citing a doctoral thesis

How do I cite a dissertation in MLA style?

Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook . For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook .

A dissertation is a unique type of source. It is a finished, stand-alone work written under the auspices of an institution. In a change from the previous edition of the MLA Handbook ,    we do not distinguish between published and unpublished dissertations. To cite a dissertation, include in the entry the author, title, and date of publication as core elements. As an optional element, list the institution granting the degree and a description of the work.

Njus, Jesse. Performing the Passion: A Study on the Nature of Medieval Acting . 2010. Northwestern U, PhD dissertation.

If you accessed the dissertation through an online repository, include this fact as the title of the second container:

Njus, Jesse. Performing the Passion: A Study on the Nature of Medieval Acting . 2010. Northwestern U, PhD dissertation.  ProQuest , search.proquest.com/docview/305212264?accountid=7432.

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Dissertation or thesis available from a database service:

Author Surname, First Initial. Second Initial. (year of publication).  Title of dissertation or thesis (Doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis).  Retrieved from Name of database.  (Accession or Order No.)

For an unpublished dissertation or thesis:

Author Surname, First Initial. Second Initial. (year of creation).  Title of dissertation or thesis (Unpublished doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis).  Name of Institution, Location.

See Ch 7 pp. 207-208 APA Manual for more examples and formatting rules

Formatting:

• Italicize the title
• Identify whether source is doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis in parentheses after the title
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Citing Dissertations & Theses in APA Format

Dissertations & Theses

Dissertations and theses are formatted the same way in APA 7th edition. Theses are generally the culminating work for a master's or undergraduate degree and dissertations are often original research completed by doctoral students. Here are examples of a dissertation & a thesis, and how they would be formatted: 

Examples: 

Dissertation found in Proquest Dissertations and Theses Global: 

Reference:  

Banks, B. (2020). Addressing institutional racism in healthcare: A case study (Publication No. 28154307) [Doctoral dissertation, University of Minnesota]. Proquest Dissertations and Theses Global. 

In-Text Citation (Paraphrase):  

(Banks, 2020).

In-Text Citation (Direct Quote):

(Banks, 2020, p. 157).

Master's thesis from a University scholarship database: 

Sears, L. B. (2017). The public voice and sustainable food systems: Community engagement in food action plans [Unpublished master's thesis]. University of Kansas.  https://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/handle/1808/26899  

In-Text Citation (Paraphrase):

(Sears, 2017). 

(Sears, 2017, p. 24). 

Carrie Forbes, MLS

Pages Referenced

Citation information has been adapted from the APA Manual (7th Edition). Please refer to page 333 of the APA Manual (7th Edition) for more information.

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Citation guides

All you need to know about citations

How to cite a PhD thesis in Harvard

To cite a PhD thesis in a reference entry in Harvard style include the following elements:

• Author(s) of the PhD thesis: Give the last name and initials (e. g. Watson, J.) of up to three authors with the last name preceded by 'and'. For four authors or more include the first name followed by et al., unless your institution requires referencing of all named authors.
• Year of submission: Give the year in round brackets.
• Title of the PhD thesis: Give the title as presented in the source. Only the first letter of the first word and proper nouns are capitalized.
• Degree description: Type of degree.
• Degree-awarding institution: Give the name of the institution.

Here is the basic format for a reference list entry of a PhD thesis in Harvard style:

Author(s) of the PhD thesis . ( Year of submission ) Title of the PhD thesis . Degree description . Degree-awarding institution .

Take a look at our reference list examples that demonstrate the Harvard style guidelines in action:

A PhD thesis with one author

Confait, M. F . ( 2018 ) Maximising the contributions of PHD graduates to national development: the case of the Seychelles . PhD thesis . Edith Cowan University .

An unpublished PhD thesis

Bowkett, D . ( 2015 ) Investigating the ligandability of plant homeodomains . Unpublished PhD thesis . University of Oxford .

This citation style guide is based on the Cite Them Right (10 th edition) Harvard referencing guide.

More useful guides

• Harvard Referencing: Theses
• Referencing with Harvard: Thesis or dissertation
• Citing and referencing: Theses/Dissertations

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Thesis - from website

Thesis - from database.

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Format for dissertations and theses

Dissertations and theses database.

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Author last name, first initial. (Year).  Title of dissertation/thesis  (Publication No.) [Doctoral dissertation/Master's thesis, University]. Database. URL

• Author:  List the last name, followed by the first initial (and second initial). See  Authors  for more information.
• Year:  List the year between parentheses, followed by a period.
• Title of dissertation/thesis:  In italics. Capitalize the first word of the title, subtitle, and proper nouns.
• Publication number: Can be found in Dissertations and Theses database, listed in the item record as “Dissertation/thesis number.”
• Doctoral dissertation/Master's thesis:  List whether it is a dissertation or a thesis.
• University:  List the university associated with the dissertation/thesis.
• Database:  List database the dissertation/thesis was found in, if found in a database.
• URL:  List URL if found on the free Web rather than in a database.

See specific examples below.

Dissertations:

Pecore, J. T. (2004). Sounding the spirit of Cambodia: The living tradition of Khmer music and dance-drama in a Washington, DC community  (Publication No. 3114720) [Doctoral dissertation, University of Maryland]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global. 

Master's Theses:

Hollander, M. M. (2017). Resitance to authority: Methodological innovations and new lessons from the Milgram experiment   (Publication No. 10289373) [Master's thesis, University of Wisconsin - Madison]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

APA calls for the citation to include a unique identifying number for the dissertation, labeling it “Publication No.” That number can be found in Dissertations and Theses database, listed in the item record as “Dissertation/thesis number.”

Karamanos, X. (2020). The influence of professional development models on student mathematics performance in New Jersey public elementary schools [Doctoral dissertation, Seton Hall University]. Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs). https://scholarship.shu.edu/dissertations/2732

Bordo, V. C. (2011). Making a case for the use of foreign language in the educational activities of nonprofit arts organizations [Master's thesis, University of Akron]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses & Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1311135640

Caprette, C. L. (2005). Conquering the cold shudder: The origin and evolution of snake eyes  [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University].

Angelova, A. N. (2004). Data pruning  [Master's thesis, California Institute of Technology].

See  Publication Manual , 10.6.

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Theses & Dissertations

Citing a published thesis, citing an unpublished thesis, citing a thesis in online database or repository.

• CMS 14.224: Theses and dissertations

Titles of unpublished works appear in "quotation marks"—not in italics . This treatment extends to theses and dissertations, which are otherwise cited like books.

The kind of thesis, the academic institution, and the date follow the title. Like the publication data of a book, these are enclosed in parentheses in a note but not in a bibliography.

