成人大片

Skip to Main Content
A-Z Index
The Graduate School
oneColumn

Graduating this term?

Sign up for graduation early through your 成人大片myWings account! Visit the 成人大片Commencement website. 

Completing a Thesis or Dissertation

The purpose of the thesis or dissertation is to show evidence of the graduate student's development as a consumer of research and knowledge. The process of writing a thesis or dissertation starts very early - at the point of writing a proposal. Different programs have different formatting policies and follow different style manuals. Please contact your thesis or dissertation chair for requirements. It is important that students are mindful of these program-specific policies. Where a program’s deadlines are earlier than the ones listed here, those program-specific timelines take precedence.

Deadlines

Programs have the discretion to establish more rigorous deadlines than those below. Please check with your program to ensure you meet any program-specific deadlines.

The deadlines posted below are the latest possible dates to submit the required material to the Graduate School. Failure to meet the Graduate School deadlines will result in the denial of your graduation application.

Summer 2025

Deadline Requirement Due
June 20
  • Committee Membership form(s) (submitted to the Graduate School)
  • Summer 2025 graduation application (application is submitted through myWings)
July 25
  • Defense with committee members

Defenses must be announced via Osprey Update and added to the Academic Calendar. We recommend announcing 1-2 weeks prior to your defense. 
August 1
  • If applying for Clear Prior Status for Fall 2025, the application must be submitted directly to the Graduate School by this date.

Committee Membership form(s) and defense must have met above deadlines for current term. 
August 4,
5:00 p.m.
  • Digital Commons upload
    • Final* thesis/dissertation
    • Signed Certificate of Approval
    • Completed Availability Agreement

*For your thesis/dissertation to be considered final, all edits must be complete. Please confirm with your committee members, and department Chair/college Dean, if applicable, prior to uploading your documents to Digital Commons.

Fall 2025

Deadline Material Due
October 3
  • Committee Membership form(s) (submitted to the Graduate School)
  • Fall 2025 graduation application (application is submitted through myWings)
December 5
  • Defense with committee members

Defenses must be announced via Osprey Update and added to the Academic Calendar. We recommend announcing 1-2 weeks prior to your defense.
December 12
  • If applying for Clear Prior Status for Spring 2026, the application must be submitted directly to the Graduate School by this date.

Committee Membership form(s) and defense must have met above deadlines for current term. 

December 15
  • Digital Commons upload
    • Final* thesis/dissertation
    • Signed Certificate of Approval
    • Completed Availability Agreement

*For your thesis/dissertation to be considered final, all edits must be complete. Please confirm with your committee members, and department Chair/college Dean, if applicable, prior to uploading your documents to Digital Commons.

Spring 2026

Deadline Material Due
March 6
  • Committee Membership form(s) (submitted to the Graduate School)
  • Spring 2025 graduation application (application is submitted through myWings)
April 24
  • Defense with committee members

Defenses must be announced via Osprey Update and added to the Academic Calendar. We recommend announcing 1-2 weeks prior to your defense.
May 1
  • If applying for Clear Prior Status for Summer 2025, the application must be submitted directly to the Graduate School by this date.

Committee Membership form(s) and defense must have met above deadlines for current term. 
May 4,
5:00 p.m.
  • Digital Commons upload
    • Final* thesis/dissertation
    • Signed Certificate of Approval
    • Completed Availability Agreement

*For your thesis/dissertation to be considered final, all edits must be complete. Please confirm with your committee members, and department Chair/college Dean, if applicable, prior to uploading your documents to Digital Commons.

 

Forms

Forms must be submitted to the Graduate School by the posted deadlines. All committee forms may be emailed to the Graduate School or mailed/dropped off at our office.

Committee Forms

Before submitting your Committee Membership Form, verify committee members have Graduate Faculty status. If any of your committee members do not have Graduate Faculty status, the appropriate form will need to be completed by the posted committee membership form deadline.

Other Forms

The below forms are required to be uploaded with your final submission to Digital Commons. Forms submitted via email or hard copy will not be accepted.

