format for Deposit guidelines for specifications about electronic depositing in any file format, adding supplementary files, and pagination, paper stock, signatures required for the paper copy. Prior to the final deposit meeting: Go to UMI ETD Administrator to submit your dissertation, thesis, or supplementary files. Multiple file formats can be submitted. Also find instructions, tips for converting a work to PDF, and additional information about these and other topics. Create an account to deposit, monitor, and revise your submission if there are errors.


o PDF, and additional information about these and other topics. Create an account to deposit, monitor, and revise your submission if there are errors.o PDF, and additional information about these and other topics. Create an account to deposit, monitor, and revise your submission if there are errors.o PDF, and additional information about these and other topics. Create an account to deposit, monitor, and revise your submission if there are errors.ProQuest/UMI transfers the digital copy (plus metadata) back to the GC for the CUNY Academic Works repository. Capstone projects are deposited in paper format and on disc without using the UMI ETD Administrator. Select ProQuest publishing options Traditional publishing authorizes ProQuest to post a work in its Digital Dissertations subscription database and sell the work in electronic, print, and microformats, for which the author receives a 10% net revenue royalty for no more than 25 years, payable once a $25 threshold is reached. The Graduate Center launched its own electronic thesis and dissertation (ETD) repository in 2014 with open access publishing and embargo options available. ProQuest ingests GC dissertations and theses, and returns them to the GC for free deposit in the GC repository. Search engines crawl the ProQuest database and with author's permission allow citations and abstracts to be discovered by Google, Google Scholar, Google Books, Yahoo, and other engines.


atabase and with author's permission allow citations and abstracts to be discovered by Google, Google Scholar, Google Books, Yahoo, and other engines.atabase and with author's permission allow citations and abstracts to be discovered by Google, Google Scholar, Google Books, Yahoo, and other engines.atabase and with author's permission allow citations and abstracts to be discovered by Google, Google Scholar, Google Books, Yahoo, and other engines.Citations and abstracts for works distributed by traditional publishing may be discovered by search engines, but full-text is available to online searchers with access to ProQuest's licensed database or to those who purchase a copy from ProQuest. See also ProQuest's Third Party Discovery and Access statement. Works in CUNY Academic Works will be discoverable by search engines; the GC offers no option to suppress. CUNY Academic Works discovery leads to citation, abstract, and full-text display unless authors choose to embargo the full text of their work. (Do not confuse this with "Third Party Sales," another option ProQuest offered in the past, but has discontinued.) Embargo or delayed release prohibits ProQuest from selling or licensing a work for distribution in any format. Authors may opt for no embargo, or a a 6-month, 1-year, or 2-year embargo at the point of deposit. See also ProQuest's Embargoes & Restrictions .


mat. Authors may opt for no embargo, or a a 6-month, 1-year, or 2-year embargo at the point of deposit. See also ProQuest's Embargoes & Restrictions .mat. Authors may opt for no embargo, or a a 6-month, 1-year, or 2-year embargo at the point of deposit. See also ProQuest's Embargoes & Restrictions .mat. Authors may opt for no embargo, or a a 6-month, 1-year, or 2-year embargo at the point of deposit. See also ProQuest's Embargoes & Restrictions .At any point after the Graduate Center Library's Dissertation Assistant has submitted the work to ProQuest, authors may alter, extend, or retract an embargo with ProQuest by contacting ProQuest/UMI . Alternately email disspub@proquest.com, or from North America call 800.521.0600 ext. 77020. Include your ISBN number; available only to dissertation authors, not their representatives. Delayed release allows authors extra time to obtain copyright permission, see ProQuest/UMI's Sample Permission Letter and instructions , or to negotiate with publishers in the unlikely event that they may object to a work's prior, unrevised release, before accepting contract. If an embargoed ProQuest published work is requested by a reader, neither ProQuest/UMI nor the library may contact the author due to ProQuest/UMI's privacy policy . The Graduate Center Library copies (in print, microfilm, or digital formats) are not subject to complete invisibility even if embargoed by an author.


The Graduate Center Library copies (in print, microfilm, or digital formats) are not subject to complete invisibility even if embargoed by an author. The Graduate Center Library copies (in print, microfilm, or digital formats) are not subject to complete invisibility even if embargoed by an author. The Graduate Center Library copies (in print, microfilm, or digital formats) are not subject to complete invisibility even if embargoed by an author.The Graduate Center copies of record may be displayed in the library and CUNY IP-space in CUNY Academic Works , copied by users in that space, and loaned by the GC library via Interlibrary Loan. The library intends not to share embargoed works in open access contexts, but the library reserves the right to offer on-site viewing and title-by-title distribution of embargoed theses and dissertations. Author, title, abstracts, and metadata will be displayed, even if an author chooses to embargo. Public access to a work is a condition of the degree. Select CUNY Institutional Repository (IR) publishing options Read the CUNY IR Publishing Agreement authorizing the GC Library to archive graduate work in electronic format in the CUNY Academic Works repository. Select embargo options, if any, that delay open access publication of a work in the repository.


ectronic format in the CUNY Academic Works repository. Select embargo options, if any, that delay open access publication of a work in the repository.ectronic format in the CUNY Academic Works repository. Select embargo options, if any, that delay open access publication of a work in the repository.ectronic format in the CUNY Academic Works repository. Select embargo options, if any, that delay open access publication of a work in the repository.Embargo extensions or revocations must be requested of the Graduate Center Library dissertation assistant and of ProQuest , separately, after deposit. Copies (in print, microfilm, or digital formats) of CUNY graduate works are not subject to total sequestration even if embargoed by an author. CUNY copies may be displayed in CUNY libraries and in CUNY IP-space, copied by users in that space, and loaned by the GC Library via Interlibrary Loan. The library intends not to share embargoed theses in open access contexts, but the Library reserves the right to offer CUNY on-site viewing and title-by-title distribution of graduate works, in any format, even if they are embargoed by the author. About my dissertation/thesis In the Dissertation/Thesis details section, provide the requested details about your work,your advisor, and your committee. The abstract and keywords are key to others discovering your work. Provide any supplemental copyright permissions (e.g.


r advisor, and your committee. The abstract and keywords are key to others discovering your work. Provide any supplemental copyright permissions (e.g.r advisor, and your committee. The abstract and keywords are key to others discovering your work. Provide any supplemental copyright permissions (e.g.r advisor, and your committee. The abstract and keywords are key to others discovering your work. Provide any supplemental copyright permissions (e.g.letters granting permission to you to use an image or a substantial portion of quoted text from another work) in the PDF section. Importantly, in the PDF section Upload a copy of the dissertation file(s), most often in PDF format. See the ETD Administrator FAQ for instruction. ProQuest will transfer the electronic file and accompanying description and metadata, for subsequent deposit in CUNY Academic Works . Submission & p ayment - Copyright Unlike most other traditional academic publishers, neither ProQuest nor the Graduate Center requires transfer of copyright in order to publish a work. Authors retain sole ownership of and copyright to all published work; authors may also select to assign Creative Commons licenses to graduate work. ProQuest is licensed to distribute work as authors select in the publishing options section. U.S. copyright protection is secured when a work is published or when it appears online.