If the document was consulted online, include a URL or, for documents retrieved from a commercial database, give the name of the database and, in parentheses, any identification number supplied or recommended by the database.

For dissertations issued on microfilm, see 14.120 . For published abstracts of dissertations, see 14.197 .

Note-Bibliography

First-name Last-name, "Title of Thesis: Subtitle," (Publisher, Year).

      Mihwa Choi, “Contesting Imaginaires in Death Rituals during the Northern Song Dynasty,” PhD diss., (University of Chicago, 2008).

Short Note:

Last-name, "Title of Thesis."

Choi. “Contesting Imaginaires ."

Bibliography Entry:

Last-name, First-name. "Title of Thesis: Subtitle." Year.

Choi, Mihwa. “Contesting Imaginaires in Death Rituals during the Northern Song Dynasty.” PhD diss. University      of Chicago, 2008.

Author-Date

Text Citation:

(Last-name Year)

(Mihwa 2008)

Reference Entry:

Last-name, First-name. Year. "Title of Thesis: Subtitle."

Choi, Mihwa. 2008. “Contesting  Imaginaires  in Death Rituals during the Northern Song Dynasty.”  PhD diss.       University of Chicago.

Note -Bibliography

Note #. First-name Last-name, "Title of Thesis: Subtitle," Unpublished thesis type, University. Year.

Barry C. Hosking, "The Control of Gastro-intestinal Nematodes in Sheep with the Amino-acetonitrile Derivative, Monepantel with a Particular Focus on Australia and New Zealand," PhD diss., (Ghent University, 2010).

Note #. Last-name,"Title of Thesis."

Barry C. Hosking, "The Control of Gastro-intestinal Nematodes."

Bibliography:

Last-name, First-name. "Title of Thesis: Subtitle." Unpublished thesis type. University. Year.

Hosking, Barry C. "The Control of Gastro-intestinal Nematodes in Sheep with the Amino-acetonitrile Derivative, Monepantel with a Particular Focus on Australia and New Zealand." PhD diss., Ghent University, 2010.

(Hosking 2010)

Last-name, First-name.  Year.  "Title of Thesis: Subtitle." Unpublished thesis type. University.

Hosking, Barry C.    2010.  "The Control of Gastro-intestinal Nematodes in Sheep with the Amino-acetonitrile Derivative, Monepantel with a Particular Focus on Australia and New Zealand." PhD diss., Ghent University.

Note #. First-name Last-name, "Title of Thesis: Subtitle," Database Name (Identifier if given), Year, Internet address.

      12. Meredith Stewart, "An Investigation into Aspects of the Replication of Jembrana Disease Virus, " Australasian Digital Theses Program (WMU2005.1222), 2005, http://wwwlib.murdoch.edu.au/adt/browse/view/adt-MU20051222.104106.

Note #. Last-name, "Title of Thesis."

21. Stewart, "An Investigation into Aspects."

Last-name, First-name. "Title of Thesis: Subtitle." Database Name (Identifier if given), Year. Internet address.

Stewart, Meredith. "An Investigation into Aspects of the Replication of Jembrana Disease Virus ." Australasian Digital Theses Program (WMU2005.1222),  2005. http://wwwlib.murdoch.edu.au/adt/browse/view/adt-MU20051222.104106.

(Stewart 2005)

Last-name, First-name. Year. "Title of Thesis: Subtitle."  Database Name  (Identifier if given), Internet address.

Stewart, Meredith. 2005. "An Investigation into Aspects of the Replication of Jembrana Disease Virus ." Australasian Digital Theses Program  (WMU2005.1222),    http://wwwlib.murdoch.edu.au/adt/browse/view/adt-MU20051222.104106.

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Theses and dissertations

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This was seen in an Australian study (Couch, 2017). 

Couch (2017) suggests that…

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Published thesis

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of thesis [Type of thesis, Name of institution awarding degree]. Name of archive or site. https://xxxxxx

Stored in a database

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of thesis (Database Publication number, if assigned) [Type of thesis, Name of institution awarding degree]. Database Name.

Taffe, S. (2017).  The Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders: The politics of inter-racial coalition in Australia, 1958–1973  [Doctoral thesis, Monash University]. Bridges.  https://doi.org/10.4225/03/59d4482289ea4

Bozeman, A. Jr. (2007).  Age of onset as predictor of cognitive performance in children with seizure disorders  (Publication No. 3259752) [Doctoral dissertation, The Chicago School of Professional Psychology]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

Unpublished thesis

Author, A. A. (Year).  Title of thesis or dissertation  [Unpublished Doctoral dissertation or Master's thesis]. Name of Institution.

Imber, A. (2003).  Applicant reactions to graduate recruitment and selection  [Unpublished Doctoral dissertation]. Monash University. 

For further guidance, see the APA Style website- Published Dissertation or Thesis , Unpublished Dissertation or Theses .

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Chapter 5 dissertations and theses.

Created: October 10, 2007 ; Last Update: August 11, 2015 .

A. Entire Dissertations and Theses

• Sample Citation and Introduction
• Citation Rules with Examples

B. Parts of Dissertations and Theses

• A. Sample Citation and Introduction to Citing Entire Dissertations and Theses

The general format for a reference to entire dissertation, including punctuation:

The general format for a reference to entire master's thesis, including punctuation:

• Examples of Citations to Entire Dissertations and Theses

Dissertations and theses are rigorous reports of original research written in support of academic degrees above the baccalaureate level. Although some countries use the term "thesis" to refer to material written for a doctorate, the term in this chapter is reserved for work at the master's level, while "dissertation" is used for the doctorate.

Citations to dissertations and theses are similar to the standard book, with the following important points:

• With rare exceptions, dissertations have only one author. Most master's theses also have a single author, but occasionally will have two.
• The place of publication for a thesis or dissertation is the city where the university or other institution granting the degree is located. Many dissertations, particularly those of US universities, do not state the place of publication. When this occurs, obtain the city name from another source and place it in square brackets.
• The publisher is the university or other institution granting the degree.

The chief source for information about a dissertation or thesis is its title page. The back of the title page, called the verso page, and the cover are additional sources of authoritative information not found on the title page.

Continue to Citation Rules with Examples for Entire Dissertations and Theses .

Continue to Examples of Citations to Entire Dissertations and Theses .

• Citation Rules with Examples for Entire Dissertations and Theses

Components/elements are listed in the order they should appear in a reference. An R after the component name means that it is required in the citation; an O after the name means it is optional.

Author (R) | Title (R) | Content Type (O) | Type of Medium (R) | Place of Publication (R) | Publisher (R) | Date of Publication (R) | Pagination (O) | Physical Description (O) | Language (R) | Notes (O)

Author for a Dissertation or Thesis (required)

General rules for author.