Graduate Faculty Members

Checklist

Committee form(s) - due the same day as the deadline to apply for graduation
  • The Committee Membership Form has been submitted to the Graduate School.
  • The Non-Graduate Faculty Committee Member form has been submitted (if applicable) to the Graduate School.
  • The External Committee Member form has been submitted (if applicable) to the Graduate School.
  • The correct style manual, the one followed by the program, has been used.
  • All work not originating with the student has been properly cited and referenced.
  • Copyright permission has been received and a Request to Reprint/Reproduce Material Covered by Copyright document has been obtained.
  • If the student and thesis or dissertation director deem it warranted, the services of a professional editor have been secured.
Defense deadline - one week prior to graduation
  • Copies of the thesis or dissertation suitable for defense were provided to all members of the thesis or dissertation committee prior to the defense.
  • The thesis or dissertation defense was added to the 成人大片Calendar of Events and announced via Osprey Update by your committee chair or designee.
  • The thesis or dissertation defense was held no later than one week prior to graduation.
  • The Certificate of Approval was created and signed by the committee subsequent to the defense.
  • A corrected copy of the thesis or dissertation with corrections required by the thesis or dissertation committee was submitted to the department chair.
  • A corrected copy of the thesis or dissertation with corrections required by the department chair was submitted to the college dean.
Final submission deadline - the business day immediately following graduation
  • One original Certificate of Approval (signature page) is uploaded to 成人大片Digital Commons.
  • A completed Availability Agreement is uploaded to 成人大片Digital Commons.
  • The final thesis or dissertation is uploaded to 成人大片Digital Commons. No compression or password protection should be used and all fonts should be embedded in the document. Before uploading the thesis or dissertation, verify the curriculum vitae does not contain any personal information such as your personal address and phone number.
  • Supplemental materials, such as copyright documentation is uploaded to 成人大片Digital Commons.

Defense Announcement Instructions

In order to have your defense announced via Osprey Update and added to the Academic Calendar, you will need to work with your thesis/dissertation chair or designee.

Announce via Osprey Update

Confirmation will be sent via email once submitted. If additional information is required, the Public Relations Specialist will reach out.

Summer Graduates: The Faculty/Staff Osprey Update only goes out on Monday and Friday during the summer term. Please consider this when your announcement is submitted to ensure faculty and staff will see the notification prior to you defending.

  1. Click at the top right
  2. Headline (example: Master's Thesis Defense)
  3. Target Audience - check both boxes for Students and Faculty/Staff
  4. Body (example: Criminology and Criminal Justice graduate student John Smith will defense his master's thesis proposal, "Investigating...")
  5. Event - change to Yes and input the required fields
    • Category must be Graduate Defenses
  6. Public Contact Information - faculty or staff member associated with defense

  7. Check the confirmation box that the defense will be added to the 成人大片Calendar of Events and click Submit

Add to the 成人大片Calendar of Events

Announcements do not automatically appear on the calendar. Upon submission, it will go through an approval process. 

  1. Click at the top right
  2. Event Title (example: Master's Thesis Defense)
  3. Event Description (example: Criminology and Criminal Justice graduate student John Smith will defense his master's thesis proposal, "Investigating...")
  4. Event Contact - faculty or staff member associated with defense
  5. Event Group
  6. Location
  7. Additional Info - estimated attendance
  8. Event Date
  9. Event Time
  10. Select Save/View Event to preview, or Finished to submit

Digital Commons

Students are required to upload their final thesis/dissertation (PDF format), signed Certificate of Approval, and completed Availability Agreement to Digital Commons by the posted deadline. Hard copies of theses/dissertations will not be accepted by the Graduate School.

Before uploading, please verify with your committee that your document is final, and that your curriculum vitae does not contain any personal information such as your address and phone number.


Upload Instructions

  1. Access and login with your 成人大片credentials by clicking My Account from the top banner
  2. Click on Submit Research on the left side of the site
  3. Scroll down and click on 成人大片Theses and Dissertations
  4. Add your project Title and Author information
    • Update information to include middle name initial and institutional affiliation; do not add multiple author lines
  5. Input your birth date (this is not visible to the public, but is important to distinguish authors)
  6. Input the year you are graduating for Year of Publication
  7. Select the term you are graduating for Season of Publication
  8. Select the type of document for Paper Type
  9. Select the College in which your program belongs
  10. Select your Degree Name
  11. Select your Department
  12. Add your committee member names starting with the First Advisor as your committee chairperson
  13. Select at least one Subject Category fitting your thesis/dissertation
  14. Add your Abstract
  15. Upload the final PDF version of your thesis/dissertation with an unsigned copy of your Certificate of Approval
  16. Upload your signed Certificate of Approval and completed Availability Agreement to Additional Files
    • Source Code: If you are submitting source code, either as additional files or as the primary document, it must be submitted as a zipped file. The file should be named Last Name, What platform(s) is supported (e.g. Windows, Linux, etc.), what programming language was used (e.g. C++, perl, etc.). Example: Crawford Linuz C++
    • Copyright: Permission or your attempts to seek permission for copyrighted material, such as images. The document should be named Last Name Permission.
  17. Click Submit one above steps are complete

Graduate Student Enrollment Requirements - Clear Prior Status

Graduate Student Enrollment Requirements

The Graduate School has implemented a continuous enrollment policy effective in fall 2021 and we encourage all incoming students to be aware of the policy expectations. The statement of the policy is below and you can read the complete policy 2.1070.

