Electronic Thesis & Dissertation

Electronic Thesis Dissertation

What is an ETD?

An ETD is an electronic document that explains the research of a graduate student. The ETD is similar to its paper predecessor. It has figures, tables, footnotes, and references. It has a title page with the authors' name, the official name of the university, the degree sought, and the names of the committee members. It documents the author's years of academic commitment. It describes why the work was done, how the research relates to previous work as recorded in the literature, the research methods used, the results, the interpretation and discussion of the results, and a summary with conclusions.

Why ETD

As more and more institutions move towards electronic submission, storage, and dissemination of theses and dissertations, it's important to keep in mind the benefits of ETDs -- for both students and institutions -- over traditional paper submissions.

Improves access to scholarly research because it makes your work accessible to anyone with an internet connection
Easy worldwide access for your colleagues and collaborators
Easy worldwide access to theses/dissertations for job and grant applications
Free publicity for your research - the authors of electronic theses become more widely known and their reputations are enhanced. In fact, this process can increase the likelihood of being cited. Data suggest that Open Access increased citation 50 to 500%
This leads to increased rewards from universities, in the form of promotion and increased salary, and from granting agencies. Repository is more convenient than making and maintaining your own webpage
Supports your claim to the research you do. You can validate your claim by the upload date.
A raised profile for your research institution
Reduced costs for the student at the point of graduation since there is no need to have multiple copies printed.