• List names in the order they appear in the text
• Enter surname (family or last name) first for each author
• Capitalize surnames and enter spaces within surnames as they appear in the document cited on the assumption that the author approved the form used. For example: Van Der Horn or van der Horn; De Wolf or de Wolf or DeWolf.
• Convert given (first) names and middle names to initials for a maximum of two initials following each surname
• Separate author names from each other by a comma and a space
• End author information with a period

Specific Rules for Author

• Surnames with hyphens and other punctuation in them
• Other surname rules
• Given names containing punctuation, a prefix, a preposition, or particle
• Degrees, titles, and honors following a personal name
• Designations of rank in a family, such as Jr and III
• Names in non-roman alphabets (Cyrillic, Greek, Arabic, Hebrew, Korean) or character-based languages (Chinese, Japanese)
• Options for author names

Surnames with hyphens and other punctuation in them.

Other surname rules.

Given names containing punctuation, a prefix, a preposition, or particle.

Degrees, titles, and honors following a personal name.

Designations of rank in a family, such as Jr and III.

Names in non-roman alphabets (Cyrillic, Greek, Arabic, Hebrew, Korean) or character-based languages (Chinese, Japanese).

Options for author names.

Examples for Author

1. standard dissertation, 2. standard master's thesis, 3. dissertation or thesis with optional full name(s) for author, 4. dissertation or thesis with more than one author (rare), 5. dissertation or thesis with authors showing designations of rank within the family, title for a dissertation or thesis (required), general rules for title.

• Enter the title of a dissertation or thesis as it appears in the original document and in the original language
• Capitalize only the first word of a title, proper nouns, proper adjectives, acronyms, and initialisms
• Use a colon followed by a space to separate a title from a subtitle, unless another form of punctuation (such as a question mark, period, or an exclamation point) is already present
• Follow non-English titles with a translation whenever possible; place the translation in square brackets
• End a title with a period unless a question mark or exclamation point already ends it or a Content Type or Type of Medium follows it, then end with a space

Specific Rules for Title

• Titles not in English
• Titles containing a Greek letter, chemical formula, or another special character

Titles not in English.

Titles containing a Greek letter, chemical formula, or another special character.

Examples for Title

6. dissertation or thesis with titles ending in punctuation other than a period, 7. dissertation or thesis with titles containing a chemical formula, greek letter, or other special characters, 8. dissertation or thesis with non-english titles, 9. dissertation or thesis with non-english titles, with translation, content type for a dissertation or thesis (optional), general rules for content type.

• Place [dissertation] or [master's thesis] after the title to alert the user that the reference is not to a standard book
• Follow the bracketed type with a period unless the dissertation or thesis is in a non-print medium (see Type of Medium below)

Specific Rules for Content Type

• Titles ending in punctuation other than a period
• Non-English titles with translation

Titles ending in punctuation other than a period.

Non-English titles with translation.

Examples for Content Type

10. dissertation or thesis in a microform, type of medium for a dissertation or thesis (required), general rules for type of medium.

• Indicate the specific type of medium (microfiche, ultrafiche, microfilm, microcard, etc.) following the title and the content type when a dissertation or thesis is published in a microform
• Place the name of the medium inside the square brackets for the content type, preceded by the word "on". For example: [dissertation on microfiche].
• End with a period following the closing bracket
• Add information about the medium according to the instructions under Physical Description below
• See Chapter 15 for dissertations or theses in audiovisual formats; Chapter18 and Chapter 22 for those in electronic formats

Specific Rules for Type of Medium

Examples for type of medium, place of publication for a dissertation or thesis (required), general rules for place of publication.

• Place is defined as the city where the university or other institution granting the degree is located
• Follow US and Canadian cities with the two-letter abbreviation for the state or province (see Appendix E ) to avoid confusion when citing lesser known cities or when cities in different locations have the same name, such as Palm Springs (CA) and Palm Springs (FL)
• Follow cities in other countries with the name of the country, either written out or as the two-letter ISO country code (see Appendix D ), when citing lesser known cities or when cities in different locations have the same name, such as London (ON) and London (England)
• Use the anglicized form for a non-US city, such as Vienna for Wien
• End place information with a colon

Specific Rules for Place of Publication

• Non-US cities
• No place of publication can be found

Non-US cities.

No place of publication can be found.

Examples for Place of Publication

11. dissertation or thesis with place of publication not found on title page, publisher for a dissertation or thesis (required), general rules for publisher.

• The publisher is the university or other institution granting the degree
• Record the name of the institution as it appears in the publication, using whatever capitalization and punctuation is found there
• Abbreviate well-known words in institutional names, such as Univ. for University, if desired
• When a division or other subsidiary part of an institution appears in the publication, enter the main institutional name first. For example: University of Illinois at Chicago, Health Sciences Center.
• End publisher information with a semicolon

Specific Rules for Publisher

• Abbreviations in publisher names
• Non-English names of institutions
• Government agencies and other national and international bodies as publisher

Abbreviations in publisher names.

Non-English names of institutions.

Government agencies and other national and international bodies as publisher.

Examples for Publisher

12. dissertation or thesis publisher with subsidiary part included, 13. dissertation or thesis issued by a governmental body, 14. dissertation or thesis issued by other than a university, date of publication for a dissertation or thesis (required), general rules for date of publication.

• Always give the year of publication, i.e., the year the degree was granted
• Convert roman numerals to arabic numbers. For example: MM to 2000.
• Include the month of publication, if desired, after the year, such as 2004 May
• Use English names for months and abbreviate them to the first three letters, such as Jan
• End date information with a period

Specific Rules for Date of Publication

• Non-English names for months
• Seasons instead of months
• Options for date of publication

Non-English names for months.

Seasons instead of months.

Options for date of publication.

Examples for Date of Publication

15. dissertation or thesis date with month included, 16. dissertation or thesis date with season, pagination for a dissertation or thesis (optional), general rules for pagination.

• Provide the total number of pages on which the text of the dissertation or thesis appears
• Do not count pages for such items as introductory material, appendixes, and indexes unless they are included in the pagination of the text
• Follow the page total with a space and the letter p
• For dissertations or theses published in more than one physical volume, cite the total number of volumes instead of the number of pages, such as 2 vol
• End pagination information with a period

Specific Rules for Pagination

• No numbers appear on the pages

No numbers appear on the pages.

Examples for Pagination

17. dissertation or thesis submitted in more than one volume, physical description for a dissertation or thesis (optional), general rules for physical description.