ute work as authors select in the publishing options section. U.S. copyright protection is secured when a work is published or when it appears online.ute work as authors select in the publishing options section. U.S. copyright protection is secured when a work is published or when it appears online.ute work as authors select in the publishing options section. U.S. copyright protection is secured when a work is published or when it appears online.For an additional optional $55 fee, payable by credit card to ProQuest in the Submission and Payment section of the UMI ETD Administrator, under Register U.S. Copyright , authors may hire ProQuest to file a copy of the work with the US Library of Congress. Authors may also file works in the US Library of Congress for $35 without ProQuest assistance. This registration may make it easier for authors to establish the fact of publication and therefore claim violation of their own work and to obtain compensation in the unlikely event of copyright infringement. All authors must either accept or decline this optional filing service and fee when submitting the dissertation. Authors may order bound copies of non-embargoed deposited works from ProQuest/UMI under the Order Copies section.


ee when submitting the dissertation. Authors may order bound copies of non-embargoed deposited works from ProQuest/UMI under the Order Copies section.ee when submitting the dissertation. Authors may order bound copies of non-embargoed deposited works from ProQuest/UMI under the Order Copies section.ee when submitting the dissertation. Authors may order bound copies of non-embargoed deposited works from ProQuest/UMI under the Order Copies section.The final thesis or dissertation deposit meeting requires: thesis approval page with two required signatures, those of the Chair of the Examining Committee and of the program's Executive Officer, plus typed names of faculty members who supervised the writing (see sample page) one print copy of the thesis or dissertation, in specified format on specified paper, identical to the PDF file submitted prior Graduate School Exit Survey completed online (PhD grads only login with Banner ID/pwd, search under "Student Services" tab) NSF Survey of Earned Doctorates completed online (PhD grads only login with Banner ID/pwd, search under "Student Services" tab) CUNY Graduate Center Exit Questionnaire for Graduating MA Students completed online (Master's grads only) During the final deposit meeting, the Dissertation Assistant assesses a bill for binding your work.


MA Students completed online (Master's grads only) During the final deposit meeting, the Dissertation Assistant assesses a bill for binding your work.MA Students completed online (Master's grads only) During the final deposit meeting, the Dissertation Assistant assesses a bill for binding your work.MA Students completed online (Master's grads only) During the final deposit meeting, the Dissertation Assistant assesses a bill for binding your work.After the meeting, take the bill to the Bursar's window (8th floor) to make payment (by cash or check only - no credit cards accepted at the window) and receive a receipt. Online payment with Electronic Funds Transfer or with American Express, Discover, or MasterCard is possible with the assessed bill using the Grad Center Banner Web portal (select “Dissertation Fee”). If you have made online payment, bring printed receipts to the Bursar's window for verification after your bill is assessed. Deliver the verified receipts, then, back to the Registrar. The Registrar supplies an Application for Degree form with your full name (as it will appear on the Diploma), address, and signature. The Registrar issues a letter with the university seal certifying your deposit and the date of award, which is the date of deposit. The Registrar also issues instructions for commencement ceremony attendance. For graduates depositing while out-of-town, the Registrar will mail the certifying letter.


o issues instructions for commencement ceremony attendance. For graduates depositing while out-of-town, the Registrar will mail the certifying letter.o issues instructions for commencement ceremony attendance. For graduates depositing while out-of-town, the Registrar will mail the certifying letter.o issues instructions for commencement ceremony attendance. For graduates depositing while out-of-town, the Registrar will mail the certifying letter.Graduates obtain a GC Alumni photo ID card from the Office of Public Safety (rm. 9123) upon presentation of the deposit receipt for continued Graduate Center Library privileges. Diplomas are available from the Registrar after commencement. Authors are responsible for the accuracy of deposited work. Final copies must be free of typographical error and correct in every detail of style and format. If errors are present in the deposit PDF, re-submission of a corrected file is possible for a short while after the initial deposit, in consultation with the Dissertation Assistant. Print copies must be unbound, unmarked, and free of hole-punches and correcting fluid. Please submit print copies in paper boxes or in envelopes. Recipients of Perkins or Federal Direct Student Loan must arrange for an exit interview with the Office of Financial Aid. Make an appointment with the Graduate Center's Office of Financial Aid (212-817-7460) at least five business days before deposit.


ce of Financial Aid. Make an appointment with the Graduate Center's Office of Financial Aid (212-817-7460) at least five business days before deposit.ce of Financial Aid. Make an appointment with the Graduate Center's Office of Financial Aid (212-817-7460) at least five business days before deposit.ce of Financial Aid. Make an appointment with the Graduate Center's Office of Financial Aid (212-817-7460) at least five business days before deposit.A print deposit copy of each thesis and dissertation will be bound and shelved in the CUNY Graduate Center Library. Additional copies may be required by individual departments. Recipients of certain public and private awards in support of doctoral degrees may be required to deposit selecting Open Access Publishing, or provide a print copy of a completed work. Consult the SHERPA-JULIET Directory for funder policies; verify with any sponsoring organization prior to deposit. rev 11/5/15


Schedule & Fees:
For Degree | Enrollment Required | Deposit Required By

February 1 | Preceding Fall term | Last day in January

Spring Commencement | Spring term | May 1

October 1 | Preceding Spring term | extended: September 18 , 2015

Fee | Dissertation | Thesis | Capstone

Binding | $9.00 | $9.00 | $18.00

Schedule your defense at least five (5) business days prior to your deposit date to allow time for corrections and account clearances. A dissertation or thesis may be deposited anytime; deadlines below: 2015 Capstone Projects : Audiology deposits by May 1, 2015 The Dissertation Assistant calculates the fees at the final deposit meeting. Fees are based on formats required and services selected. Depositors take the assessed bill to the Bursar's window to pay fees by check or cash. Online payment with Electronic Funds Transfer or with American Express, Discover, or MasterCard is possible using the Graduate Center Banner Web portal (select “Dissertation Fee”).


Required Surveys:
PhD graduates must complete two surveys in Self-Service Banner under Student Services Graduate School Exit Survey NSF Survey of Earned Doctorates Master's graduates welcome to complete; MALS and MES graduates required to complete CUNY Graduate Center Exit Questionnaire for Graduating MA Students


RCR Training:
All CUNY scholars involved in research must complete CITI Responsible Conduct of Research training within 6 weeks of initiating research. Contact Adrienne Klein , the Graduate Center's Research Integrity Officer, with questions. . Online CITI RCR training


Human Participants Clearance:
Well before deposit, level 3 doctoral students must submit the Dissertation Proposal Clearance: Human Participants Form , signed by the author(s) and the advisor and including the project abstract, to the Graduate Center' s Office of Sponsored Research (Kay Powell, room 8309). All doctoral dissertations and capstone projects in all programs require this clearance.


Order Additional Copies:
Order print or electronic copies in various formats for various prices anytime from UMI/ProQuest .


Open Access Tools:
Creative Commons Choose a License: You keep copyright, others distribute & cite by your rules

Directory of Open Access Journals: Over 7,000 free online journals arranged by subject.