Degree-seeking graduate students are required to maintain continuous enrollment (fall and spring semesters) of at least one credit hour until degree completion, and they must be enrolled during the term (including summer) in which they graduate from the university. Summer enrollment is not required unless it is the term in which they graduate. The continuous enrollment requirement begins with the initial graduate matriculation term. The Graduate School monitors continuous enrollment and reserves the right to take action if a student fails to maintain continuous enrollment. Individual programs/departments may impose additional enrollment requirements and consequences for students who fail to maintain continuous enrollment.

Clear Prior

Students who meet all thesis/dissertation deadlines with the exception of final submission are eligible for Clear Prior status. Clear Prior status waives the requirement to enroll in the final graduation term. In order to be eligible, you must have met all posted thesis/dissertation deadlines for the current term, with the exception of submitting the final thesis/dissertation, Certificate of Approval, and Availability Agreement. Students interested in obtaining Clear Prior status are required to contact the Graduate School no later than the posted deadline of the intended graduation term.

Important Notice

Students that do not meet the above requirements, and do not apply for and receive a Leave of Absence or Clear Prior status, will receive an account hold preventing future term registration and graduation. Students without an approved Leave of Absence or Clear Prior status on file will be required to submit a Student Petition of Academic Policy. The hold will be lifted if the petition is approved.

Steps

  • Proposal

    Upon submission of your thesis or dissertation proposal, a Thesis or Dissertation Committee Membership Form must be submitted to the Graduate School. All committee forms may be emailed to the Graduate School or mailed/dropped off at our office. The form(s) must have all signatures before submission. 

    • If your committee changes, you must submit a new Committee Membership Form and select that you are changing your committee.
    • If a non-graduate faculty member will be on your thesis or dissertation committee, your department must complete a Request for Non-Graduate Faculty Thesis/Dissertation Committee Member. Before submitting your Committee Membership Form, verify committee member have Graduate Faculty status.
    • If you would like to include an external committee member, you will need to submit the Request for External Thesis/Dissertation Committee Member Form and include a copy of their CV or resume. 

    IRB – Institutional Review Board and IACUC – Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee

    If proposed research for any thesis or dissertation is subject to the federal regulations pertaining to research involving either human or animal subjects, review by the 成人大片Institutional Review Board (IRB) and/or 成人大片Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) must be obtained prior to beginning such research. The measures taken to ensure the protection of human and/or animal subjects should be explicitly addressed in the researcher's discussion of methodology when applicable. Your thesis or dissertation director can advise you on whether your project requires IRB or IACUC review.

    Checklist

    • Thesis or Dissertation Committee Membership Form has been completed with all required signatures
    • If applicable, a Request for Non-Graduate Faculty Thesis/Dissertation Committee Member Form and/or a Request for External Thesis/Dissertation Committee Member Form has been completed
    • The form(s) has been submitted to the Graduate School
  • Writing the Thesis or Dissertation

    Different programs have different formatting policies and follow different style manuals. Please contact your thesis or dissertation chair for college requirements.

    Plagiarism

    Plagiarism is defined as “intentionally or knowingly presenting the work of another as one’s own (i.e., without proper acknowledgment of the source). The sole exception to the requirement of acknowledging sources is when the ideas, information, etc., is common knowledge.” - 成人大片Student Handbook

    Plagiarism is a very serious matter. If a student represents the ideas or words of another person as his own, this is intellectual stealing, and it is punishable by a range of actions, including even dismissal from pursuit of a degree. Students are warned to take pains to avoid all plagiarism, no matter how minor it may seem.

    Editorial Services

    The Graduate School requires that all dissertations and theses be submitted in final formats, ready for library submission and publication. Part of what is required for final submission of dissertations and theses is that documents be free from any errors related to language use. Grammar, spelling, and usage errors must be absent, and clarity must be uniform throughout the document. To aid in meeting this requirement, the Graduate School recommends that a student employ an editor. The Graduate School does not, however, require employing an editor, nor do we require hiring a particular editor. The hiring of an editor is a decision that should be made between the student and the thesis or dissertation director. If the decision is to hire an editor, editorial work should occur prior to the defense of the thesis or dissertation.

    Copyright 

    All theses and dissertations at 成人大片are published as electronic documents in PDF format and are made available through the 成人大片Digital Commons. As such, it will be easy for individuals to discover unauthorized use of copyrighted materials, so it is important to proceed carefully when using copyrighted works. 

    Students should think carefully about the materials they plan to use in their thesis or dissertation. Copyrighted items should be presented in a scholarly way by being labeled and thoroughly explained within the text. Also ensure materials used are properly cited within the body of the document and in references.

    In order to obtain copyright permission, students should:

    • Contact the copyright holder (usually the publishing company, not the author) by mail or email and request permission to republish the materials.
    • Indicate that their thesis or dissertation will be published electronically by the 成人大片 in their requests.
    • Add any copyright permission letters (or email permissions) received from copyright holders to the 成人大片Digital Commons as supplemental documentation. 
    • Complete a Request to Reprint/Reproduce Material Covered by Copyright. Theses and dissertations without evidence of permission to reprint or reproduce materials covered by copyright will not be approved.

