Digital Repository - OpenSPACES

In academia, an "embargo" is a restriction placed on a thesis or dissertation that allows only the title, abstract, and citation information to be released to the public, while the full text of the work is kept hidden for a limited period of time. Embargoes typically last from one to five years following publication of a thesis or dissertation via the university's Digital Repository or some other publishing service (e.g., ProQuest).  

• Making your thesis or dissertation accessible allows it to be scrutinized by others in the field, prompting collegiality. 

• Scholarly work will be readily available to prospective employers as you embark on your job search 

• You don't want to be plagiarized 

If you are worried about copyright infringement and/or plagiarism, then you should get your idea out there as soon as possible so that it is documented and accessible. That way, you have proof that the idea originated from you and that the alleged infringer had access to your work. While copyright protection is automatic, people who are concerned about copyright infringement can also register copyright in it with the U.S. Copyright Office. ProQuest will do this for you for an additional fee, or you can do it yourself. Registration provides statutory damages and attorney's fees in the event of an infringement. 

• Having theses or dissertations available helps future scholars learn about the process of scholarship. 

• The more accessible your thesis or dissertation is, the more likely it is to be cited because your work enters the scholarly community more quickly and other scholars and researchers have access. 

Why Embargo a Thesis or Dissertation? 

Most theses and dissertations are not embargoed but are made publicly available following their formal defense as part of completing a master's or doctoral degree. Some reasons to embargo a thesis or dissertation include: 

• The author wants to publish the work in whole or in part in the future and is concerned that making the work public will interfere with this. 

• The author has previously published the work in whole or in part, and the publisher is restricting the public release of the work in some way.  

• There is an ethical need to prevent disclosure of sensitive or classified information about persons, institutions, and so forth. 

• The dissertation includes data covered by a nondisclosure agreement for a specified period of time, including personal information, company secrets, or intellectual property. 

• There is a patent pending on the work or there are related issues that might make disclosure detrimental to the rights of the author. 

The student may embargo the work for a period of up to five years. NOTE: If submitting via Proquest, the maximum embargo period is 2 years; works requiring a longer embargo must be submitted via the repository. After the ending date of the initial embargo period, the work will be made publicly available unless the student submits a written request, signed by current Graduate Program Chair (GPC), to the College of Graduate Studies (gradstudies@unk.edu) for an extension. The maximum extension period is 5 years, for a total of a 10 year embargo if an initial embargo period of 5 years was selected. This request must be received prior to the ending date of the initial embargo period. 

Not sure who the Graduate Program Chair is? Most departments identify them on the Faculty/Staff portion of their website. Contact the department chair or Graduate Studies if you need assistance identifying the GPC.

Thesis embargo periods can be selected when submitting your thesis. OpenSPACES allows embargoes up to 5 years, with one renewal. ProQuest allows a 2 year embargo. If a release date greater than 5 years is selected, it will be rejected and set to UNK’s maximum embargo period (5 years). 

After the ending date of the initial embargo period, the work will be made publicly available unless the student submits a written request, signed by the current Graduate Program Chair, to the College of Graduate Studies (gradstudies@unk.edu) for an extension. The maximum extension period is 5 years, for a total of a 10-year embargo if an initial embargo period of 5 years was selected. The extension request must be received prior to the end date of the initial embargo period.