Sherpa/Romeo: 95% of academic publishers offer standing permission for OA repository publication for some version of a work; check a journal's publishing policy here

Author Rights: Using the SPARC Author Addendum to secure your rights as the author of a journal article: a model deal to strike

CIC Author's Copyright Contract Addendum: sample addendum for standard publisher contracts; features language for articles and contributed chapters, also adaptable for book contracts

Library License Concept: proposed for use by dp.la; publishers offer library digital rights after sales slump at 5 years

Open Access Scholarly Publisher Association: Vetted OA publishers

HowOpenIsIt?: this guide moves conversation from "Is it Open Access?" to ...


years

Open Access Scholarly Publisher Association: Vetted OA publishers

HowOpenIsIt?: this guide moves conversation from "Is it Open Access?" to ...Online Books Page: UPenn's FAQ + tools for determining whether a book can go online

DOAB: Directory of Open Access Books: search for contemporary OA academic books

About Copyright: Columbia Law School site to assist authors negotiating book and journal contracts


OA Publishing:
OA journals are not cost-free. OA publishing costs often shift to authors, funders, or authors' institutions.

Selective List of Open Access and Paid Access Fees: compiled by UC Berkeley Librarians

ProQuest Open Access Publishing: for an optional $95 author fee, PQ keeps a diss free online to everyone forever

OA Book Publishers: from the Open Access Directory

Into the Open: Transitions in Journal Publishing: moderated discussion at Duke University

Compact for Open-Access Publishing Equity: universities commit to underwriting publication charges for articles in fee-based OA journals

Open Library of Humanities: Launched January 2013 to build a low cost, sustainable, open access future for the humanities

PeerJ: open access pubs in the sciences; pay once, publish lots

eLife: open access science pubs project


nable, open access future for the humanities

PeerJ: open access pubs in the sciences; pay once, publish lots

eLife: open access science pubs projectOpen Access Publishing in European Networks: Organization to develop and implement a sustainable open access publication model for academic books in the humanities and social sciences


OA Repositories:
Search content Google misses

OpenDOAR: find subject and institutional repositories; over 3000 of them

Disciplinary Respositories: subject repositories by Simmons Library School

BASE Bielefeld Academic Search Engine: search academic repositories

ROARMAP Registry of Open Access Repositories Mandatory Archiving Policies: search by institution, country, funder


Open Access Endorsements:
Universities, divisions, departments, senates endorse open access: CUNY UFS Open Access Resolution Princeton University Open Access Policy Harvard Faculty of Arts & Sciences Open Access Policy Harvard School of Public Health Open Access Policy Stanford University School of Education Open Access Policy MIT Faculty Open Access Policy University of Oregon Department of Romance Languages Columbia University Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory Open Access Policy CUNY Graduate Center Library Open Access Statement University of California, San Francisco Virginia Commonwealth University Review, edit, submit to open access publications: Take the Individual Pledge UNESCO's OA policy guidelines: Policy Guidelines for the Development and Promotion of Open Access Researchers Take a Stand The Cost of Knowledge SOPA & PIPA Protests


Open Access Overview:
OA publishing is web accessible, free of charge, and free from licensing restrictions. OA means a work can be widely shared and cited.

Open Access by Peter Suber: MIT Press, 2012. Essential, easy reading for academics about all aspects of OA publishing

Hiding Your Research Behind a Paywall is Immoral: academics work to benefit the public good, but publishers reap a benefit before readers do

The Case for Institutional Repositories: A SPARC Position Paper: Raym Crow's 2002 SPARC work

The Inevitability of Open Access: David W. Lewis' Sept 2012 C & RL article arguing thathalf of scholarly journal articles could be Gold author-supported OA between 2012-2021

OASIS Making the Case for Open Access: concise presentation for OA advocates

Open Access @ CUNY: CUNY Commons

CUNY Commons Open Access Publishing Wiki: resources for advocates

Open Access Overview: Peter Suber, Earlham College


pen Access @ CUNY: CUNY Commons

CUNY Commons Open Access Publishing Wiki: resources for advocates

Open Access Overview: Peter Suber, Earlham CollegeDramatic Growth of Open Access: Heather Morrison's March 2012 focus on OA indicators

Open Access and the Future of Academic Scholarship: Barbara Fister's summary article, May 2012

Hacking the Academy: from U of M's DigitalSourceBooks, about shifting academic publishing to open access

Academic Publishing Profits Enough To Fund Open Access To Every Research Article In Every Field: Tech Dirt on OA vs traditional publishing

Kathleen Fitzpatrick: Planned Obsolescence: The Digital University: A Digital Future? 2010 CUNY Conference

Academic publishing is full of problems; let's get them right.: Nancy Sims' critique of Laura McKenna's January 2012 Atlantic article positioning JSTOR as an Open Access thwarter (instead of Elsevier, Springer, or Wiley)

Digital access to knowledge: research chat with Harvard’s Peter Suber: from a Journalist's briefing database


instead of Elsevier, Springer, or Wiley)

Digital access to knowledge: research chat with Harvard’s Peter Suber: from a Journalist's briefing databaseWant to Change Academic Publishing? Just Say No.: Hugh Gusterson's Sept 2012 CHE article arguing that uncompensated academic work serves commercial publishers

ACRLog: Evaluating Information the Light Side of Open Access: NYCT's Maura Smale's April 2013 entry

Economics of Scholarly Communication in Transition: Heather Morrison's June 2013 analysis: academic library budgets sustain scholarly journal publishing

Open Access Inaction: Jack Stilgoe's June 2013 call for scholarly publishing to "just get on with developing a model that works rather than profiteering from their own stubbornness."


OA Rationale:
OA publishing allows work to be widely discovered, freely read, and frequently cited. OA is fully compatible with peer review; though some OA journals are not peer reviewed. OA may reduces library costs by eliminating excessive subscription fees to boost publisher profit margins, but OA is not free (costs to run peer review, editing, distribution must be covered).

Virginia Commonwealth University: VCU faculty senate urges tenure review to value the public benefit of OA publishing

Huge Profits Cost University Libraries: Elsevier, Springer, Wiley, and Informa reap substantial profit from (mostly) university library sales for (mostly) uncompensated academic work


raries: Elsevier, Springer, Wiley, and Informa reap substantial profit from (mostly) university library sales for (mostly) uncompensated academic workValues and Scholarship by 11 University Provosts: Consistent with these deeply held academic norms, we provosts have advocated for taxpayer access to federally-funded research, writing, for example, a 2006 open letter in support of the Federal Research Public Access Act, and supporting this Congressional session’s proposed extension of the legislation (HR 4004/S 2009).

CUNY Digital University 2010 Conference: videos, from the Fora.tv site

The Tragedies of Scholarly Publishing in 2013: Cathy Davidson on the occasion of a young man's death

The Real Digital Change Agent: Consider OA as necessary to support MOOC, or the CUNY-style POOC


Cathy Davidson on the occasion of a young man's death

The Real Digital Change Agent: Consider OA as necessary to support MOOC, or the CUNY-style POOCDominique Babini on the state of Open Access: Where are we, what still needs to be done?: July 2013 interview with Open Access Advocacy leader at the Latin American Council on Social Sciences (CLACSO): "... I do not believe scholarly communication should be subject to commercial interests. Like research itself, it should be funded by governments and it should be done on a non-profit basis. So in my view all roads that contribute to non-commercial OA are good for the developing regions..."

SCHOLARLY COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES IN LATIN  AMERICA'S RESEARCH-INTENSIVE UNIVERSITIES: Alperin, Fishman, and Willinsky, 2010: " OA has allowed increasingly numbers of Latin American scholars to change their mode and style of participation in accessing as well as producing scholarship that aspires to be both ―local & global."


Alternative Journal Title & Article Level Metrics:
Open Access publishing allows an article published anywhere, not only those published in prestigious journals, to make a difference. Explore these  tools to expand academic assessment to include the impacts and values of published OA articles.