• Give information on the physical characteristics if a dissertation or thesis is published in a microform (microfilm, microfiche, microcard, etc.), such as 3 microfiche: black & white, 2 x 4 in.

Specific Rules for Physical Description

• Language for describing physical characteristics

Language for describing physical characteristics.

Examples for Physical Description

Language for a dissertation or thesis (required), general rules for language.

• Give the language of publication if other than English
• Capitalize the language name
• Follow the language name with a period

Examples for Language

Notes for a dissertation or thesis (optional), general rules for notes.

• Notes is a collective term for any type of useful information given after the citation itself
• Complete sentences are not required

Specific Rules for Notes

Dissertations or theses accompanied by a videocassette, CD-ROM, DVD, etc.

• Other types of material to include in notes

Other types of material to include in notes.

Examples for Notes

18. dissertation or thesis with availability statement included, 19. dissertation or thesis with location of a library or other holding institution where the dissertation/thesis may be found, 20. dissertation or thesis with note on specific type of degree, 21. dissertation or thesis with sponsorship or support note included, 22. dissertation or thesis accompanied by a cd-rom, dvd, or other medium, 23. dissertation or thesis with supplemental material on the internet.

Jones DL. The role of physical activity on the need for revision total knee arthroplasty in individuals with osteoarthritis of the knee [dissertation]. [Pittsburgh (PA)]: University of Pittsburgh; 2001. 436 p.

Liu-Ambrose TY. Studies of fall risk and bone morphology in older women with low bone mass [dissertation]. [Vancouver (BC)]: University of British Columbia; 2004. 290 p.

Zhao C. Development of nanoelectrospray and application to protein research and drug discovery [dissertation]. Buffalo (NY): State University of New York at Buffalo; 2005. 276 p.

Roguskie JM. The role of Pseudomonas aeruginosa 1244 pilin glycan in virulence [master's thesis]. [Pittsburgh (PA)]: Duquesne University; 2005. 111 p.

Weisbaum LD. Human sexuality of children and adolescents: a comprehensive training guide for social work professionals [master's thesis]. Long Beach (CA): California State University, Long Beach; 2005. 101 p.

Baldwin, Karen Brandt. An exploratory method of data retrieval from the electronic medical record for the evaluation of quality in healthcare [dissertation]. Chicago: University of Illinois at Chicago, Health Sciences Center; 2004. 116 p.

Kolotylo C, MacDonald JM. Exploration of the relationships among personal and illness-related factors, migraine headache pain, the chronic pain experience, coping, depressive symptomatology, disability, and quality of life in women with migraine headache [dissertation]. [Milwaukee (WI)]: University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee; 1999. 295 p.

Korir J, Karr-Kidwell PJ. The relationship between self esteem and effective educational leadership: a literary review, recommendations, and interviews [master's thesis]. [Denton (TX)]: Texas Woman's University; 2000 May. 98 p.

Daugherty RH 3rd. Social work education and public assistance workers in Kentucky 1936-2001 [dissertation]. Louisville (KY): University of Louisville; 2004. 203 p.

Boyer CL. Do rural Medicare patients have different post-acute service patterns than their non-rural counterparts? [dissertation]. [Cleveland (OH)]: Case Western Reserve University; 2004. 131 p.

Martin EJ. 1,1-dichloroethylene -induced mitochondrial aberrations precede apoptotic and necrotic cell death in murine liver and lung [dissertation]. Kingston (ON): Queen's University; 2004. 149 p.

Greek letters may be written out if special fonts are not available

Goel R. Characterization of α-thrombin -induced rapid phase of PI 3-kinase [dissertation]. St. Louis (MO): Saint Louis University; 2004. 141 p.

Goel R. Characterization of alpha-thrombin -induced rapid phase of PI 3-kinase [dissertation]. St. Louis (MO): Saint Louis University; 2004. 141 p.

Superscripts/subscripts may be enclosed within parentheses if fonts are not available

Uddemarri S. Aging affects stretch-induced p70 S6k and 4E-BP1 phosphorylation in fast- and slow-twitch muscle [master's thesis]. [Huntington (WV)]: Marshall University; 2005. 151 p.

Uddemarri S. Aging affects stretch-induced p70(S6k) and 4E-BP1 phosphorylation in fast- and slow-twitch muscle [master's thesis]. [Huntington (WV)]: Marshall University; 2005. 151 p.

Montes Alvarez MJ. Parametros predictivos de complicaciones macroangiopaticos en la diabetes mellitus tipo 2 que precisa insulinoterapia [dissertation]. Cadiz (Spain): Universidad de Cadiz; 2005. 180 p. Spanish.

Cisse A. Connaissances et comportements sexuels des jeunes de 15-29 ans sur les M.T.S. et le SIDA a Bamako [master's thesis]. [Quebec (QC)]: Laval University; 1993. 69 p. French.

Montes Alvarez MJ. Parametros predictivos de complicaciones macroangiopaticos en la diabetes mellitus tipo 2 que precisa insulinoterapia [Predictive parameters for macroangiopathy complications in Type 2 diabetes which requires insulin] [dissertation]. Cadiz (Spain): Universidad de Cadiz; 2005. 180 p. Spanish.

Cisse A. Connaissances et comportements sexuels des jeunes de 15-29 ans sur les M.T.S. et le SIDA a Bamako [Sexual knowledge and behavior of young people 15-29 years of age concerning sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and AIDS in Bamako] [master's thesis]. [Quebec (QC)]: Laval University; 1993. 69 p. French.

Craft LL. Exercise and clinical depression: examining psychological mechanisms [dissertation on microfiche]. [East Lansing (MI)]: Michigan State University; 2002. 116 p. 2 microfiche: black & white, negative, 4 x 6 in.

Peppas D. Der Anatom Eduard Jacobshagen (1886-1967) [The anatomist Eduard Jacobshagen (1886-1967)] [dissertation on microfiche]. [Marburg (Germany)]: Marburg University; 2001. 133 p. 2 microfiche: black & white, negative, 4 x 6 in. German.

Brill S. Hygieia: health and medicine in Plato's Republic [dissertation on microfilm]. [College Park (PA)]: Pennsylvania State University; 2004. 311 p. 1 reel: black & white, negative, 35 mm.

Johnston PG. A survey of nursing school libraries in the city of Philadelphia [master's thesis on microcard]. Philadelphia: Drexel Institute of Technology; 1955. 55 p. 3 microcards: 3 x 5 in.

Campbell E. Childbearing and choice: views of young Chinese professional women [dissertation]. [Claremont (CA)]: Claremont Graduate University; 1996. 147 p.

