Theses & Dissertations

BEFORE YOU BEGIN YOUR RESEARCH

Failure to complete the following steps before beginning research may delay your graduation and cause you to have to rewrite all or part of your manuscript.

Your school or department may have additional requirements or milestones.

1. KNOW THE DEADLINES. 
   • Understand Marshall's Graduate Degree Timeline and where you currently stand. Your thesis or dissertation is only one part of it.
   • Know the current semester's Deadlines and Dates, especially the final deadline for ETD submission and graduation applications.
     • Late ETDs will not qualify for graduation until the following semester.
     • ETDs must be complete (i.e., include all committee signatures and a copy of the IRB letter) to be considered on time.
2. GET DEPARTMENTAL APPROVAL AND ENROLL
   • Form Your Committee. Each department has its own procedures for advisory committee creation, so ask your advisor how to get started. Committees should have a chairperson and at least two additional members.
   • Identify Your Topic. Choose the topic you will research and get your committee's approval.
   • Enroll. Discuss courses required for your project with your advisor and enroll.
3. BEFORE DOING ANY RESEARCH...
   • COMPLETE BLACKBOARD ETD TRAINING
     • To enroll, see the "MU Blackboard ETD Training" section on the "Before Starting Your Research" tab.
     • The ETD training is called “Thesis & Dissertation Student Training - Ultra.” It will become visible on Blackboard's Organization page once you have enrolled.
     • Once you complete the training, submit the electronic acknowledgment form in the final lesson.
     • This is mandatory training and should be completed before you begin your research. An ETD will not be reviewed if its author has not completed the training.
   • OBTAIN AN IRB LETTER
     • An IRB letter is mandatory for all students completing a thesis or dissertation regardless of topic, school, or department.
     • Research conducted before you receive this documentation cannot be used in your thesis or dissertation.
     • ETDs submitted without this documentation will not be reviewed and may need to be rewritten.
     • To obtain the IRB letter:
       • Submit a copy of your abstract to Brett Williams, CIC, Director, Office of Research Integrity, at Brett.Williams@marshall.edu before you begin any research.
       • The Office of Research Integrity will determine whether your research will require additional review to meet federal regulations and to protect the rights of human participants, the welfare of animals, and the safety of the investigators and the university community.
       • If your thesis or dissertation requires a compliance review, you will be directed to the appropriate Institutional Review Board coordinator for assistance.
       • If your thesis or dissertation does not require a compliance review, you will receive a letter indicating that this is the case.
       • Your IRB letter must include:
         • Your name.
         • The title of your thesis or dissertation as it appears on the title page and the signature page.
       • You must include the letter you receive as the first appendix in your manuscript.
4. YOU MAY NOW BEGIN YOUR RESEARCH AND WRITE!

WRITING YOUR THESIS OR DISSERTATION

1. CHOOSE A STYLE GUIDE
   • Choose the style you will use to prepare your manuscript based on norms in your discipline, your career goals, the advice of your committee, and the style used by potential publishers.
   • You must use the most recent version of your selected style guide that is available at the time of submission.
   • Your school or department may have its own internal style and formatting requirements.
2. KNOW THE GUIDELINES
   • For overarching style, organization, and formatting requirements, review the Marshall University ETD Guidelines, downloadable at https://libguides.marshall.edu/etd/guidelinesandtemplates.
   • Download the Microsoft Word template, also at https://libguides.marshall.edu/etd/guidelinesandtemplates. Front matter in the template is preformatted as required.
   • If your department asks you to style your manuscript or references differently for any reason, please communicate this to etdreview@marshall.edu so it does not unnecessarily delay your ETD review.
3. WRITE AND REVIEW PROGRESS WITH YOUR COMMITTEE CHAIR
   •  Work with your committee chair to decide when and how often to review your progress on your manuscript.
4. WORK WITH YOUR RESEARCH PARTNERS: MARSHALL UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES AND WRITING CENTER 
   • Reach out to the Writing Center if you need help with sentence structure, grammar, or spelling.
   • Talk with a librarian if you need help with research or citation formation.

If you have questions that your committee cannot answer, see the "Questions?" section on the Questions and Contacts tab to the left.

YOUR FINAL SEMESTER

1. APPLY FOR GRADUATION (First Month of Final Semester)
   • Review the graduation application deadline at https://www.marshall.edu/graduate/deadlines-dates/.
   • Scroll down to the "Graduation" section at https://www.marshall.edu/graduate/current-students/forms-and-information/ for instructions and helpful links (including the Guide to Applying for Graduation Online).
   • You can apply online by following the “Apply for Graduation” instructions at https://www.marshall.edu/registrar/forms/.
2. SCHEDULE YOUR DEFENSE (Final Semester, About Three Months Before Graduation)
   • Work with your committee to select a date 1.5-2 months before graduation when you will defend your thesis or dissertation.
   • Please note the deadline for submitting your approved and defended thesis or dissertation. Schedule your defense early enough that it leaves plenty of time to submit your defended manuscript before the deadline.
3. DEFEND AND REVISE YOUR THESIS OR DISSERTATION (Final Semester, About 1.5-2 Months Before Graduation)
   • Defend your thesis or dissertation on the scheduled date.
   • Revise your manuscript as required by the written or verbal comments provided by your committee chair and committee members.
   • Get your committee members' signatures on the approval page (page ii of the ETD Microsoft Word Template) once they have approved your final draft.
4. SUBMIT THE DISTRIBUTION LICENSE ELECTRONIC FORM
   • When you are ready to submit your final manuscript, fill out and submit the Distribution License Electronic Form first.
   • This can be found at https://libguides.marshall.edu/etd/distributionform. (This form is still in development and will be ready later in the Fall 2024 semester.)
5. FINALIZE AND SUBMIT YOUR MANUSCRIPT FOR PUBLICATION (Before the ETD Submission Deadline)
   • Proofread and put the finishing touches on your manuscript so that it is publication-ready.
   • Go over the Final Draft Checklist, downloadable at https://libguides.marshall.edu/etd/guidelinesandtemplates.
   • Convert your finalized manuscript to a PDF file.
   • Upload the PDF file to ProQuest ETD Administrator (https://www.etdadmin.com/) on or before the submission deadline. (ETD review for publication happens after this.)
     • Late ETDs will not qualify for graduation until the following semester.
     • ETDs must be complete (i.e., include all committee signatures and a copy of the IRB letter) to be considered on time.
     • See the "Submitting Your ETD for Final Review" section of the ETD Guidelines for ProQuest submission instructions and an explanation of publication options.
6. ETD REVIEW AND PUBLICATION (Before Graduation)
   • A reviewer will spot-check your manuscript for formatting and style errors and may return it to you for corrections.
   • If your reviewer requests corrections, submit your corrected manuscript as a revision via ProQuest ETD Admin.
   • When your manuscript passes review, it will be published, and you will have met your thesis or dissertation graduation requirement.
   • Your ETD will be published online in ProQuest (login required) and in Marshall Digital Scholar (MDS).