Journal Citation Reports: Thompson Reuters subscription tool for evaluating journal titles; includes some OA titles

PLoS Article Level Metrics: Videos, news on ALM, including Peter Binfields's April 2012 webcast on PLoS metrics under development

Eigenfactor.org: measures the cost effectiveness of scientific open access journals

SCImago Journal and Country Ranker: open source tool based on SCOPUS times cited data

OASIS Citation Impact: discusses the greater impact of OA over traditional publishing

Altmtrics Conference Workshop: Science is a gift economy; altmetrics yield broader, richer, and more timely assessments of scholarly impact


Digital Dissertations @ GC:
GC Digital Dissertations Resources: Based in the GC Digital Scholarship Lab and run by Digital Fellows, this is the GC's think-and-do tank for digital projects.

HASTAC Futures Initiative #remixthediss: Oct 10, 2014 event at the CUNY GC sparking widespread interest in new formats for graduate work.


OA Webinars & Events:
Share It Now or Save It For Later: Making Choices about Dissertations and Publishing: CUNY GC's April 30, 2014 panel debate about open access publishing featuring open access proponents and opponents: Kathleen Fitzpatrick, Jerry Singerman, Philip Leventhal, Gregory Donovan, Colleen Eren.

How to Make Your Research Open Access (Whether You're at Harvard or Not) October 2012: features OA Scholarly Communications Officer Stu Shieber and OA philosopher Peter Suber, in that order. Harvard changes the publishing default so that authors must make an effort to opt NOT to retain copyright.

Book Talk: Peter Suber on Open Access: Peter Suber, Director of the Harvard Open Access Project, shares insights from his introduction to open access.

Next Gen Peer Review: Kathleen Fitzpatrick and Peter Binfield from the Oct 2012 Ithaka conference


ares insights from his introduction to open access.

Next Gen Peer Review: Kathleen Fitzpatrick and Peter Binfield from the Oct 2012 Ithaka conferenceGregory T. Donovan's 2013 CUNY GC Commencement Speech: "Google may deliver results for just about any query but they don’t reveal their methods. That, my friends, is the critical difference between a search engine and a scholar."


The Learned Societies:
Why open access is better for scholarly societies: January 2013, Stu Shieber "... some scholarly societies may still find it too worrisome...not because they disagree ... that they fare better in an open access world, but because they fear not making it through the transition to that world."

AHA: Not So Fast Open Access: as reported in Inside Higher Education, September 24, 2012

AHA Statement on Scholarly Journal Publishing: September 2012, criticizes Britain's Finch Report endorsing author-supported "Gold" OA, i.e. publishing in an open access journal

Duke's Kevin Smith on the AHA: the AHA does not consider repository-based "Green" OA; criticizes Britain's OA journal mandate

Promoting Open Access in the Humanities: OA advocate and philosopher Peter Suber's 2004 reasoning still applies 8 years later -  what's holding up OA in the humanities?


ess in the Humanities: OA advocate and philosopher Peter Suber's 2004 reasoning still applies 8 years later -  what's holding up OA in the humanities?Our Cultural Commonwealth: the report of the American Council of Learned Societies: ACLS recommends p. 30 that leaders in the humanities and social sciences "develop, adopt, and advocate for public and institutional policies that foster openness and access."

Openness, Value, and Scholarly Societies: the MLA model: Fitzpatrick questions gains from paid subscriptions to support  Society work, Dec 2012

The Historians Are Revolting: From the Society for Scholarly Publishing, Jan 2013

The potential effect of making journals free after a six month embargo: ALPSP May 2012 report: "The main purpose of the survey was to determine whether or not an across-the-board mandate to make journals articles available free of charge after publication would have a material effect on libraries’ subscriptions. The results of the survey indicate very clearly that it would."


Open Access Funders:
White House Supports OA for Fed-Funded Research: February 2013 directive requiring NIH-like OA compliance for other fed agencies including NSF, Dept of Agriculture, Dept of Energy

FASTR bill introduced in US Congress: Peter Suber's parsing of the OA legislation proposed February 2013

NIH Public Access: U.S. Nat'l Institutes of Health mandates OA via PubMed

World Bank Open Knowledge Repository: effective July, 2012

Taxpayer Access to Publicly Funded Research: TAPFR proposes to make New York an open access state

SHERPA/Juliet: find research funders' OA policies


An accessible document is one that aims to be universally and equitably utilizable. This includes making a document usable by people who rely on assistive technology, such as screen reading software, refreshable braille displays, screen magnifiers and more. CUNY provides guidance on accessible content, with specific instructions for creating accessible PDFs & Microsoft Office Documents . The CUNY guide to Word accessibility is also available for reference. A more comprehensive guide to document accessibility create by CUNY is in the document below, but the following items are some key points to consider: Use heading structures appropriately throughout your document. Add alternative text, captions and descriptions to all images, tables and visuals. Do not use screenshots for text-based information like tables. Ensure there is significant contrast between colors used in images or figures.


visuals. Do not use screenshots for text-based information like tables. Ensure there is significant contrast between colors used in images or figures.visuals. Do not use screenshots for text-based information like tables. Ensure there is significant contrast between colors used in images or figures.visuals. Do not use screenshots for text-based information like tables. Ensure there is significant contrast between colors used in images or figures.Consider accessibility standards for digital projects that include audio, video, or web-based components. Add the Title and Language to the PDF document description [Q FOR ROXANNE: Maybe unlink in this bullet point list? Just added the last point.]


onents. Add the Title and Language to the PDF document description [Q FOR ROXANNE: Maybe unlink in this bullet point list? Just added the last point.]Note: We will be providing instructions based on Microsoft Word in this guide as CUNY students can download Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus for free by logging in at https://login.microsoftonline.com , clicking on the Install Office Apps button and selecting Office 2016. Find out more on the CUNY CIS website .


Heading Structures:
When screen reading software scans a document, accurate reading order depends on whether the document structure has been embedded into the code underlying your document. Simply formatting text as bold or underlined does not provide visually impaired readers with the document structure, nor does it allow these readers to skip between sections or skim through headings in the text. This means that an accessible document will have heading styles assigned appropriately throughout your work. In Word, this can be done by navigating to the Home tab, followed by the Style dropdown. Here you can select various levels of headings, which will also be useful later when creating a Table of Contents. For the purposes of a dissertation or thesis, Heading 1 can be used for sections like Approval Page, Acknowledgments, List of Tables and Figures, new chapters, and your References section. Heading 2 can be used for subsections within chapters, and so on


Alternative Text, Captions, and Descriptions:
Images, graphics, charts, tables and anything that is not purely comprised of words will not be easily picked up by a screen reading software or refreshable braille displays. For this reason, we need to create more context for these kinds of objects.


ly picked up by a screen reading software or refreshable braille displays. For this reason, we need to create more context for these kinds of objects.Alternative Text for Figures and Images Alternative text should be used to describe any non-text-based visual representations of information . This can be done by right-clicking on the image or object and selecting "Edit Alt Text" from the drop down. Alternatively, you can find this by clicking on the object, then selecting "Format" from the toolbar and you will see the option for "Alt Text." In the box that appears from either method, you can type a short description of the object that does not include phrases like "a picture of" or "a graphic of." You can however specify if it is a drawing cartoon, logo or some other particular kind of image. Keep it to 1-2 sentences that describe the picture in the context of why it is being used. Microsoft has a guide to adding alt text that can be useful. American Foundation for the Blind lays out some best practices to alt text in more depth.