Metry KJ. NAT polymorphism in breast cancer risk [master's thesis]. Louisville (KY): University of Louisville, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology; 2004. 71 p.

Miller LE, Sperry BM. Central American women's experience of prenatal care [master's thesis]. [Boston (MA)]: Massachusetts General Hospital, Institute of Health Professions; 1992. 66 p.

Schauppner CE. Some ramifications of compensation limitations in personal services contracts for direct health care providers [master's thesis]. Monterey (CA): Naval Postgraduate School (US); 1990. 74 p.

Kazerouni NN. Family history of breast cancer as a determinant of the risk of developing endometrial and ovarian cancers: a nationwide cohort study [dissertation]. [Bethesda (MD)]: Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (US), Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics; 2002.

Kan H. Does the Medicare principal inpatient diagnostic cost group model adequately adjust for selection bias? [dissertation]. Santa Monica (CA): RAND Graduate School; 2002. 101 p.

Lemov RM. The laboratory imagination: experiments in human and social engineering. [Berkeley (CA)]: University of California, Berkeley; 2000 Spring. 2 vol.

Hanson CA. Embodying erudition: English art, medicine, & antiquarianism in the age of empiricism [dissertation]. [Chicago]: University of Chicago, Department of Art History; 2003. 2 vol.

Boyer CL. Do rural Medicare patients have different post-acute service patterns than their non-rural counterparts? [dissertation]. [Cleveland (OH)]: Case Western Reserve University; 2004. 131 p. Available from: UMI, Ann Arbor, MI; AAT 3145345.

Overlock JA. The relationship between balance and fundamental motor skills in children five to nine years of age [master's thesis]. [Corvallis (OR)]: Oregon State University; 2004. 111 p. Available from: Kinesiology Publications, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR; PSY 2317.

Akerstrom B. Adults with autism and mental retardation: a life-span perspective [dissertation]. Uppsala (Sweden): S. Academiae Upsaliensis; 2001. 156 p. Located at: National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD; W1 AC955 v.20 2001.

Ari AB. Eye injuries on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan: public health implications [master's thesis]. Anchorage (AK): University of Alaska; 2005. 48 p. Master of Public Health.

Verhovsek EL. Examining stages in curriculum change: implementation of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) [dissertation]. [Morgantown (WV)]: West Virginia University; 2003. 197 p. Doctor of Education.

Kanika K. Labor market implications of employer provided health insurance [dissertation]. Evanston (IL): Northwestern University; 1997. 204 p. Sponsored by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research.

Tuitele BA. The current practices in injury prevention and safety helmet use in an Air Force medical center [master's thesis]. [Bethesda (MD)]: Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences; 2000. 59 p. Supported by the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Protocol No. T061AK-01.

Lukasik-Sedmak DM. How to develop an interactive MRI brain cross-sectional anatomy CD-ROM and Web-based educational materials to meet the needs of medical imaging specialists working in magnetic resonance imaging [dissertation]. [Milwaukee (WI)]: Cardinal Stritch University; 2002. 113 p. Accompanied by: 1 CD-ROM.

Morgan JC. VISIO/KINESIS: a mixed media installation and performance [master's thesis]. Dominguez Hills (CA): California State University, Dominguez Hills; 2001. 47 p. Accompanied by: 1 videocassette.

Wyatt TH. Pilot testing Okay with Asthma (TM) : a digital story for psychosocial asthma management [dissertation]. [Charlottesville (VA)]: University of Virginia; 2003. 109 p. Web site for the program available at: http://okay-with-asthma.org/ .

• B. Sample Citation and Introduction to Citing Parts of Dissertations and Theses

The general format for a reference to a part of a dissertation, including punctuation:

The general format for a reference to a part of a master's thesis, including punctuation:

• Examples of Citations to Parts of Dissertations and Theses

Rather than citing a dissertation or thesis as a whole, separately identified portions of them may be cited. Chapters, sections, tables, charts, graphs, photographs, appendixes, and the like are considered parts of dissertations/theses when they are written or compiled by the authors of the dissertation or thesis. In general, most modern texts have standardized to three types of parts: figures, tables, and appendixes. However, many other names may be found for parts.

Because a reference should start with the individual or organization with responsibility for the intellectual content of the publication, begin a reference to a part of a dissertation or thesis with the citation to the dissertation or thesis itself, then follow it with the information about the part. See Chapter 2C Parts of Books for further details on citing parts.

Medical texts frequently contain charts, figures, and other illustrative material that has been reproduced with permission from other sources. Do not cite these as parts using the instructions presented here. Consult the original publication and cite the particular item from there.

Continue to Citation Rules with Examples for Parts of Dissertations and Theses .

Continue to Examples of Citations to Parts of Dissertations and Theses .

• Citation Rules with Examples for Parts of Dissertations and Theses

Dissertation or Thesis (R) | Name and Number/Letter (R) | Title (R) | Location (Pagination) (R)

Dissertation or Thesis (required)

• Cite the dissertation or thesis according to Chapter 5A Entire Dissertations or Theses

Name and Number/Letter of the Part for a Dissertation or Thesis (required)

General rules for name and number/letter.

• Enter the name of the part, such as Chapter, Table, Figure, or Appendix
• Do not abbreviate names. For example, convert Fig. to Figure.
• Follow the name with any accompanying number or letter, such as Chapter 12, Table 2, Figure 3.1, or Appendix A
• Use arabic numbers only. For example: convert VI or Six to 6.
• End name and number/letter information with a comma and a space

Specific Rules for Name and Number/Letter

• Non-English names for parts
• No letter or number follows the name
• No name appears

Non-English names for parts.

No letter or number follows the name.

No name appears.

Examples for Name and Number/Letter

1. chapter in a dissertation or thesis, 2. table in a dissertation or thesis, 3. figure in a dissertation or thesis, 4. appendix in a dissertation or thesis, 5. other part of a dissertation or thesis, 6. other part of a dissertation or thesis, without name and number/letter, 7. part of a dissertation or thesis in a language other than english, title of the part for a dissertation or thesis (required).

• Enter the title of the part as it appears in the dissertation or thesis
• End title information with a semicolon and a space
• Non-English titles for parts
• Titles containing a Greek letter, chemical formula, or other special character
• No title appears

Non-English titles for parts.

Titles containing a Greek letter, chemical formula, or other special character.

No title appears.

Location (Pagination) of the Part for a Dissertation or Thesis (required)

General rules for location (pagination).

