Authorship and Copyright
Description
The Authorship form specifies plans for publication. You must discuss your plans for publication with your chairperson and your committee to avoid misunderstanding about co-authorship or other acknowledgements as you publish parts or all of your thesis/dissertation. The form also asks for a date by which an acceptable draft will be submitted to your major professor or other USU faculty with whom you will publish. Establishing this timeline is crucial as it is important to get contributions to knowledge into the literature promptly. If the date for submission is not met, the faculty member may prepare the first draft of a manuscript for submission and, consequently, be listed as the first author. Your signature and those of your committee members indicate that you have discussed the plans and all are in agreement.
The rights to copyright and data are especially of concern if your thesis /dissertation research is carried out as part of a project with a principal investigator (PI) or in a laboratory using supplies and equipment furnished for you. Under certain circumstances, data gathered for use as part of a research project are the property of a federal, state, or private agency, Utah State University, or the principal investigator(s). Students using such data may be required to waive the right of ownership and/or the privilege of copyrighting the thesis/dissertation early in your program. You should discuss the ownership and the right to the data to be utilized in your thesis/dissertation with your committee chairperson and, if your thesis/dissertation involves work on a project or in a lab, with the PI or lab director.
Due Date
Submit this form after your final defense and before your thesis or dissertation is submitted for review by the School of Graduate Studies. Your thesis or dissertation will not be reviewed by the School of Graduate Studies until all required paperwork is fully approved.
Signatures Needed
- Student
- Advisor
- Committee members