Most scholarly publishers allow dissertation authors to include articles or book chapters they have previously published in their dissertation or thesis.

Information about publisher policies on this topic are usually available through the publisher or journal website, often within the author guidelines section. This summary of major publisher policies is also a useful starting point for determining whether a publisher permits reuse of your published work in a dissertation. Locate the publisher with which your journal is associated, expand the dropdown menu, and look for policy information in the section labeled “Reuse of author’s previously published article in author’s thesis.”

Many students wish to publish all or part of their dissertation as scholarly journal articles, book chapters, or monographs.  

Submitting your dissertation or thesis involves depositing a copy to the Stanford Digital Repository, where it will be freely available online. Although you grant Stanford a license permitting the university to post your dissertation, it is a non-exclusive license, meaning that you remain the copyright owner of the content and are free to publish it elsewhere.

Most scholarly publishers do not consider inclusion of material in a dissertation or thesis, even one that is freely available online, to constitute a prior publication that would preclude publication in a journal or book. However, there are some exceptions and you are advised to review a publisher’s policies on prior publication before submitting material from your thesis or dissertation.

Information about publisher policies is usually available through the publisher or journal website, often within the author guidelines section. This summary of major publisher policies is also a useful starting point for determining whether a publisher considers your thesis or dissertation to be a prior publication. Locate the publisher with which your journal is associated, expand the dropdown menu, and look for policy information in the section labeled “Submission of new article by author that first appeared as part of author’s thesis.”

Republishing figures or images from a scholarly publication in a thesis or dissertation usually requires obtaining permission. Most publishers provide an online portal for permissions requests. Visit the landing page for the article containing the figure or image you wish to use and look for a link labeled something along the lines of ‘Get Rights,’ ‘Permission to Reuse,’ or ‘Rights and Permissions,’ usually located alongside information about author names and affiliations in the article header or in a sidebar menu. 

When completing your permissions request, be sure to specify the type of content you hope to republish (e.g., figure, table, etc.)  and that it will be used in a thesis or dissertation. Upon submission of the request, many publishers will immediately provide permission for figures to be reused without any charge to the dissertation author. Save all permission documents in order to upload them as part of your dissertation submission. 

If you are unable to request permission through an online form, contact the publisher by email or letter with your request to reuse the figure in a dissertation. Student Services, which manages the dissertation and thesis submission process, provides sample text for a permissions request.