UWSpace Thesis FAQ

UWSpace Thesis FAQ Overview:

Preparing my submission 

I’m using third-party material in my thesis/dissertation. What do I need to consider regarding copyright? 

We recommend seeking permission for all third-party material in your thesis, as all theses are publicly available on UWSpace. Ask yourself the questions below when seeking copyright permission: 

  • Is the content openly licensed (e.g., Creative Commons)? 

  • If seeking permission from a commercial publisher, do they have standard permission request system (such as Copyright Clearance Centre/RightsLink)? 

  • Do you need to reach out to the author directly (e.g., when seeking permission for reuse of unpublished work or other theses on UWSpace)? 

Please see the Library webpage about Third-party content use and specialized content submission for more information about obtaining copyright permission for your thesis. 

I’m planning to submit my thesis/dissertation tomorrow but have just realized that I need to get copyright permissions for my third-party material. Can someone in the Library help me with this to speed up the process? 

Start seeking copyright permissions early so that you can plan ahead if permissions are difficult to obtain. If you are requesting permissions from publishers that use automated permissions services (like RightsLink), your permissions will be generated automatically.  

The Library cannot ask for copyright permission on your behalf. However, if you are struggling to obtain permission for the third-party material you would like to include in your thesis, email copyright@uwaterloo.ca.  

Can I edit a third-party image or figure to avoid needing to ask for copyright permission to include it in my thesis/dissertation? 

We recommend that students ask permission when reusing third party images and figures as all items in UWSpace are open access and it is difficult to adapt an image significantly enough to go around copyright requirements.  

Permissions from academic journals are generally free for use in a thesis.  

More information is available in the Thesis submission guide under the heading Content you need permission for. If you need image permissions support, contact copyright@uwaterloo.ca. Please note that it is your responsibility to ask for permission to reuse images. 

I have copyright permission to use third-party material. What do I do with my letters of permission? 

Save a copy of all your permission letters, (including automatically generated orders from the Copyright Clearance Centre/RightsLink). You must include this proof of permission in the Backmatter of your thesis, which appears before your references/bibliography.  

We recommend ordering the letters of permission in the backmatter in the same order that the licensed content appears in your thesis (e.g. the letter of permission for Figure 1.1, the letter of permission for Figure 2.5).  

Your letters of permission may contain personal information like your home address or phone number. If you do not want this information publicly available on UWSpace, remember to redact this information before submitting your thesis. 

I’m planning to include articles that I’ve already published in my thesis/dissertation (i.e., Sandwich Thesis). Is this allowed? 

Consider the following when creating a “sandwich” thesis.  

  1. Confirm with your supervisor that your department will accept a thesis/dissertation made up of your previously published work.  
  2. Check the copyright transfer terms of your publishing contract to understand which version of your article you can reuse in your thesis/dissertation. You can also check your journal’s self-archiving policy using Sherpa Romeo to see which version of your article can be deposited in an institutional repository (i.e., UWSpace) 
  3. Provide a citation to the article both at the start of your thesis/dissertation chapter that reuses the published content, and in your Statement of Contributions.  

If you need assistance understanding which version of your article you can reuse in your thesis/dissertation, please reach out to copyright@uwaterloo.ca 

For questions about formatting your thesis/dissertation including your Statement of Contributions, please contact Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs at gsrecord@uwaterloo.ca. 

Help! I reached out to the copyright holder of the material I am reusing in my thesis/dissertation, but they have not responded! I need to submit my thesis/dissertation to UWSpace. What do I do? 

If you have made reasonable attempts to contact the copyright holder to obtain permission but you have not received a response, please reach out to copyright@uwaterloo.ca to learn about your options. 

I’ve submitted! 

I just submitted my thesis/dissertation to UWSpace. Now what? 

Congratulations on submitting your thesis! This is a big achievement, and we know you would like to have your thesis approved as soon as possible so you can begin sharing your work and celebrating this milestone.  

Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs (GSPA) staff are doing their best to review all theses in a timely manner, and typically they will review your submission within 3-5 business days. Check your UWaterloo email inbox to ensure that you do not miss any further communication regarding necessary revisions before your thesis can be officially accepted into UWSpace.

I submitted my thesis/dissertation to UWSpace a few days ago but haven’t heard anything. What’s up? 

You will only receive an email from UWSpace if your thesis has been returned to you by GSPA for revisions OR if your thesis has been accepted by GSPA and officially deposited in UWSpace. You will not receive an email when you initially submit your thesis in UWSpace. 

Avoid using an email redirect service that redirects emails from your Waterloo Account to an external service, such as Gmail. This service may block important emails that come from UWSpace, such as notifications of required thesis revisions or acceptance of your Thesis in UWSpace. 

GSPA cannot not review your submission until they receive your Thesis Acceptance Form from your department.  

GSPA typically reviews submissions within 3-5 business days. If it has been longer than 5 days since you submitted your thesis, you have confirmed with your department that your Thesis Acceptance form has been submitted, and you have not heard from GSPA, contact them directly at gsrecord@uwaterloo.ca. 

I submitted my thesis/dissertation before I received the go ahead from my department. Can you delete my submission for me? 

If you would like to make any additional changes to your thesis before it begins the GSPA review process, please reach out through the UWSpace contact form  or to GSPA at gsrecord@uwaterloo.ca and indicate that you have submitted too early and grant us permission to “reject” your thesis to send it back to you. 

I’m trying to meet the tuition refund/graduation deadline. Will my thesis/dissertation be approved in time?

Theses submission volumes are normally higher than normal during tuition refund and graduation deadlines. GSPA works to review all submissions within 3-5 business days. 

Complete the following tasks: 

  • Ensure that your Thesis Acceptance Form has been submitted and upload your thesis to UWSpace before the deadline 
  • Complete any revisions in a timely manner 

If the tasks above are completed, Graduate Records will backdate your thesis submission to meet this deadline (even if your thesis is not officially available on UWSpace until after the deadline).  

Monitor your UWaterloo email inbox (and any spam/junk folders) to receive and respond to any communications from GSPA to avoid additional delays in the revision and approval process. 

My Visa/job offer is dependent on receiving my official thesis/dissertation acceptance by a certain date. Can my UWSpace submission approval be expedited to meet this deadline?  

If you require your proof of degree completion for an external deadline, please submit your thesis to UWSpace within at least 5 business days before your deadline. 

After approval 

My thesis/dissertation was just approved into UWSpace but the thumbnail is missing. Is this something I need to upload?

UWSpace will automatically generate a thumbnail for your thesis/dissertation within 24 hours of it being uploaded to UWSpace. Occasionally, your thumbnail will not be publicly available if your thesis is under embargo. If this applies to you, UWSpace staff are happy to make your thumbnail available while your thesis remains locked. Contact us using the  UWSpace contact form for assistance. 

I just noticed an error in my thesis/dissertation that is on UWSpace. Can I fix this? 

Revisions for formatting or type errors are not permitted once your thesis has been uploaded to UWSpace. In rare cases, revisions to correct major errors may be permitted, subject to approval by GSPA. If you believe your thesis needs to be revised, please contact GSPA at gsrecord@uwaterloo.ca. 

I want to print my thesis/dissertation. Where can I do this? 

You can choose to print a personal copy of your thesis through W Print Services. 

I want to publish an article based on the research in my thesis/dissertation. Can I do this? What do I need to know about this?

Yes, you can reuse material and create new articles based on your thesis because you hold the copyright in your thesis.  Review policies on prior publication for potential journals of interest. This information is usually found on the publisher’s website in the “Information for Authors” section.  

Most publishers do not view a thesis as a prior publication, but it is good practice to mention in any cover letter for your article that it is based on the research you did for your thesis and note that the thesis is publicly available on UWSpace, your institution’s open access repository. Consider approaching your editorial contact at the journal to ensure that there are no concerns with publishing content from your thesis.