• Begin location with "p." followed by a space
• Enter the page number or numbers on which the part appears. Examples: p. 438 and p. 663-4.
• Do not repeat page numbers unless they are followed by a letter. For example: 126-127 becomes p. 126-7, but p. 126A-127A is correct.
• Include a letter (often S for Supplement or A for Appendix) when it precedes the page number. For example: p. S10-8.
• End page information with a period

Specific Rules for Location (Pagination)

• Roman numerals for page numbers
• Part paginated separately
• No page numbers appear on the pages of the part

Roman numerals for page numbers.

Part paginated separately.

No page numbers appear on the pages of the part.

Examples for Location (Pagination)

Lemov RM. The laboratory imagination: experiments in human and social engineering [dissertation]. [Berkeley (CA)]: University of California, Berkeley; 2000 Spring. Chapter 2, Running the maze: animal and human experiments; p. 67-130.

Christensen PM. Infant nutrition and child health on Tarawa, Kiribati: a nutritional anthropological approach [master's thesis]. Sydney (Australia): University of New South Wales, Centre for South Pacific Studies; 1995. Chapter 3.1, Breastfeeding practices on Tarawa; p. 46-53.

Hayenga ES. Dieting through the decades: a comparative study of weight reduction in America as depicted in popular literature and books from 1940 to the late 1980's [dissertation]. [Minneapolis (MN)]: University of Minnesota; 1988. Chapter 3C, Science and health; p. 257-70.

Cornwell D. A cost benefit of telemedicine: an assessment of aero-medical evacuation patients throughout the Pacific Basin [master's thesis]. [Waco (TX)]: Baylor University, US Army-Baylor University Graduate Program; 1995. Table 4, Total air-evacs vs total potential telemedicine patients; p. 45.

Munoz JA. What is the quality of care in a developing country? Measuring physician practice and health outcomes [dissertation]. Santa Monica (CA): Rand Graduate School; 2002. Table 4.8, Mean objective measures of health for healthcare facility users; p. 4-33.

Bicks C. Lurking in the gossip's bowl: genealogy, gynecology, and the politics of midwifery in Shakespeare's England [dissertation]. [Stanford (CA)]: Stanford University, Department of English; 1997 Jun. Figure 9, Syringe for emergency in utero baptism; p.194.

Roberts PR. Snakes and ladders: the pursuit of a safety culture in New Zealand public hospitals [master's thesis]. [Wellington (New Zealand)]: Victoria University of Wellington, Institute of Policy Studies and Health Services Research Centre; 2002. Figure 2.1, Schema showing relationship of paradigms to human performance and links to and through culture; p. 13.

Deutsch B. Lifestyle and contaminants in Greenland 1994-1996: evaluation of the AMAP, Human Health Subprogram [master's thesis]. Aarhus (Denmark): University of Aarhus; 1999. Figure 2, Histograms of birth weight and gestational age; p. 20.

Grant MM. Under the microscope: "race," gender, and medical laboratory science in Canada [dissertation]. [Toronto (ON)]: University of Toronto, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education; 2004. Appendix, Survey on the career patterns and professional experiences of Canadian medical laboratory technologists; p. 285-92.

Kneale C. Health claims: an exploration of the current debate in Australia [master's thesis]. Sydney (Australia): University of Sydney, Nutrition Research Foundation; 1996 Oct. Appendix 4, Health claims questionnaire; p. 49.

Munoz JA. What is the quality of care in a developing country? Measuring physician practice and health outcomes [dissertation]. Santa Monica (CA): Rand Graduate School; 2002. Appendix 1, Background on problems of less developed countries; p. A1-8.

Powers JC. Herman Boerhaave and the pedagogical reform of eighteenth-century chemistry [dissertation]. [Bloomington (IN)]: Indiana University, Department of History and Philosophy of Science; 2001 May. Epilogue, Boerhaave's legacy; p. 296-301.

Mackowski MP. Human factors: aerospace medicine and the origins of manned space flight in the United States [dissertation]. [Tempe (AZ)]: Arizona State University; 2002 May. Part 2, Space medicine; p. 188-377.

Kairo JG. A review of the ecology and restoration of mangroves systems [dissertation]. Brussels (Belgium): Vrije University; 2001. Ecology and restoration of mangrove systems in Kenya; p. 2-15.

Kneale C. Health claims: an exploration of the current debate in Australia [master's thesis]. Sydney (Australia): University of Sydney, Nutrition Research Foundation; 1996 Oct. Summary recommendations; p. 44.

Stewart EP. Who shall decide when doctors disagree? Hoaxes and American men of science in the nineteenth century [dissertation]. Washington: American University, Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences; 2003. "Doctor" Dionysius Lardner; p. 132-48.

Mackowski MP. Human factors: aerospace medicine and the origins of manned space flight in the United States [dissertation]. [Tempe (AZ)]: Arizona State University; 2002 May. [Map], Germany 1946: showing Allied zones of occupation; p. 188.

Tamayo Lorenzo PA. Descentralizacion y financiacion de la asistencia sanitaria publica en Espana: un estudio desde la perspectiva de la equidad [dissertation]. Madrid: Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia; 1999. Tabla 5.11, Resumen de los resultados de los estudios evaluados, en terminos de necesidad para cada comunidad autonoma; p. 238. Spanish.

with translation

Tamayo Lorenzo PA. Descentralizacion y financiacion de la asistencia sanitaria publica en Espana: un estudio desde la perspectiva de la equidad [Decentralization and financing of public health assistance in Spain: a study from the perspective of equality] [dissertation]. Madrid: Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia; 1999. Tabla 5.11, Resumen de los resultados de los estudios evaluados, en terminos de necesidad para cada comunidad autonoma [Table 5.11, Summary of the results of the evaluated studies, in terms of need for each independent community]; p. 238. Spanish.

• Cite this Page Patrias K, author; Wendling D, editor. Citing Medicine: The NLM Style Guide for Authors, Editors, and Publishers [Internet]. 2nd edition. Bethesda (MD): National Library of Medicine (US); 2007-. Chapter 5, Dissertations and Theses. 2007 Oct 10 [Updated 2015 Aug 11].
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Home / Guides / Citation Guides / Chicago Style / How to Cite a Thesis/Dissertation in Chicago/Turabian

How to Cite a Thesis/Dissertation in Chicago/Turabian

Academic theses and dissertations can be a good source of information when writing your own paper. They are usually accessed via a university’s database or a third party database, or found on the web. The main difference between a thesis and a dissertation is the degree type they are submitted for:

• Thesis—A document submitted to earn a degree, such as a master’s degree, at a university.
• Dissertation—A document submitted to earn an advanced degree, such as a doctorate, at a university.

This guide will show you how to create notes-bibliography style citations for theses and dissertations in a variety of formats using the 17th edition of the  Chicago Manual of Style.

