Thesis and dissertation filing goes online at University of Washington

University of Washington has moved to ETD submission, using the ProQuest ETD Administrator tool. According to the article,

Gone are the days of paying potentially hefty sums to print and bind hard copies of UW master’s theses or doctoral dissertations. And students no longer have to haul paper versions of their works to Graduate School staff for final submission. The process is now mostly electronic—and free of charge.

See the full article on their Graduate School Blog.

Save the date! USETDA 2013

The US ETD Association has announced its 3rd annual conference to be held July 24-26, 2013, in Claremont, California. The theme for USETDA 2013 is, ”Waves of Change: Oceans of Opportunity”.

USETDA 2013 is for ETD professionals from graduate schools, libraries, academic computing and others who work with ETDs. Our goal is to offer relevant, practice-oriented content to support ETD productivity improvement, ETD professionals, advance ETD operations, and encourage the formation of state-wide ETD associations in the United States.

More information will be forthcoming in future announcements and also made available on the USETDA 2013 Web page.

Mark your calendars; planning is underway for an incredible program!

USETDA 2013 Conference Planning Committee

Pam Anan, Claremont University Consortium Library
Melissa Cardenas-Dow, University of Redlands Library
Frances Chu, Western University of Health Sciences Library
Crystal Goldman, San Jose State University Library
Allegra Gonzalez, Claremont University Consortium Library
John Hagen, Renaissance Scholarly Communications
Laura Hammons, Texas A&M University Graduate School
Chris Jones, Claremont University Consortium Library
Angela McCutcheon, Ohio University Graduate School
Carmen Mitchell, California State University San Marcos Library
Bobby Parker, University of Florida Libraries
Marisa Ramirez, California Polytechnic State University Library
Brena Smith, California Institute of the Arts Library
Stacy Wallace, University of Florida Graduate School
Israel Yanez, University of Northern California Library

Lifecycle Management of ETDs

I’ve attended a number of ETD-related conferences over the past year and have had the privilege of listening to presentations by a group of individuals working on an MLIS grant project on the lifecycle management of ETDs. I’m truly excited about the work this group is doing to investigate and document issues from the creation to the preservation of ETDs. If you are interested in following their work, the see their Wiki, the Guidance Documents for Lifecycle Management of ETDs . I understand, once the project is complete, the outcome will be a series of documents and resources which can be used for workshops and other types of training.

USETDA 2012 Conference Proceedings Now Available

If you were unable to attend USETDA 2012, or are interested in viewing presentation from the conference, then check out the USETDA 2012 Conference Proceedings. USETDA 2013 conference planning is underway, so make sure you to keep your calendar open for Summer 2013 in California.

Get Ready for USETDA 2012

It’s time to ramp up for USETDA 2012, to be held in the Boston, Mass  area from June 13-15. Conference registration is now open. A tentative conference schedule is available, and hotel reservations can be made at the discounted rate of $149 per night.  See more on the USETDA 2012 homepage.

TxETDA 2012 Presentations

Session and Poster presentations from the TxETDA 2012 conference are now available through the Online Conference System. Enjoy!

Lifecycle Management of Electronic Theses and Dissertations: Call for Participation in Focus Groups

February 24, 2012, at 1 p.m.

In Willis Library, Room 035, University of North Texas

Colleges and universities are steadily transitioning from traditional paper and microfilm formats for graduate theses and dissertations. While this move from print-based to electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs) greatly enhances the accessibility and sharing of graduate student research, it also presents significant challenges for the academic libraries trying to preserve digital content.

We are seeking the input of a wide variety of stakeholders in the research community about the role of university libraries in supporting the data management needs of researchers.

Your participation will help shape recommendations for the future of ETD lifecycle management in research libraries.

The 60-minute focus group will be held immediately following the TxETDA 2012 Conference, in Willis Library, room 035. The session will be audio recorded, but no names will be retained so that any opinions and comments shared remain anonymous in all reports.

For project inquiries, or to RSVP for the Focus Groups, please contact:

shannon.stark@unt.edu or call (940) 369-5331

TxETDA 2012: Registration Now Open

Registration is now open for the 2012 TxETDA Conference, “Beyond boundaries: Extending the reach of research”. The conference will be held at the University of North Texas on Thursday, February 23 and Friday, February 24, 2012. We have a wonderful line-up of presenters and presentation topics (conference program information coming soon):

• Hear from keynote speaker, Martin Halbert;
• listen to what’s hot off the presses in Copyright;
• examine the ETD policies of another Texas institution;
• learn about more about ETD embargoes;
• and, much more.

