Depositing Your Thesis

Before depositing your thesis you should ensure that you do the following:

In advance of handing in your 'Intention to Submit' form to your Graduate School:

  • Ensure that you have made best efforts to seek permission to include any 3rd party copyright material in the electronic version of your thesis. If you have been unable to gain all necessary permissions, decide if you want to make an edited version publicly available.
  • Discuss with your supervisor whether or not there is a reason for restricting access to your thesis.

After handing in your 'Intention to Submit' form to your Graduate School (i.e. before your viva):

  • Complete the Thesis Access Declaration form. This must be signed by your supervisor to show that they agree with your decision with regard to making the thesis publicly available.
  • Return the Thesis Access Declaration to your Graduate School at the same time as you hand in the required number of soft bound copies of your thesis (the number of copies required may vary by Faculty - if you are not sure, check with your Graduate School).

Following the examination and completion of any required corrections:

  • Convert the final version of your thesis to a single PDF file (see Thesis Format for further information)
  • Ensure that your file is named according to the convention yearnamedegree.pdf (e.g. 2007smithphd.pdf)

Once you have done this, follow the steps below to deposit your thesis.

Instructions for theses that are to be made available immediately (no embargoes, no copyright restrictions)

  • Go to http://theses.gla.ac.uk
  • Register to deposit from the My Theses option in the left hand column. Click on Create Account. Follow the instructions provided.
  • Once you have registered, log-in with the username and password you selected by clicking on Create Account.
  • Click on Begin a new item
  • On the Core Bibliographic Information page select the appropriate Thesis type
  • Enter the full Title of your thesis into the appropriate box following the guidance on the page
  • Enter your Name in the format shown (e.g. Smith, James Peter] and an e-mail address you will continue to use once you leave the University.
  • Enter your Registration/matriculation number
  • Click on Next
  • On the Publication information page select your Faculty and Department. You can select more than one department it your thesis was jointly supervised. To do this select a department, press the Control key on your keyboard, and select a second department with this key held down.
  • Select the appropriate Qualification level
  • Enter the Year in which your degree will be awarded (leave month and day blank).
  • Click on Next
  • On the Status of item page indicate if there is any third party copyright material contained in your thesis that you have not gained permission to include in the electronic version by choosing yes or no. If you are depositing the full text online you should select No, as your thesis should not contain any uncleared third party copyright material. If necessary, use the next box to provide any relevant information about 3rd party copyright material within your thesis.
  • Indicate whether you have been granted an embargo. If you are depositing the full text of your thesis online you should select No, as only theses with no embargoes should be deposited online.
  • If an embargo has been granted, select the date three years from the date on which you are depositing. If your thesis will not be embargoed do not complete this field.
  • Click on Next
  • On the Abstract and keywords page copy and paste in the text of your abstract. Note that special formatting is not possible.
  • Enter the keywords or terms that best describe the content of your thesis using single words or short phrases. Separate words using commas. You can include as few or as many keywords as you like.
  • Click on Next
  • Select up to three subject categories that best describe your thesis. Select one main heading and up to two sub-headings. To select a subject click on Add. If you are unsure what to select you can opt not to choose any subjects - Library staff will select appropriate subjects for you.
  • Click on Next
  • On the Additional Information page enter your main supervisor's name and e-mail address in the format indicated.
  • If there is any other information about your thesis, e.g. if you want to provide details of any sections of it that have been published do so in the Additional Information field.
  • Click on Next
  • If you are not depositing the full text of your thesis online skip to alternative instructions.
  • If you are depositing the full text of your thesis online click on Upload full text of thesis
  • Select PDF and click on Next. You will have an opportunity to upload associated multimedia files at a later stage.
  • Under Upload a file from your PC click on Browse, select your saved PDF from wherever you have stored it and click on Open
  • Click on Upload file
  • If you need to upload more than one PDF file simply repeat this process. You may upload additional PDF files if e.g. your thesis is very large and you have had to split it up into several files. You should convert any separate elements to PDF in advance of uploading them.
  • If you need to upload associated multimedia files, click on Upload another version of full text. This time choose Multimedia file and then Next. Follow the same procedure for uploading the file or files.
  • Click on Finished
  • Click on Next
  • On the Edit item: verification page check that the information you have provided is correct. If you need to change anything use the Previous button to move back to the relevant section and make the correction
  • Read the declaration and click on Deposit item now. If you wish to return and do this at a later point click on Deposit item later. To return and deposit you will need to log-in againĀ  select edit next to Undeposited item. Use the Next button to move through the different stages of the deposit process. Note that until you click on 'Deposit item now', the record you have created will remain in your work space, and will not be visible to the Theses Services staff. You must choose 'Deposit item now' once you are happy that everything is correct in order to complete the process.
  • You have now completed the deposit process. Your College/School will be informed that you have successfully uploaded your thesis.

You should hand in the hard bound print copy of your thesis to your Graduate School.

Instructions for theses where access is to be restricted, either due to an embargo or due to the inclusion of 3rd party copyright material

If you have been granted an embargo or if your thesis contains third party copyright material you do not have permission to include within the electronic version you should not deposit a copy of the full text of your thesis online. Instead you will provide a copy on a CD or memory stick. However, you do need to provide information about your thesis using the online deposit form:

  • Follow the instructions above up until you reach the page where you are asked to Upload full text of thesis
  • Do not choose this option, but simply click Next.
  • On the Edit item: verification page check that the information you have provided is correct. If you need to change anything use the Previous button to move back to the relevant section and make the correction
  • Read the declaration and click on Deposit item now.
  • Hand in the electronic copy of your thesis on a CD or memory stick to your Graduate School along with the hard bound print copy. Ensure that the CD or memory stick is labelled with your name and thesis title. Ideally it should be provided in a suitably labelled envelope. Staff in your Graduate School will check to ensure you have provided a suitable copy. If you are providing an edited version with third party copyright material removed please include both files on the CD/memory stick. Files should be named according to the conventions outlined in the section on Thesis format. If you are providing additional multimedia files you must include a separate file giving details of the additional files you have provided i.e. name of file, what type of file it is, what the file consists of. If this information is not provided the files will not be made available online.
  • You have now completed the deposit process.

What happens once you have deposited the thesis

Theses Service staff will check the information you have provided and add further details. If you have chosen to make your thesis available immediately with no embargoes it will appear in the repository shortly after deposit (assuming there are no problems with the file you have deposited - if there are you will be contacted). If you have been granted an embargo the full text of your thesis will not appear publicly until after this period has elapsed ; however, the details about your thesis, e.g. author, title etc. will be made publicly available at the point of deposit. If access to your thesis has been restricted for copyright reasons it will not appear in the repository at all unless you have also provided an edited version. A link will be created between the record for your thesis in the repository and the record for the print version of your thesis in the Library Catalogue. Finally, your College/School will be informed that you have undertaken all the necessary steps in the process.