ELECTRONIC THESIS PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION

Beginning in the Fall of 2002 all students will be required to submit their theses

electronically. Students completing their research program should make a point of attending one of the Electronic Thesis and Dissertation (ETD) Workshops sponsored by the Graduate School and NCSU Libraries. Notice of these workshops are periodically emailed to students.

Dates for workshops and on electronic submission of the thesis can also be found at the following Graduate School Web site:

http://www2.acs.ncsu.edu/grad/students/current/thesis.htm

The ETD (Electronic Thesis and Dissertation) is similar to its paper predecessor, however, rather than printing a hard copy for submission to the Graduate School, the thesis or

dissertation is printed to a Portable Document Format (pdf) file for electronic submission to the Graduate School. The submission is done electronically through the ETD Submission Form. pdf files are suitable for machine archives and can be viewed on the World Wide Web (WWW). ETDs are less expensive to prepare, consume virtually no library shelf space, and will be available to anyone with access to the WWW.

Step 1:

Read the Thesis and Dissertation Guide AND the Policies Regarding Electronic Submission.

Step 2:

Write your thesis or dissertation. Consult the Step by Step Tutorial and ETD website with questions.

Step 3:

Master's Students:

Make sure the Director of Graduate Programs (DGP) for your department or program submits the Request for Permit to Schedule the Master's Oral Examination to the Graduate School by the Graduate Calendar deadline.

Doctoral Students:

Make sure the Director of Graduate Programs (DGP) for your department or program submits the Request for Approval to Schedule the Doctoral Oral Examination to the Graduate School by the Graduate Calendar deadline.

Step 4:

Master's Students:

Upon issuance of the Permit to Schedule Master's Oral Examination, the Graduate School will forward the following documents to your DGP:

* Diploma Order Request for Graduate Students

* Admission to the Final Master's Oral Examination (sample only) Doctoral Students:

Upon issuance of the Admission to the Final Doctoral Oral Examination (sample only), the Graduate School will forward the following documents to your DGP:

* Diploma Order Request for Graduate Students

* UMI Doctoral Dissertation Agreement

* National Research Council Survey of Earned Doctorates Step 5:

Register for the appropriate credits in the semester you take the final oral examination.

Step 6:

Take the final oral examination.

Step 7:

Master's Students:

When you pass the final oral examination your committee members will sign the Report of the Advisory Committee on the Admission to the Final Master's Oral Examination (sample only) and your committee chair will submit it to the Graduate School.

Doctoral Students:

When you pass the final oral examination your committee members will sign the Report of the Advisory Committee on the Admission to the Final Doctoral Oral Examination (sample only) and your committee chair will submit it to the Graduate School.

Step 8:

Make the changes in your thesis or dissertation as recommended by your committee.

Step 9:

Once the changes have been made, make a copy of the title page and have all members of your committee sign it (Policies Regarding Electronic Submission). You can scan and save your signed title page to include in your file or you can use the original title page without the signatures in your file.

Step 10:

Create the PDF file(s): Consult the Step by Step tutorial with questions . Step 11:

Check your PDF file(s) before submitting your thesis or dissertation. Specifically check the following:

* Did you name the main file etd.pdf? (the thesis/dissertation won't be processed correctly otherwise)

* Are all PDF file names in lower case letters? (the system is case sensitive)

* Have you linked your documents together? (you provide the only linking between the documents)

* Does your thesis or dissertation fit into 15 or less files? (maximum of 15 files)

* Does the title on your Abstract match the title on your Title page?

* Does your Abstract have a page number? (Abstract should not have a page number.)

* Have you included your Biography?

* Is the page immediately following the Title page numbered as "ii" using lower case Roman numerals?

* Are the preliminary pages numbered consecutively using Roman numerals?

* Do the listed items in the Table of Contents match the actual text?

* Have you included your List of References/Bibliography?

* Are all your pages numbered consecutively to the end, including any appendices?

* Have you checked for missing pages, poor font translation, and other anomalies?

* Are all internal and external multimedia objects and files linked and ready for submission?

Step 12:

Deliver the signed title page and the Diploma Order Request for Graduate Students to the Thesis Editor of the Graduate School, in Peele 108A.

Step 13:

Submit your thesis or dissertation electronically.

A. Find a networked machine running Netscape 2.0 or higher.

B. Complete the ETD Submission Form.

You can submit your ETD to the Thesis Editor before you have made the corrections required by your committee. If you choose to do this, please let the Thesis Editor know that this is not your final copy by placing the word "DRAFT" in the title or filename of the ETD you submit via the online form.

Step 14:

Work with the Graduate School as needed until your thesis or dissertation is accepted.

Step 15:

Upon acceptance of your thesis or dissertation by the Graduate School, you will be notified by e-mail that it has been approved and the library cataloger has been notified.

Step 16:

If not held because of pending publications or copyright, your thesis or dissertation will be on the library server and in the online catalog within 2-3 weeks.