Not only will the conference be packed with opportunities to advance your knowledge, you will also have opportunity to network with professionals from around the state facing similar challenges.

Registration will be available from January 2 through early February. Registration fees are $50, which includes dinner on day 1 and breakfast and lunch on day 2. Major credit cards are accepted. To register visit: https://conferences.tdl.org/txetda/2012/schedConf/registration.

For more information about the conference, visit the TxETDA 2012 Conference website.

Don’t wait, register today!

TxETDA Issues Call for Posters and Presentations at TxETDA 2012

The TxETDA Conference Planning Committee invites proposals for oral presentations and posters to be exhibited during the TxETDA conference, which will be held at the University of North Texas on Thursday, February 23 and Friday, February 24, 2012.

Posters will be displayed in the conference presentation room on Thursday afternoon and evening, and Friday morning. All poster presenters must be present at the poster session to answer questions.

We encourage proposals for oral presentations and posters relating to the following program theme: “Beyond Boundaries:  Extending the Reach of Research.”  Note: Strictly commercial presentations and posters will not be accepted.

Please submit a 200-300 word abstract that includes the following information:

• Title of poster or oral presentation
• Author(s), including institutional or corporate identity and email address
• Summaryof content to be included in poster or presentation
  • Well written, clear, logical and well organized
  • Original, timely and relevant to the ETD field
  • Contribute to the advancement ETDs
  • Develop ideas, offer conclusions, and provide useful and practical findings
  • Provide a good visual description of the project (for posters only)

Poster and presentation proposals will be reviewed and selected on the basis of the following criteria:

• Relevance to the focus of the conference
• Significance of content
• Helpfulness/interest to conference attendees

Poster Details:

Posters should be 3′ X 4′in size. Easels may be available at the conference site upon advanced request; however the TxETDA will be unable to provide power for multimedia displays.

DEADLINE FOR POSTER ENTRIES: Tuesday, January 17, 2012. Review of submissions will begin immediately.  Entrants will be notified of their acceptance or denial  no later than: Wednesday, February 1, 2012.

Poster entry information should be submitted via e-mail to: Billie Peterson-Lugo (billie_peterson@baylor.edu). Be sure to include your name, institution, e-mail address, and poster title.

Oral Presentation Details:

Oral presenters should plan for a 45 minute presentation with at least 15 minutes for questions and answers. Exact session times will be assigned following review and acceptance.

DEADLINE FOR ORAL PRESENTATION ENTRIES: Tuesday, January 6, 2012. Review of submissions will begin immediately.  Entrants will be notified of their acceptance or denial no later than: Wednesday, January 25, 2012.

Oral Presentation entry information should be submitted via e-mail to: Ginger Dickens (dickens@uta.edu). Be sure to include your name, institution, e-mail address, and presentation title.

TxETDA Invites Participation in TxETDA 2012

The TxETDA 2012 Organizing Committee has released a formal invitation for participation in the 2012 TxETDA Conference on Thursday, February 23 and Friday, February 24 at the University of North Texas in Denton.

Our theme this year is “Beyond the Boundaries” to celebrate the lively arts community of Denton, Texas, as well as our desire to reach beyond the borders of Texas to ETD colleagues in neighboring states. While TxETDA focuses on the needs of ETD professionals within the state of Texas, we welcome the participation of anyone interested in the field of ETDs from across the nation, whether they are inside or outside academia.

Also, while you are in Denton, be sure to check out local events in the community, taking advantage of the great nightlife and venues.

A tentative program schedule is available online.  If you would like to submit a session proposal to address one or more of these topics, or have a topic idea of your own, please contact Ginger Dickens by January 6, 2012.  She can be reached at dickens@uta.edu. A formal call for presentation and poster sessions will be forthcoming.

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Martin Halbert is Dean of Libraries and Associate Professor at the University of North Texas. He also currently serves as President of the MetaArchive Cooperative, a growing international digital preservation alliance of cultural memory organizations that was one of the founding partners of the US National Digital Preservation Program.

He has served as principal investigator for grants and contracts totaling more than $6 M during the past six years, funding more than a dozen large scale collaborative projects among many educational institutions. His doctoral research and subsequent projects have focused on exploring the future of research library services.

For further conference details see the TxETDA 2012 webpage.