Microsoft has a guide to adding alt text that can be useful. American Foundation for the Blind lays out some best practices to alt text in more depth.Decorative Images In discussing alternative text, it is important to not that there are times when it is not necessary. Images that do not add information should be hidden from screen readers by marking them as decorative. This ensures that they are not adding clutter or adding confusion to the main message as some screen readers will read the file name aloud. Things that may be deemed decorative include irrelevant stock photos, borders, and corners. Marking something as decorative can be done when you are creating Alt Text, by checking the box under the “Generate Alt Text button” under the text box for the alt text. [Q FOR ROXANNE: delete the pic?]


are creating Alt Text, by checking the box under the “Generate Alt Text button” under the text box for the alt text. [Q FOR ROXANNE: delete the pic?]Captions and Descriptions Captions and descriptions are another mode of making figures and tables easily navigable for screen readers. The Special Interest Group on Access Computing also has a guide with examples of captions and alternative text for different types of charts, graphs and images that you can review for more detailed instructions. General rules: Descriptions for figures and tables should provide new information that is not elsewhere in the text of your document. Write out abbreviations and symbols. Don't mention colors unless they are significant in terms of content and not as marker of difference. The first sentence of the description should act as a short title for the figure.


Screenshots:
As mentioned previously, when information is not embedded in the code of your document, it will not be legible to assistive technology. Inserting screenshots should only be done when the information cannot be added directly into the document. For example, tables and charts should be created in the document, not included as screenshots, whereas an image of a website may require using a screenshot. If you do need to use a screenshot, make sure you include the necessary captions, descriptions and alt text to make the information accessible.


Color Contrast:
Individuals with different forms of color vision deficiency will not be able to tell certain colors apart. This means that considering your use of color is important as you create visual representations for information. Color should not be the only mechanism of conveying meaning or distinguishing between different types of information. Patterns, words, and shapes can all be used to supplement or take the place of color. For similar reasons mentioned above, contrast is important to allow individuals with variations of color blindness to be able to understand your work. There are many tools available that can assist you in checking contrast with ADA compliant requirements. For digital projects, you can use this compliance contrast checker by ADA Site Compliance . There is tool created by WebAIM (Web Accessibility in Mind) that checks for accessible contrast by allowing you to select the colors you are using from a color wheel.


Accessibility for Digital Projects:
Videos CUNY provides guidance on accessibility specifically for video content in the form of captions. This includes links to free and open source captioning software or tools like Amara and Overstream . Websites CUNY has resources on website accessibility , which include links to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) and the current standard  - Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 . WCAG's quick reference guide may be of particular use. Specific tutorials on CUNY's web accessibility site also address designing accessibly tables, menus, forms, page structure, and links.


Other Notes on Document Accessibility:


Other Notes on Document Accessibility:Other Notes on Document Accessibility:Going from Word Document to PDF After you have run your accessibility check and you want to download your finished document as a PDF, you need to ensure the  steps you have taken are preserved in this new document format. Microsoft has a guide on preserving heading structures when transitioning from Word document to PDF . [NOTE FOR ROXANNE: Thinking about adding a pic for the below instructions] When you open the PDF file, Navigate to File --> Properties. Under the Description tab, enter the Title into the Title box. Under the Initial View tab, there is a Window Options subheading. Select Document Title instead of File Name. Under the Advanced tab, select the appropriate language from the Language drop down menu. Click OK at the bottom. For a more comprehensive check of accessibility in your PDF, you may also wish to use PAC 2024, or the PDF Accessibility Checker that checks compliance with standards of the PDF/UA (PDF Universal Access) and WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines).


PDF Accessibility Checker that checks compliance with standards of the PDF/UA (PDF Universal Access) and WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines). PDF Accessibility Checker that checks compliance with standards of the PDF/UA (PDF Universal Access) and WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines). PDF Accessibility Checker that checks compliance with standards of the PDF/UA (PDF Universal Access) and WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines).LaTeX LaTeX does not create inherently accessible PDFs. While many of the above points are still relevant, there are some LaTeX-specific instructions that can be of use. The LaTex Project includes code for accessible PDFs updated as of 02/2025 that can be used with pdfLaTeX or luaLaTex. Lancaster University has a checklist for accessible LaTex documents that includes guidelines to changing the source code. Accessibility Check in Word Word provides an option to check accessibility in documents. It is imperfect, however can be used as a safeguard to proactively creating an accessible document using this guide. There is an MS Word instruction guide for how to run this accessibility check.


Additional Resources:
Here is a series of YouTube videos that deal with accessibility in Word documents. The Accessibility Guy is another resource that includes videos and blogposts related to accessibility in PDFs and Microsoft products. There is also an option to pay for additional accessibility assistance.


Overview:
A dissertation or thesis constitutes an original contribution to a field of knowledge, and library deposit ensures that the work will be accessible to researchers. Some degree programs at The Graduate Center require library deposit for capstone projects. Format requirements remain consistent regardless of which type of document you submit to the Dissertation Office.


Adhere to the following page sequence when preparing your manuscript. Preliminary pages constitute everything before the Body of Text and provide crucial information about the author, the document's creation, and what to expect in the text to come. The back matter, or the sections that come after the Body of Text, also contains further information about sources of information or context for portions of the document. Note that bibliographic references should be the last section of the document, appearing after all appendices, glossaries, illustrations, or other back matter. Title page (no pagination appears) * Copyright page (starts at p.


nt, appearing after all appendices, glossaries, illustrations, or other back matter. Title page (no pagination appears) * Copyright page (starts at p.nt, appearing after all appendices, glossaries, illustrations, or other back matter. Title page (no pagination appears) * Copyright page (starts at p.nt, appearing after all appendices, glossaries, illustrations, or other back matter. Title page (no pagination appears) * Copyright page (starts at p.ii) Approval page Abstract Preface, Foreword, and/or Acknowledgments (optional) Table of Contents (required) Lists of Tables, Illustrations, Charts, Figures, Diagrams (required) Body of Text (begins with Arabic numeral 1) Appendix (optional) Bibliography Autobiographical Statement (optional) * use the degree year regardless of deposit date, approval date or copyright date (June 2025 grads should have 2025 on their title page)


nt (optional) * use the degree year regardless of deposit date, approval date or copyright date (June 2025 grads should have 2025 on their title page)Additional pages may be required for students submitting digital projects as part of their thesis or dissertation deposit:

Digital Project Documentation Guidelines: Format instructions for those submitting digital components in addition to a PDF text.


Sample Preliminary Pages:
Use the follow sample pages based on your degree and/or program for clear formatting examples of the Title page, Copyright page, Approval page, Abstract page, Acknowledgments page, Table of Contents, List of Tables, List of Figures, and how to start the Body of Text.

