📅 Submission Deadlines

Planning to graduate? Make sure your ETD is submitted by the deadline for your term:

• ☀️ Summer 2026: July 31, 2026 @ 5:00 PM
• 🍂 Fall 2026: December 4, 2026 @ 5:00 PM
• 🌱 Spring 2027: April 30, 2027 @ 5:00 PM

Deadlines are strictly enforced by the Office of Graduate Education and Life 

If you need help with graduation requirements please reach out to your department. 

Research Repository - Login & Submission 

After completing the ETD approval process and having your graduation verified by the Office of the University Registrar, your thesis, dissertation, or problem/project report is deposited into the  Research Repository @ WVU. When submitting your ETD paperwork, you choose how you would like your ETD to be made available.

To learn more about access and distribution options, please review the official West Virginia University ETD Access Policy.

Open Access

WVU recommends making your ETD freely available worldwide . The University’s land-grant mission emphasizes sharing scholarly work with scholars, students, and the public. Students are encouraged to recognize the value of open access and opt for the immediate release of their research.

During the ETD submission process, open-access options will be listed under 'Document Type.' Available selections include:

• Thesis
• Dissertation
• Problem/Project Report
• MFA Creative Writing Thesis

Historically, this option was perceived by some publishers as “publishing” the work, thus they may have seen a conflict with this level of distribution of the thesis or dissertation. However, today the vast majority of publishers support the archiving of a thesis or dissertation in an open access institutional repository such as the WVU ETD collection.

Campus Access

The campus-access option allows your ETD to be accessed only by the WVU community via the Research Repository @ WVU login and by external users through Interlibrary Loan (ILL) requests.

Campus-only access cannot be used as a substitute for obtaining proper copyright permissions, as theses and dissertations are intended to serve as public records of examination. 

During submission, campus-access options are listed under Document Type:

• Thesis (Campus Access)
• Dissertation (Campus Access)
• Problem/Project Report (Campus Access)
• MFA Creative Writing Thesis (Campus Access)

You must also upload the Campus-Only Access Form, signed by your faculty advisor, in the “Required Additional Files” section.

Learn more about campus access, timelines, and publishing considerations (click to view)

Campus-only access may be selected for up to two years following approval. After this period, the ETD will automatically become open access unless an extension is granted.

Only MFA Creative Writing students may designate their ETD as permanently campus-only.

If you require additional time, you may request a one-time extension of up to two years by contacting ask@westvirginia.libanswers.com. Requests should be submitted at least three months before the current access period expires.

Limiting distribution to campus-only access is generally considered equivalent to maintaining a print copy on a library shelf.

If you plan to publish your work, you are encouraged to review publisher policies. Most publishers provide guidance on their websites, or you may contact editors directly.

Research indicates that the majority of publishers accept theses and dissertations that are available in institutional repositories, and many do not consider them prior publications.

Additional resources:

• Open Policy Finder 
• University of Alberta – Publisher Policies Guide
• Transforming Your Dissertation into a Published Article
• Do ETDs Affect Publishing? (2011 Survey)

No Access

Embargoes are used only in limited circumstances to protect sensitive research and will restrict access even within the WVU community. They are reserved only for these specific situations - patent filings, funder confidentiality agreements, or export control requirements. Embargoed status cannot be used as a substitute for copyright permissions as ETDs are intended as public records of examination.

There are two types of embargoes available:

Patent or Funder Confidentiality (1-Year Embargo)

• Under 'Document Type,' you may select the campus-access option, which will be the status of your ETD once the embargo ends. Otherwise it will be made open access and accessible to the public.
• Under 'Embargo Length,' choose the reason for having a 1 Year Embargo.
• Upload the  Patents or Funder Confidentiality Form signed by your advisor to the 'Required Additional Files' section. 

Export Control Regulations (Permanent Embargo)

• Select your document type (Thesis, Dissertation, etc.).
• Under 'Embargo Length,' select Permanent Embargo: Sensitive Export Control.
• Upload the signed Export Control Permanent Embargo Form. In addition to your advisor, this form needs to be signed by an export control officer.

Important Notice About Embargo Forms

Only current forms linked above will be accepted.

Outdated forms will not be processed.

Additional Files

Students may submit supplementary materials associated with their thesis or dissertation, including but not limited to datasets, audio or video files, and other supplemental media. These materials are optional. Supplementary files, along with any required forms, must be uploaded through the “Upload Supplemental Content” screen after ETD submission.

After You Submit

Once your ETD submission is complete, you will receive an automated submission confirmation email. Our team will then review your submission, typically within five business days. If revisions are required, you will receive an email outlining the necessary changes. You must return these revisions as soon as possible.

When your submission is approved, you will receive a second confirmation email. This approval email will be forwarded to your committee chair(s) and your college graduate coordinator.

Publication Timeline:  Your ETD will be added to the Research Repository @ WVU after your graduation is officially confirmed by the Registrar and final administrative processing is completed by the library. This process may take several weeks after the ETD due date.

A Digital Object Identifier (DOI) will be assigned to your ETD as part of scheduled processing.

ProQuest:  Once your ETD is published in the Research Repository @ WVU, it will be indexed in the ProQuest Dissertations and Theses (PQDT) database. WVU does not control the timing of this process, and appearance in ProQuest may take several months.

ETDs with campus-access or embargo restrictions are not included in PQDT until access restrictions are lifted.

Visibility:  Even if your ETD is access-controlled or embargoed, the title, abstract, and citation will remain visible in the Research Repository @ WVU and may appear in search results. Only the full-text PDF is restricted until access conditions end.

Printing a Physical Copy of Your Thesis or Dissertation

There are two main options for obtaining a printed copy of your thesis or dissertation.

ProQuest:  After your thesis or dissertation is published in the WVU Research Repository, it will be indexed in the ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database. Once it appears in ProQuest (typically several months after initial publication), you can purchase a printed copy directly through their services.

Third-Party Vendors:  You may also use an external printing and binding vendor. WVU does not have an affiliation with these vendors, but they can accept a PDF copy of your dissertation and provide a variety of printing and binding options.

• Wert Bookbinding
• Thesis on Demand
• PHD Book Binding
• Bachelor Print