Dissertations Please!

Library & Web Resources for Finding Theses & Research Projects

ORU Online Catalog

The ORU library catalog provides access to theses including dissertations and research projects written at ORU as well as those produced at other institutions.

• To find ORU theses, do a series title search for “Oral Roberts University" in the online catalog. Then scan the results list for the particular school (e.g. School of Education).
• To find a dissertation written by a faculty member, do an author search for the last name combined with a keyword subject search for “theses.”
• To find theses from another institution, do a series title search for the name of the school (e.g. "University of Oklahoma") combined with a keyword subject search for "theses."
• To locate virtually all theses and dissertations held in ORU Library, search the subject “theses” or “research projects, applied.”
• Please note: Only doctoral-level dissertations or research projects are cataloged although the catalog uses the generic term "theses" to refer to dissertations. Copies of M.A. theses are housed in designated areas within the schools from which they emanate, the exception being the theology masters-level theses which are shelved in alphabetical order at the back of the Reference room (LRC-4th floor).

http://205.143.139.58/ipac20/

WorldCat

WorldCat is a union catalog in which dissertations and theses from institutions nationwide and beyond may be searched. Those that are available in the ORU Library will be so indicated. Those that are not may be requested through interlibrary loan.

• To access WorldCat, click “Databases” on the ORU Library home page, then click WorldCat and begin searching.
• From the WorldCat advanced search page, key in desired search term.
• Select “thesis/dissertation” as the subtype limit.
• Click the search button.
• If a citation in the results list has this symbol , that means the item should be available in the ORU Library.
• If the ORU Library does not own the item, you may request it through interlibrary loan by clicking the ILL button , filling in the required information and clicking “submit.”

http://newfirstsearch.oclc.org.ezproxy.oru.edu:2048/done=referer;dbname=WorldCat;FSIP

Dissertations & Theses @ Oral Roberts University

Only ORU theses published in UMI's Dissertation Abstracts database after 1996 are available at this site.

• This database allows you to search citations and abstracts.
• You may view 24-page previews.
• You may even download the full text.
• The School of Education Ed.D. theses as well as the School of Theology & Missions D.Min. applied research projects and some M.A. theses are included.

http://proquest.umi.com.ezproxy.oru.edu:2048/login?COPT=REJTPTU0MzImSU5UPTAmVkVSPTI=&clientId=456

Dissertation Express

The primary purpose of this site is to allow you to order unbound copies of dissertations and theses from over one million items available through UMI.

• If you already know the title, author, or order number of the dissertation you want, you may simply key in any one of them and click "Begin Search" to locate the document.
• If you don't have an exact title, you may try a keyword title search to locate theses/dissertations. For example, you might look up "charismatic leadership" or "assessment criteria." If you use a narrow, distinctive term, you may have more success in identifying items which are pertinent to your area of interest.

http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb/gateway

Theses Canada

"Canadian theses and dissertations that were published from the beginning of 1998 to August 31, 2002."

• The full text electronic versions are freely accessible and searchable.
• The online versions are available in PDF format.
• You may opt to search either the bibliographic records only or the full text of the theses on the advanced search page.

http://www.collectionscanada.ca/thesescanada/index-e.html

Australian Digital Theses Program

A collaborative distributed database of digitized theses produced at Australian universities.

• This database of theses is freely accessible and searchable.
• The online versions are available in PDF format.
• Probably the best way to search this database is by using the advanced search page.

http://adt.caul.edu.au/

Dissertation Abstracts

"Covers every doctoral dissertation completed in the U.S. at accredited institutions for the last 150 years."

• Includes Canadian, British, and other European dissertations and theses.
• Over 1,560,000 records.
• Dates covered: 1861 to present; abstracts since 1980; thesis abstracts since 1988.
• Searching available by appointment with Reference librarians only (ext. 6887).

ERIC

• To access ERIC, click “Databases” on the ORU Library home page, then click either ERIC (FirstSearch) or ERIC (EBSCOhost).
• FirstSearch: From the advanced search page, key in an education-related term as a keyword and theses, dissertations, or practicum as a record type.
• EBSCOhost: From the advanced search page, key in desired keyword(s) and select Publication Type: “Dissertations/Theses (All).”
• When the full text of a thesis is available in the EBSCOhost version, a link is provided that says, "Full text from EDRS." Just click and wait for the document to load.
• To access the full text of theses (when available) in the FirstSearch version, click the link that says, "E*Subscribe & EDRS order options." Then click the PDF icon to view the document in Adobe PDF format.
• Note: When the full text of an item is not freely available through to the ERIC Document Reproduction Service, it may sometimes be available for purchase.

http://newfirstsearch.oclc.org.ezproxy.oru.edu:2048/done=referer;dbname=ERIC;FSIP

http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.oru.edu:2048/login.asp?profile=ehost&defaultdb=eric

Theological Research Exchange Network (TREN)

• You may search by title keyword, author, school, degree, and year.
• Formats available for a fee are paper, digital, and microfiche.
• Access to conference papers from several academic societies is included.

http://www.tren.com

Research in Ministry (RIM® Online)

"RIM® Online is a freely available database that indexes DMin and DMiss projects from reporting schools of theology accredited by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada. Indexing began in 1981."

• Author, title, project advisor, institution, and subject access are provided.
• An abstract is included when one has been provided by the author.

http://rim.atla.com/star/rimonline_login.htm

Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations

• The ETDs from many different institutions may be searched simultaneously by using one of the search options provided on the NDLTD web site.
• Theses from individual institutions may be browsed there as well.

http://www.ndltd.org/browse.en.html

Digital Library and Archives (Virginia Tech)

"Search the title pages and abstracts of Electronic Theses and Dissertations that have been approved by the Virginia Tech Graduate School since 1995."

• Perhaps the most useful way to use this site is to browse the theses by department.
• To view the full text, click the author's name, then scroll to the bottom of the page and click the links to the PDF files.
• Note: Access to some ETDs are limited to the Virginia Tech campus network only.

WorldCat Dissertations and Theses

Provides access to bibliographic records of dissertations and theses available in OCLC member libraries.

• Many are available electronically, at no charge, directly from the publishing institution.
• Some are available through interlibrary loan.

Created by Sally Jo Shelton for a faculty workshop on Sept. 12, 2002. Updated April 13, 2007.