General Information
Thesis
a long essay or dissertation involving personal research, written by a candidate for a college degree
Dissertation
a lengthy, formal written treatise or thesis, especially an account of scholarly investigation or original research on a specialized topic, submitted to a university in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Ph.D. degree
Theses are specialized and may only be useful if you are doing in-depth research, such as for an honors thesis or independent study, or the topic is very new and not much has been published on it.
Factors to consider:
- Currency - how old is it? might the author have published more recent information?
- Availability - non-US theses are harder to find; masters theses are very difficult to obtain
- Language - what language was it published in?
Sample Database Citations
Indication for a thesis is often buried in the reference.
GeoRef:
Martin, A. P. (2009). Mt. Morning, Antarctica; geochemistry, geochronology, petrology, volcanology, and oxygen fugacity of the rifted Antarctic lithosphere. 413 p.
Degree Granting Institution: University of Otago: Dunedin, New Zealand; Doctoral
EconLit
Cole, S. J. (2015). Essays on Unconventional Monetary Policies.
Publisher Information: University of California, Irvine
Publication Type: Dissertation
Degree: Ph.D.
International Bibliography of Art
Roussinova, Roussina. The Art of Pleasing the Eye : Portraits by Nicolas De Largillierre and Spectatorship with Taste for Colour in the Early Eighteenth Century. 2015.
Publisher: Department of Culture and Aesthetics; Stockholm University
Document type: Dissertation Or Thesis
MLA
Ivins-Hulley, Laura. Cinema As Surrealist Tool: The Films Of Jan Svankmajer. 350 p.
Indiana U, 2015
Publication Type: dissertation abstract
PsycINFO
Daye, E. C. (2016). Correlations between childhood obesity and obesogenic environmental variables within Durham county, North Carolina.
Document Type: Dissertation [no indication of institution]
Where to Find?
Compilations of theses:
-
ProQuest Dissertations and Theses GlobalProQuest's collection of dissertations and theses, many available in full text, with international coverage from 1861 to the present.
-
Doctoral Dissertations in MusicologyAn international database of dissertations in the fields of musicology, music theory, and ethnomusicology, as well as in related musical, scientific, and humanistic disciplines.
-
Find ETDs (Electronic Theses and Dissertations)links to databases in different countries
-
Center for Research LibrariesDissertations search
-
HathiTrustTexts and references to over 100 research libraries with documents including dissertations.
-
BASE (Bielefeld Academic Search Engine)searches hundreds of institutional repositories
Usually dissertations are available only at the degree-granting institution. Some institutions post dissertations freely online through their digital repository (linked through the library).
-
WorldCatIs the thesis available? You can also search for other books by the author.
-
Google ScholarYou may find a link to the author's website or Research Gate account. They may give Open Access to the thesis.
-
Request Through Colby Interlibrary Loan (ILLiad)Let us help you!
What Else Can I Try?
You may be able to find the dissertation published as the author's first book (often with a similar title) or selected chapters published as articles.
- To find a dissertation published as a book, search for the author in WorldCat.
- To find dissertation findings published as articles, search for the author in one of our journal article databases covering the subject area.
-
Ask a Research LibrarianThese are the types of questions we specialize in.
ILLiad Account?
Do you have an active ILLiad account to request and track interlibrary loan requests?
If not, register right now!