PhD Dissertations: Updated 12/12/2022

Master's Theses: Updated 12/12/2022

Audiology Capstone: Updated 12/12/2022

M.A. in Liberal Studies Thesis Pages: This MS Word document contains properly formatted preliminary pages. Simply insert your thesis text at the end of this file and edit the details on the preliminary pages. Updated 12/12/2022

M.S. in Data Analysis & Visualization Capstones: This MS Word document contains properly formatted preliminary pages. Copy and paste your capstone white paper in the appropriate section and edit the details on the included pages. Updated 2/3/2025


ed preliminary pages. Copy and paste your capstone white paper in the appropriate section and edit the details on the included pages. Updated 2/3/2025For more examples of acceptable manuscript format, view the Deposit Information Slides linked below. View Information Session Slides


Abstracts : There is no word limit for abstracts associated with dissertations or theses. Abstracts will be published in the CUNY Academic Works repository and ProQuest (if applicable) with author, title, and descriptive information, even if the work is embargoed. An abstract in English is required, even if the text is in a language other than English. Approval Page: The full title, author, manuscript statement, and month/year that the manuscript was approved are included on this page ( see sample pages ). The approval page lists the primary advisor(s), executive officer or program director, and supervisory committee (if applicable) for the work being submitted. Color : PDF and print reproductions may include color, and ProQuest reproductions will include any color submitted. File Formats : ProQuest requires Adobe PDF (not Word) for text. Rather than embedding audio and video files in the PDF body of a work, submit as supplemental files.


ProQuest requires Adobe PDF (not Word) for text. Rather than embedding audio and video files in the PDF body of a work, submit as supplemental files. ProQuest requires Adobe PDF (not Word) for text. Rather than embedding audio and video files in the PDF body of a work, submit as supplemental files. ProQuest requires Adobe PDF (not Word) for text. Rather than embedding audio and video files in the PDF body of a work, submit as supplemental files.For a list of manageable supplemental file fomats, see ProQuest's Preparing Your Manuscript for Submission (Including Supplemental Files) . Font: Any legible TruType type 1 font is accepted (except script, italic, or ornamental fonts) if equivalent in scale to Arial (10 pt) or Times New Roman (12 pt). Acceptable fonts and sizes for print and web include: Arial (10 pt), Courier New (10 pt), Georgia (11 pt), Times New Roman (12 pt), Trebuchet MS (10 pt), Verdana (10 pt). See ProQuest's Preparing Your Manuscript for Submission (Including Supplemental Files) for recommendations about choosing and embedding fonts, selecting formats, and creating PDFs. Line-spacing : Double-space abstract, dedication, acknowledgements, table of contents, and body of the manuscript. Follow your disciplinary style manual for single- or double-spacing block quotes, captions, items in tables, lists, graphs, charts. Single-space footnotes/endnotes. Lists of Contents : A table of contents is required.


block quotes, captions, items in tables, lists, graphs, charts. Single-space footnotes/endnotes. Lists of Contents : A table of contents is required. block quotes, captions, items in tables, lists, graphs, charts. Single-space footnotes/endnotes. Lists of Contents : A table of contents is required. block quotes, captions, items in tables, lists, graphs, charts. Single-space footnotes/endnotes. Lists of Contents : A table of contents is required.If illustrations, charts, diagrams, figures or other tables appear in the work, a list of each named element, with corresponding pagination, is required. Formatting and sample pages in Chicago/Turabian style are available online. Margins : left: 1”; right: 1″; top and bottom: 1″ for all text (except page numbers and headers/footers) and figures, footnotes/endnotes, and images Page numbers : must appear at least ¾” from any edge of page Pagination : Pages preliminary to the body of the text must be numbered with lowercase Roman numerals. Do not number the title page but count it in the preliminary pagination. The body of the text is numbered with Arabic numerals beginning with the first page of text and including illustrations, appendix, and bibliography. Except for the title page, all pages must be numbered. The numerals may appear in any location on the page (bottom middle, bottom right, upper right), but must be consistent throughout the work.


numbered. The numerals may appear in any location on the page (bottom middle, bottom right, upper right), but must be consistent throughout the work. numbered. The numerals may appear in any location on the page (bottom middle, bottom right, upper right), but must be consistent throughout the work. numbered. The numerals may appear in any location on the page (bottom middle, bottom right, upper right), but must be consistent throughout the work.See the document at the end of this section for formatting in Microsoft Word and this helpful blog post . Page Sequence Title page (no pagination appears) Copyright page (starts at p. ii) Approval page Abstract Preface, Foreword, and/or Acknowledgments (optional) Table of Contents (required) Lists of Tables, Illustrations, Charts, Figures, Diagrams (required) Body of Text (begins with Arabic numeral 1) Appendix (optional) Bibliography Autobiographical Statement (optional) Quotations : Consult copyright fair use guidelines. Include permission letters for use of copyrighted materials that exceeds fair use (photographs, charts, tables, etc.). Submit copyright permission letters as supplemental files as part of your online submission. Style and Style Manuals : Use the style manual for your discipline except when in conflict with these instructions. Consult dissertation advisors as necessary.


Style Manuals : Use the style manual for your discipline except when in conflict with these instructions. Consult dissertation advisors as necessary. Style Manuals : Use the style manual for your discipline except when in conflict with these instructions. Consult dissertation advisors as necessary. Style Manuals : Use the style manual for your discipline except when in conflict with these instructions. Consult dissertation advisors as necessary.Title Page : The title page must include the full dissertation title, the complete name of the author, the dissertation statement, and the year of the degree. Use words to spell out titles including formulas, symbols, superscripts, subscripts, and Greek letters. While prohibited from the title, symbols may be used throughout the text.


Format Guidelines:
The library reviews all submissions for adherence to the formatting guidelines listed on this page. Please pay special attention to the required Page Sequence and pagination requirements outlined below. Review our manuscript format checklist before submitting to avoid some of the most common formatting errors, and check out our formatting FAQs for additional guidance:


ript format checklist before submitting to avoid some of the most common formatting errors, and check out our formatting FAQs for additional guidance:Looking to hire a professional editor for help with formatting? See this list of freelance academic editors . For issues other than formatting , the GC Writing Center offers remote consultations to offer help with style and structure. If you need help using Microsoft Word, please consult the University of Michigan's guide to MS Word for Dissertations , which addresses many of the most common problems encountered by students. Need access to the full version of MS Word?  All CUNY students can download Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus for free by logging in to Microsoft 365 , clicking on the Install Office Apps button and selecting Office 2016. Read more on the CUNY CIS website .


LaTeX Templates:
If you are writing with LaTex, here are templates that are compliant with the library's format requirements. There is also an R markdown / LaTex dissertation template that follows the library's guidelines available from Nicholaus Brosowsky (Psychology, '19): https://github.com/nbrosowsky/dissertate-CUNY

LaTex GC Dissertation Template (7-Zip): Courtesy of Richard Herron. This package was compressed using the .7z (windows only) format. Mac users may require an additional application to access these files.

LaTex GC Dissertation Template (.zip): Courtesy of Richard Herron. This package was compressed using the .zip format.

R markdown / LaTex GC Dissertation Template: Courtesy of Nicholaus Brosowsky.

R markdown / LaTeX GC Dissertation Template for Sociology: Courtesy of Kasey Zapatka. This R markdown/LaTeX template includes American Sociological Association formatting.


Dissertation Template for Sociology: Courtesy of Kasey Zapatka. This R markdown/LaTeX template includes American Sociological Association formatting.Markdown / LaTex and Pandoc: Courtesy of Keith Miyake ( EES, '16). A build system that uses the Pandoc tool to author using Markdown and convert to PDF using LaTex. There is a LaTex template in the "templates" folder (cuny.tex) that has all of the styles and formatting, but it won't work with a raw LaTex file because it contains Pandoc variables. With a general understanding of LaTex syntax one should be able to modify it to use as the base for their GC dissertation.