Guide Overview

• Citing a thesis or dissertation from a database
• Citing a thesis or dissertation from the web
• Citing an unpublished thesis or dissertation

Citing a Thesis or Dissertation from a Database

Citation structure.

1. First name Last name, “Title” (master’s thesis or PhD diss., University Name, year published), page number, Database (Identification Number).

Bibliography:

Last name, First name. “Title.” Master’s thesis or PhD diss., University Name, year published. Database (Identification Number).

Citation Example

1. Kimberly Knight,  “Media Epidemics: Viral Structures in Literature and New Media” (PhD diss., University of California, Santa Barbara, 2011), 17, MLA International Bibliography (2013420395).

Knight, Kimberly.  “Media Epidemics: Viral Structures in Literature and New Media.” PhD diss., University of California, Santa Barbara, 2011. MLA International Bibliography (2013420395).

Citing a Thesis or Dissertation from the Web

1. First name Last name, “Title” (master’s thesis or PhD diss., University Name, year published), page number, URL.

Last name, First name. “Title.” Master’s thesis or PhD diss., University Name, year published. URL.

1. Peggy Lynn Wilson, “Pedagogical Practices in the Teaching of English Language in Secondary Public Schools in Parker County” (PhD diss., University of Maryland, College Park, 2011), 25, https://drum.lib.umd.edu/bitstream/1903/11801/1/Wilson_umd_0117E_12354.pdf.

Wilson, Peggy Lynn. “Pedagogical Practices in the Teaching of English Language in Secondary Public Schools in Parker County.” PhD diss., University of Maryland, College Park, 2011. https://drum.lib.umd.edu/bitstream/1903/11801/1/Wilson_umd_0117E_12354.pdf.

Citing an Unpublished Thesis or Dissertation

In rare cases, you may need to cite a thesis or dissertation that has not yet been published. This is particularly the case if you want to cite your own work or the work of a colleague.

1. First name Last name, “Title” (unpublished manuscript, Month Day, Year last modified), format.

Last name, First name. “Title.” Unpublished manuscript, last modified Month Day, Year. Format.

1. John Doe, “A Study of Generic Topic” (unpublished manuscript, June 19, 2021), Microsoft Word file.

Doe, John. “A Study of Generic Topic.” Unpublished manuscript, last modified June 19, 2021. Microsoft Word file.

Chicago Formatting Guide

Chicago Formatting

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Citation Examples

• Thesis or Dissertation
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• AUT Library
• Library Guides
• Referencing styles and applications

APA 7th Referencing Style Guide

• Theses and dissertations
• Referencing & APA style
• In-text citation
• Elements of a reference
• Format & examples of a reference list
• Conferences
• Reports & grey literature
• Figures (graphs and images)

Terminology - Thesis, dissertation or exegesis?

Published theses and dissertations, unpublished theses and dissertations.

• Audio works
• Films, TV & video
• Visual works
• Computer software, games & apps
• Lecture notes & Intranet resources
• Legal resources
• Personal communications
• PowerPoint slides
• Social media
• Specific health examples
• Standards & patents
• Websites & webpages
• Footnotes and appendices
• Frequently asked questions

Thesis and dissertation can mean different things depending on where the degree is awarded. Always check the title page, or subsequent pages, to determine exactly what the work is and use the information for your reference. ​

Auckland University of Technology (and other NZ universities)

• Thesis is either for a doctoral or a master's degree.
• Dissertation is either for a master's or a bachelor's degree with honours.
• Exegesis is the written component of a practice-based thesis where the major output is a creative work;  e.g., a film, artwork, novel.

Other parts of the world

• In North America and some other countries, dissertation is used for a doctoral degree and thesis for a master's degree.

Theses available in a database, a university archive or from a personal website.

Reference format

Theses published online (e.g. in institutional repositories), theses from proquest dissertations and theses global.

Find how to cite in text on the  In-text citation  page.

 Unpublished thesis or dissertations are usually sourced directly from the university in print form.

 Reference format

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• Last Updated: May 10, 2024 8:35 AM
• URL: https://aut.ac.nz.libguides.com/APA7th

UT Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Permanent URI for this community https://hdl.handle.net/2152/4

This collection contains University of Texas at Austin electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs). The collection includes ETDs primarily from 2001 to the present. Some pre-2001 theses and dissertations have been digitized and added to this collection, but those are uncommon. The library catalog is the most comprehensive list of UT Austin theses and dissertations.

Since 2010, the Office of Graduate Studies at UT Austin has required all theses and dissertations to be made publicly available in Texas ScholarWorks; however, authors are able to request an embargo of up to seven years. Embargoed ETDs will not show up in this collection. Most of the ETDs in this collection are freely accessible to all users, but some pre-2010 works require a current UT EID at point of use. Please see the FAQs for more information. If you have a question about the availability of a specific ETD, please contact [email protected].

Some items in this collection may contain offensive images or text. The University of Texas Libraries is committed to maintaining an accurate and authentic scholarly and historic record. An authentic record is essential for understanding our past and informing the present. In order to preserve the authenticity of the historical record we will not honor requests to redact content, correct errors, or otherwise remove content, except in cases where there are legal concerns (e.g. potential copyright infringement, inclusion of HIPAA/FERPA protected information or Social Security Numbers) or evidence of a clear and imminent threat to personal safety or well-being.

This policy is in keeping with the  American Library Association code of ethics  to resist efforts to censor library resources, and the  Society of American Archivists code of ethics  that states "archivists may not willfully alter, manipulate, or destroy data or records to conceal facts or distort evidence." Please see UT Libraries'  Statement on Harmful Language and Content  for more information.

Authors of these ETDs have retained their copyright while granting the University of Texas Libraries the non-exclusive right to reproduce and distribute their works.

Collections in this Community

• UT Electronic Theses and Dissertations   30995

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Do no harm under duress, the many notes of anthony burgess, a year to remember (even if we don’t want to), biden admin sends iran condolences after mass murderer president killed in helicopter crash, mit hired six new diversity deans. two of them are serial plagiarists, complaint alleges., in dissertation titled 'cite a sista,' tracie jones-barrett stole an entire passage on 'ethical considerations' from her classmate.

In June 2021, a year into the cultural aftershocks of George Floyd's death, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology set out to meet the moment, as so many other schools had, by hiring more diversity officers.

MIT welcomed six new deans of diversity, equity, and inclusion, one for each of the institute's main schools , as part of a "DEI Strategic Action Plan" launched the previous year. Aimed at boosting the representation of women and minorities, in part by developing DEI criteria for staff performance reviews, the plan pledged to "make equity central" to the university "while ensuring the highest standards of excellence."

