There are two thesis submission options: open access and limited access.

A student who elects to allow open access may submit the thesis electronically. In this case, the thesis will be published on the IU ScholarWorks website, which is maintained by the IU Library system.

A more restrictive submission option allows a student to limit access to their thesis by submitting a copy to the assistant director of graduate degree administration, and requesting that the access to the thesis is limited.

In this case, a copy of the thesis must be sent to the assistant director of graduate degree programs. Under this option, access to a printed, bound copy will be managed by the School of Public Health-Bloomington Library.

Open access submission is the far more popular choice among graduate students due to the expense of producing bound copies, and a willingness by most students to share the results of their research with others.

Students who wish to allow open access may submit their thesis materials directly to IU Scholarworks.

Steps to Open Access Thesis Submission:

1. The student must successfully defend their master’s thesis, and the thesis must be in its final form approved by the student’s thesis committee before submission.
2. Once the assistant director of graduate degree programs has been notified via the Internal Report Form that the student has passed their thesis defense, and the student’s committee has confirmed to the student that the thesis is ready to be submitted, the student may initiate the online form at IU Scholarworks to submit their thesis.
3. The student must follow the formatting guidelines from the University Graduate School: https://graduate.indiana.edu/academic-requirements/thesis-dissertation/masters-guide/formatting.html  
   The student should not submit their thesis via ProQuest, and use this link only as a guideline for formatting.
4. The student must submit their master’s thesis at openscholarship.indiana.edu/etd-form. Upon submission of the items listed above, students who have completed all other master's degree requirements will be approved to graduate. master's degrees are awarded in May, June, July, and December. As stated under "Application for Graduation," students should apply to graduate at least six months before requirements are competed in order to be listed in print materials related to graduation events.

Steps to Limited-Access Thesis Submission:

1. The student must follow the formatting guidelines from the University Graduate School: https://graduate.indiana.edu/academic-requirements/thesis-dissertation/masters-guide/formatting.html. The student should not submit their thesis via ProQuest, and use this link only as a guideline for formatting.
2. The student must send the Word document of the Thesis to the assistant director of graduate degree programs. This document must be proofread and acceptable to both the student and the student’s Master’s thesis committee chair. No handwritten signatures may be included in this document.

A signed acceptance page with the signatures of the members of the thesis committee is required to confirm that the committee members have viewed and accepted the final draft of the thesis which the student is submitting.

The acceptance signed by the thesis committee members may be completed in person and scanned, or it may be signed using verified, electronic signatures in Adobe Acrobat, and then attached as a separate PDF file, to the same email message to which the thesis document is attached.

Upon receipt of the items listed above, students who have completed all other master's degree requirements will be approved to graduate. Master's degrees are awarded in May, June, July, and December. As stated under "Application for Graduation," students should apply to graduate at least six months before requirements are all competed in order to be listed in print materials related to graduation events.

Question: Why are there two submission options?
Answer: The Indiana University Library system may not force students to allow publication of their master's thesis on the IU Scholarworks Website. For this reason, the limited access thesis submission form exists.

Question: Which one of the options is more popular?
Answer: The open access option is far more popular. In fact, as of the date on which this bulletin was published, no master's thesis student has chosen to submit a thesis under the limited access option.

Question: I am submitting my thesis under the open access option. I have seen signed acceptance pages in bound theses. Why are no signatures allowed in the Microsoft Word thesis document?  
Answer: The Indiana University Library system will be posting your thesis on the IU ScholarWorks Website. It is not advisable to post documents with signatures on the Internet due to the potential for fraud and identity theft.

Question: Do I graduate as soon as I turn in my thesis materials?
Answer: You are eligible to graduate when you have successfully completed all course, credit, and GPA requirements for your degree program, and when you have submitted your required thesis materials. When these requirements have been met, you are eligible to graduate on the next possible degree conferral date. Master's degrees are conferred in May, June, August, and December. Your application for graduation should list the date on which you plan to graduate. If submission of required materials happens after your expected graduation date, please check with the School of Public Health-Bloomington recorder to learn the next possible graduation date, and update your graduation application.