ProQuest Guidelines:
ProQuest's Preparing Your Manuscript for Submission (Including Supplemental Files) (PDF) for specific recommendations about font style and size.


Copy Services:
This private copy service will accept PDF files, print deposit copies on appropriate paper, and deliver free to the Graduate Center library: Genie Instant Printing 37 W. 43rd St. New York, NY 10036 212-575-8258 genieprinting@verizon.net


Commencement 2025:
59th Commencement of the CUNY Graduate Center Tuesday, June 10, 2025, 6 p.m. David Geffen Hall, Lincoln Center Questions? Contact rsvpcommence@gc.cuny.edu.


Graduation Dates and Deadlines:
There are three degrees conferred each academic year. Deadlines are listed in the academic calendar and reproduced below. Students should check with their programs about deadlines that may be required in addition to the library deadlines below .

Degree Date | September 30, 2024 | February 1, 2025 | June 10, 2025

Last semester enrolled This is your graduation term in CUNYFirst. | Spring 2024 | Fall 2024 | Spring 2025

Last day to submit intent You must apply for graduation in CUNYFirst. | September 3, 2024 | January 13, 2025 | April 15, 2025

Last day to deposit Upload your manuscript to the library system. | September 17, 2024 | January 27, 2025 | April 30, 2025

Commencement ceremony There is one ceremony in Spring for all three degree dates in an academic year. | June 10, 2025 | June 10, 2025 | June 10, 2025

Degree Date | September 30, 2025 | February 1, 2026 | May/June 2026


degree dates in an academic year. | June 10, 2025 | June 10, 2025 | June 10, 2025

Degree Date | September 30, 2025 | February 1, 2026 | May/June 2026Last semester enrolled This is your graduation term in CUNYFirst. | Spring 2025 | Fall 2025 | Spring 2026

Last day to submit intent You must apply for graduation in CUNYFirst. | September 2, 2025 | mid-Jan (exact date TBD) | mid-Apr (exact date TBD)

Last day to deposit Upload your manuscript to the library system. | September 15, 2025 | late-Jan (exact date TBD) | late-Apr (exact date TBD)

Commencement ceremony There is one ceremony in Spring for all three degree dates in an academic year. | May/June 2026 | May/June 2026 | May/June 2026

2025-26 Academic Year Degree Dates and Deadlines


Please Note: Embargo (delayed release) options determine when a dissertation, thesis, or capstone project will be made publicly available online. Graduates should review these options with a trusted advisor prior to deposit. The initial embargo selection (0-2 years) may be changed at any time after submission, with the option to renew as the embargo nears expiration. If you are submitting digital components beyond a PDF (e.g., a website), please review the guidelines for documenting digital projects and view instructions for depositing digital work . Authors retain copyright for all work submitted to CUNY Academic Works and ProQuest. Graduates may elect to assign a Creative Commons license to their work. If any research received federal grant funding you must include the grant ID number in your acknowledgments. Library deposit is the final degree requirement and must be completed after any required defense or final examination .


umber in your acknowledgments. Library deposit is the final degree requirement and must be completed after any required defense or final examination .umber in your acknowledgments. Library deposit is the final degree requirement and must be completed after any required defense or final examination .umber in your acknowledgments. Library deposit is the final degree requirement and must be completed after any required defense or final examination .Any and all revisions must be completed and formally approved prior to depositing.


Apply for graduation in CUNYFirst. See deadlines. View screenshots and detailed instructions for this action in CUNYfirst . Login to CUNYfirst and select Student Center from the main menu. Under Academics, click on My Academics and select "Apply for Graduation.” Click on the “Apply for Graduation” link located next to your current Graduate Center degree program. You will be prompted to select a graduation term. Students filing for the February degree date should select the preceding Fall term; students filing for the May/June degree should select the current Spring term; students filing for the September degree should select the Summer term. This will notify various offices at the Graduate Center, including the Library, that you plan to deposit a dissertation, thesis, or capstone project for the next degree date. Students can “View Graduation Status” to see when each program has been applied, approved (all degree requirements met), or awarded (degree has been conferred).


an “View Graduation Status” to see when each program has been applied, approved (all degree requirements met), or awarded (degree has been conferred).an “View Graduation Status” to see when each program has been applied, approved (all degree requirements met), or awarded (degree has been conferred).an “View Graduation Status” to see when each program has been applied, approved (all degree requirements met), or awarded (degree has been conferred).Complete exit surveys. Doctoral graduates: Please complete the NSF Survey of Earned Doctorates (approximately 20 minutes). Master’s graduates: Complete the CUNY Cap and Gown Survey . Participation in these exit surveys is not mandatory but highly valuable for The Graduate Center's ongoing improvement efforts. The data collected helps assess our academic programs and understand post-graduation plans. This data is also used by policymakers to make decisions on funding and developing graduate programs. All responses are confidential. Prepare your manuscript according to the library's format guidelines. Consult the library's format guidelines when preparing your manuscript for submission. Authors are responsible for the accuracy of deposited work. Final version must be free of typographical errors and correct in every detail of style and format. Obtain program's approval.


racy of deposited work. Final version must be free of typographical errors and correct in every detail of style and format. Obtain program's approval.racy of deposited work. Final version must be free of typographical errors and correct in every detail of style and format. Obtain program's approval.racy of deposited work. Final version must be free of typographical errors and correct in every detail of style and format. Obtain program's approval.Your manuscript or digital project must be approved by your program's Executive Officer (doctoral) or Director (master's) prior to uploading . Any revisions required by your committee or advisor must be completed and approved before submitting materials to the library. Doctoral students do not obtain a separate approval for the library deposit; submit the defense forms as instructed by your program office to fulfill this step . The library will receive confirmation when defense forms are filed. Master's students should be in contact with their program office before submitting anything to the library; the program Director will email confirmation to the library that the student is approved to deposit. The deposit is not considered complete until the program's approval has been verified by the library. Upload files . Submit the advisor-approved version of the dissertation, thesis, or capstone project to CUNY Academic Works as a PDF or MS Word document.


load files . Submit the advisor-approved version of the dissertation, thesis, or capstone project to CUNY Academic Works as a PDF or MS Word document.load files . Submit the advisor-approved version of the dissertation, thesis, or capstone project to CUNY Academic Works as a PDF or MS Word document.load files . Submit the advisor-approved version of the dissertation, thesis, or capstone project to CUNY Academic Works as a PDF or MS Word document.Doctoral dissertations must also be submitted to ProQuest (see the step-by-step instructions ). You will need to create an author account; the library will communicate using the email address you use to create your author account. The Dissertation Office reviews uploaded documents for compliance with the library's format guidelines and either approves the deposit or requests format corrections. Corrections must be completed in order for the submission to be accepted by the library. Congratulations! Your deposit is complete and has been accepted by the library. Notification that the library deposit has been completed will be sent via email to the graduating student and the Registrar’s office will be notified. After the close of the deposit period (shortly after each deadline), you'll receive an email from the Registrar's Office including diploma information, graduation, alumni privileges, etc.


Online/Digital Components:
Does your dissertation/thesis include a significant digital component that the library should archive? If so, please read the Digital Projects page well in advance of your deposit and consult the library's Digital Project Documentation Guidelines . The library can provide guidance in determining what to submit to the library; please contact the Dissertation Office to set up a consultation.