But according to a 71-page complaint filed with the university on Saturday, at least two of the six DEI officials may not be living up to those standards. The complaint alleges that Tracie Jones-Barrett and Alana Anderson are serial plagiarists, copying entire pages of text without attribution and riding roughshod over MIT's academic integrity policies.

In her 2023 dissertation titled "Cite a Sista," which explored how black women in the Ivy League "make meaning of thriving," Jones-Barrett, MIT’s deputy "equity officer," lifts a whole section on "ethical considerations" from Emmitt Wyche III, her classmate in Northeastern University's Graduate School of Education, without any sort of citation.

The section is one of several long passages taken from Wyche's 2020 thesis , "Boyz in the Hoods: (Re) Defining the Narratives of Black Male Doctoral Degree Completers," which does not appear in Jones-Barrett's bibliography. Wyche and Jones-Barrett did not respond to requests for comment.

Anderson, who served as the diversity czar for MIT's computer science college until last year, when she left to become Boston Beer Company's inclusion and belonging program manager, likewise copied copious material from other scholars. Her 2017 dissertation , "#BLACKONCAMPUS: A Critical Examination of Racial and Gender Performances of Black College Women on Social Media," lifts over a page of material from Mark Chae, a professor of counseling at Pillar College, who is not cited anywhere in her dissertation.

"It would have been nice to at least get a citation!" Chae told the Washington Free Beacon in an email. "Anderson seems quite comfortable in taking credit for large portions of another writer's scholarly work."

Anderson, who held DEI posts at Boston University and Babson College before coming to MIT, lifts another long passage from Jarvis Givens, a professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, without an in-text citation. The omissions appear to violate MIT's plagiarism policy , which states that scholars must cite their sources any time they "use the words, ideas, or phrasing of another person."

MIT did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

In total, the two diversity deans lifted about 10 full pages of material without attribution, according to the complaint, as well as dozens of shorter passages sprinkled throughout their theses.

Like former Harvard University president Claudine Gay, who resigned in January amid her own plagiarism scandal, Anderson even stole language from another scholar's acknowledgments, copying phrases and sentences used by Khalilah Shabazz, now a diversity official at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, to thank her dissertation advisers.

Anderson's acknowledgments contain several typos not seen in Shabbaz's, including missing words and commas and a lack of subject-verb agreement.

Givens and Shabbaz did not respond to requests for comment. Anderson, who received her Ph.D. from Boston College's school of education, did not respond to a request for comment. Boston Beer Company did not respond to a request for comment.

Saturday's complaint, which was submitted to Boston College and Northeastern University alongside MIT, is the latest in a string of plagiarism allegations against campus diversity officials. Since Gay's resignation, DEI officers at Harvard , Columbia , the University of Wisconsin-Madison , and the University of California, Los Angeles , have been accused of research misconduct. Some, such as Columbia medical school's Alade McKen and UCLA medical school's Natalie Perry , copied pages of material from various sources—including Wikipedia—while others passed off old studies as new work .

The accused administrators have not been publicly sanctioned by their universities, which have either declined to comment on the allegations or issued statements in support of the officials. The complaint against Anderson and Jones-Barrett may be harder for MIT to brush aside, however, given the school's high-profile efforts to distance itself from DEI in the post-October 7 era.

The institute said this month that it would no longer require diversity statements from candidates applying to faculty positions, making it the first elite university to jettison the practice. It also led the way in restoring SAT requirements after many colleges went test-optional in an effort to boost diversity.

The pushback has come largely from MIT faculty and been driven, in part, by a sense that DEI programs excuse and even encourage anti-Semitism. An April article in MIT's faculty newsletter noted that an event on "Jewish inclusion" had whitewashed the rhetoric of the school's pro-Palestinian protesters, who have occupied campus buildings, called for "Intifada revolution," and allegedly chanted "death to Zionists."

"Jewish students," a blurb for the DEI event read, "are encountering much of the same discomfort that other minorities face on campus and in the world, in that they don't feel heard or acknowledged."

The two dissertations at issue are strikingly derivative, cobbled together from classmates, online sources, and even a book's dust jacket, and at times read like replicas of their unattributed source material.

Jones-Barrett's summary of her dissertation, for example, is nearly identical to the summary Wyche provides of his own. Both papers use "semi-structured interviews" to "gather insights" from black graduates of Ph.D. programs about their "subjective experiences" of "meaning-making," or, as Wyche misspells it, "mean-making." The primary difference is that Wyche's study deals with black men, while Jones-Barrett's deals with black women.

"This study, the first of its kind[,] uses Black Feminist Thought as a framework to explore and investigate how Black women at Ivy League graduate schools of education make meaning of thriving," reads the first sentence of Jones-Barrett's dissertation, which is missing a comma. "There are limited studies that center the voices of Black women at Ivy League graduate schools and there are no studies that look specifically at Ivy League graduate schools of education."

Jones-Barrett, who has taught courses at Harvard Extension School and was initially hired as the assistant dean of diversity, equity, and inclusion for MIT's humanities school, also poached a passage on "potential research bias" from Wyche—now a DEI consultant who describes himself on LinkedIn as a "status quo disrupter"—which asserts that "it is nearly impossible for the researcher to isolate their experiences from the investigative process."

He's not the only classmate Jones-Barrett appears to have plagiarized: On the first page of her dissertation, she lifts an entire paragraph from Scott Fitzsimmons, who earned his Ph.D. in education from Northeastern in 2021, without attribution, swapping out "rural EMS leaders" for "Black women in graduate programs." Fitzsimmons declined to comment.

Anderson, meanwhile, lifts several paragraphs from a 2016 ThinkProgress article about her alma mater, Boston College, from which some of her study's interview subjects were drawn. That plagiarism undercuts her effort to prevent the school, to which she refers with a pseudonym, from being identified—a possible violation of the study's consent form, which promised participants that no "identifying information" would be disclosed.

Boston College and Northeastern University did not to requests for comment.

Anderson—who runs her own consultancy that offers "scientifically-based" DEI programming—also borrows three sentences from the dust jacket of Ebony and Ivy , a 2013 book by MIT historian Craig Wilder, who is only cited in one of the sentences and whose words do not appear in quotation marks.

Like many of the authors plagiarized by Gay, Wilder defended Anderson's decision to copy his work, writing in an email that he didn't think a citation was necessary.

"I cannot imagine why anyone would cite a dust jacket, nor do I see the urgency of criminalizing the failure to do so," Wilder told the Free Beacon . "I'm honored," he added, when other scholars "find inspiration from my publications."

Published under: Anti-Racism , Anti-Semitism , claudine gay , DEI , Diversity , Equity , MIT , plagiarism , Professors , Universities , Woke Schools