    Each writing style has different standards for citing sources. Please review for specific information.


    Checklist

    • The correct style manual followed by the program has been used
    • All work not originating with the student has been properly cited and referenced
    • If applicable, copyright permission has been received and a Request to Reprint/Reproduce Material Covered by Copyright document has been obtained
    • If the student and thesis or dissertation director deem it warranted, the services of a professional editor have been secured
  • Defending the Thesis or Dissertation

    The Graduate School strongly recommends that a student provide at least two weeks of reading time for the members of her/his thesis or dissertation committee. The student should provide each member of their thesis or dissertation committee with a version of the thesis or dissertation fully edited, corrected, and suitable for defense.

    All defenses must be held no later than posted deadline. If you are unable to defend by the posted deadline, please contact the Graduate School immediately to discuss your options.

    All students must have an announcement submitted to Osprey Update by their thesis/dissertation chair or advisor to announce their defense date to faculty, staff, and students. This should be done one to two weeks prior to the defense. The Osprey Update will not be approved unless the event is first added to the 成人大片Calendar of Events and then submitted by your committee chair or designee.

    The student will also need to provide the thesis or dissertation director with a Certificate of Approval. Only one Certificate of Approval is required.

    Checklist

    • Copies of the thesis or dissertation suitable for defense have been provided to all members of the thesis or dissertation committee
    • The thesis or dissertation defense has been added to the 成人大片Calendar of Events and announced via Osprey Update
    • The thesis or dissertation defense was held by the posted deadline
    • The Certificate of Approval has been signed by all committee members subsequent to the defense
  • Submitting the Thesis or Dissertation to the Department

    If department Chair approval of a thesis or dissertation is required by the degree program, the student should submit a copy of their thesis or dissertation to review in accordance with the department timeline. This will allow time for (1) the department Chair to read and comment on the thesis or dissertation and (2) the student to make any necessary corrections to the document. The student must upload all final documents to Digital Commons by the posted deadline.

    Checklist

    • The thesis or dissertation with corrections required by the thesis or dissertation committee has been submitted to the department Chair
  • Submitting the Thesis or Dissertation to the College

    If college Dean approval of a thesis or dissertation is required by the degree program, the student should submit a copy of their thesis or dissertation to review in accordance with the department timeline. The student is required to submit a clean, corrected copy of their thesis or dissertation to the college Dean. It is important to allow appropriate time for (1) the college Dean to read and comment on the thesis or dissertation and (2) the student to make any the necessary corrections to the document. The student must upload all final documents to Digital Commons by the posted deadline. 

    Checklist

    • The thesis or dissertation with corrections required by the department Chair has been submitted to the college Dean
  • Submitting the Thesis or Dissertation to the Graduate School and Digital Commons

    The student is required to upload the following items to 成人大片Digital Commons by the posted deadline. Emailed or hard copies of the following documents will not be accepted. Upon approval by the Dean of the Graduate School, the Graduate School will submit the approved documentation for deposit of your thesis or dissertation in the 成人大片Library. 

    • One original Certificate of Approval signed by the thesis or dissertation committee members.
    • A completed Thesis/Dissertation Availability Agreement Form
    • The final thesis or dissertation

    License Agreement for 成人大片Digital Commons

    The 成人大片Library would like to showcase your work in the 成人大片Digital Repository with your permission. This digital library makes UNF’s unique resources accessible on a global scale. To load your theses or dissertation into our institutional repository, please download and print the Thesis/Dissertation Availability Agreement Form and upload with your final thesis or dissertation to 成人大片Digital Commons. 

    Please include a blank Certificate of Approval page in your thesis or dissertation and upload the signed Certificate of Approval page to 成人大片Digital Commons. 

    The 成人大片Digital Commons makes the scholarship of 成人大片easily available in one location online, enabling increased access to colleagues, students and the greater internet community.  Works placed in the repository are more easily discovered in common internet search engines and in other academic search portals. This greater access makes it easier for researchers around the world to discover your work. The 成人大片Digital Commons is a valuable way to extend the scholarly output of the 成人大片 to include greater reach and increased circulation not only in Florida, but throughout the country and beyond.  This initiative is in line with universities nationwide as we attempt to better serve our far reaching communities. You are welcome to browse through our collection of campus materials on .

    Checklist

    • One original Certificate of Approval has been uploaded to 成人大片Digital Commons
    • A completed Thesis/Dissertation Availability Agreement Form has been uploaded to 成人大片Digital Commons
    • The final thesis or dissertation has been uploaded to 成人大片Digital Commons