Master's Degree Programs and Deposit:
Library deposit is a degree requirement for all doctoral programs. Some master's programs at the Graduate Center do not require a library deposit in order to complete the degree. See detailed list below; direct questions to your degree program or the Office of the Registrar.

Degree Program | Deposit Requirement

Astrophysics (M.S.) | Must deposit thesis.

Biography and Memoir (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis. Capstone projects not deposited.

Classics (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis/capstone project.

Cognitive Neuroscience (M.S.) | Must deposit thesis.

Comparative Literature (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis/capstone project.

Data Analysis and Visualization (M.S.) | Must deposit thesis/capstone project.

Data Science (M.S.) | No deposit required.

Digital Humanities (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis/capstone project.

International Migration Studies (M.A.) | Must deposit capstone project.

Liberal Studies (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis/capstone project.


tone project.

International Migration Studies (M.A.) | Must deposit capstone project.

Liberal Studies (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis/capstone project.Linguistics (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis.

Middle Eastern Studies (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis. Capstone projects not deposited.

Nanoscience (M.S.) | Must deposit thesis.

Philosophy (M.A.) | No deposit required.

Political Science (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis.

Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences (M.S.) | No deposit required.

Women and Gender Studies (M.A.) | Must deposit thesis.


Format Guidelines:
The library reviews all submissions for adherence to the formatting guidelines listed on this page. Please pay special attention to the required Page Sequence and pagination requirements outlined below. Review our manuscript format checklist before submitting to avoid some of the most common formatting errors, and check out our formatting FAQs for additional guidance:


ript format checklist before submitting to avoid some of the most common formatting errors, and check out our formatting FAQs for additional guidance:Looking to hire a professional editor for help with formatting? See this list of freelance academic editors . For issues other than formatting , the GC Writing Center offers remote consultations to offer help with style and structure. If you need help using Microsoft Word, please consult the University of Michigan's guide to MS Word for Dissertations , which addresses many of the most common problems encountered by students. Need access to the full version of MS Word?  All CUNY students can download Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus for free by logging in to Microsoft 365 , clicking on the Install Office Apps button and selecting Office 2016. Read more on the CUNY CIS website .


us for free by logging in to Microsoft 365 , clicking on the Install Office Apps button and selecting Office 2016. Read more on the CUNY CIS website .us for free by logging in to Microsoft 365 , clicking on the Install Office Apps button and selecting Office 2016. Read more on the CUNY CIS website .us for free by logging in to Microsoft 365 , clicking on the Install Office Apps button and selecting Office 2016. Read more on the CUNY CIS website .If you are writing with LaTex, templates that are compliant with the format requirements are available at the bottom of this page ; there is also an R markdown / LaTex dissertation template that follows the library's guidelines available from Nicholaus Brosowsky (Psychology, '19): https://github.com/nbrosowsky/dissertate-CUNY


Sample Pages:
PhD Dissertations: Updated 12/12/2022

Master's Theses: Updated 12/12/2022

Audiology Capstone: Updated 12/12/2022

M.A. in Liberal Studies Thesis Pages: This MS Word document contains properly formatted preliminary pages. Simply insert your thesis text at the end of this file and edit the details on the preliminary pages. Updated 12/12/2022

M.S. in Data Analysis & Visualization Capstones: This MS Word document contains properly formatted preliminary pages. Copy and paste your capstone white paper in the appropriate section and edit the details on the included pages. Updated 2/3/2025

For more examples of acceptable manuscript format, view the Deposit Information Slides linked below. View Information Session Slides


Page Sequence:
Adhere to the following page sequence when preparing your manuscript. Note that bibliographic references should be the last section of the document, appearing after all appendices, glossaries, illustrations, or other back matter. Title page (no pagination appears) * Copyright page Approval page Abstract Preface, Foreword, and/or Acknowledgments (optional) Table of Contents (required) Lists of tables, illustrations, charts, figures, diagrams (required) Body of Text (begins with Arabic numeral 1) Appendix (optional) Bibliography Autobiographical Statement (optional) * use the degree year regardless of deposit date (February 2025 grads should have 2025 on their title page even if the deposit is in 2024)

Additional pages may be required for students submitting digital projects as part of their thesis or dissertation deposit:

Digital Project Documentation Guidelines: Format instructions for those submitting digital components in addition to a PDF text.


Abstracts : There is no word limit for abstracts associated with dissertations or theses. Abstracts will be published in the CUNY Academic Works repository and ProQuest (if applicable) with author, title, and descriptive information, even if the work is embargoed. An abstract in English is required, even if the text is in a language other than English. Approval Page: The full title, author, manuscript statement, and month/year that the manuscript was approved are included on this page ( see sample pages ). The approval page lists the primary advisor(s), executive officer or program director, and supervisory committee (if applicable) for the work being submitted. Color : PDF and print reproductions may include color, and ProQuest reproductions will include any color submitted. File Formats : ProQuest requires Adobe PDF (not Word) for text. Rather than embedding audio and video files in the PDF body of a work, submit as supplemental files.


ProQuest requires Adobe PDF (not Word) for text. Rather than embedding audio and video files in the PDF body of a work, submit as supplemental files. ProQuest requires Adobe PDF (not Word) for text. Rather than embedding audio and video files in the PDF body of a work, submit as supplemental files. ProQuest requires Adobe PDF (not Word) for text. Rather than embedding audio and video files in the PDF body of a work, submit as supplemental files.For a list of manageable supplemental file fomats, see ProQuest's Preparing Your Manuscript for Submission (Including Supplemental Files) . Font: Any legible TruType type 1 font is accepted (except script, italic, or ornamental fonts) if equivalent in scale to Arial (10 pt) or Times New Roman (12 pt). Acceptable fonts and sizes for print and web include: Arial (10 pt), Courier New (10 pt), Georgia (11 pt), Times New Roman (12 pt), Trebuchet MS (10 pt), Verdana (10 pt). See ProQuest's Preparing Your Manuscript for Submission (Including Supplemental Files) for recommendations about choosing and embedding fonts, selecting formats, and creating PDFs. Line-spacing : Double-space abstract, dedication, acknowledgements, table of contents, and body of the manuscript. Follow your disciplinary style manual for single- or double-spacing block quotes, captions, items in tables, lists, graphs, charts. Single-space footnotes/endnotes. Lists of Contents : A table of contents is required.


block quotes, captions, items in tables, lists, graphs, charts. Single-space footnotes/endnotes. Lists of Contents : A table of contents is required. block quotes, captions, items in tables, lists, graphs, charts. Single-space footnotes/endnotes. Lists of Contents : A table of contents is required. block quotes, captions, items in tables, lists, graphs, charts. Single-space footnotes/endnotes. Lists of Contents : A table of contents is required.If illustrations, charts, diagrams, figures or other tables appear in the work, a list of each named element, with corresponding pagination, is required. Formatting and sample pages in Chicago/Turabian style are available online. Margins : left: 1”; right: 1″; top and bottom: 1″ for all text (except page numbers and headers/footers) and figures, footnotes/endnotes, and images Page numbers : must appear at least ¾” from any edge of page Pagination : Pages preliminary to the body of the text must be numbered with lowercase Roman numerals. Do not number the title page but count it in the preliminary pagination. The body of the text is numbered with Arabic numerals beginning with the first page of text and including illustrations, appendix, and bibliography. Except for the title page, all pages must be numbered. The numerals may appear in any location on the page (bottom middle, bottom right, upper right), but must be consistent throughout the work.