Copyright & Authorship

Students are encouraged to review the CTL teaching and learning resources for academic intergrity as well as the Leddy Library information regarding avoiding plagiarism.

• Note that commercial copyright and moral rights remains with the thesis/dissertation author. 
• At the time the Master's / Doctoral committee is proposed, students validate a "Non-Exclisive License to the University of Windsor" which authorizes the University to archive, reproduce, and distribute the thesis or dissertation. 
• Similarly, upon completion of the final oral defense, students are required to validate a "Thesis / Dissertation Non-exclusive Licence", which authorizes Library and Archives Canada to perform similar actions, (as outlined under step 3 of the deposit instructions). 
• Commercial copyright and moral rights remains with the author. 

Including copyrighted material

Students wishing to include in their theses, major research papers, or dissertations a substantial part of any copyrighted material must receive written permission from the copyright holder. It is the student's responsibility to disclose any copyrighted material that has been included in the thesis, as well as to obtain Letters of permission from copyright holders, where applicable.

Refer to the Graduate Studies Policy on Plagiarism for guidance about plagiarism and copyright issues.

For guidance on what constitutes 'substantial' part:

• Talk to your research supervisor and refer to the Copyright guide for graduate students and other resource available from this webpage.
• Review the Leddy library resources regarding Copyright & Theses and Dissertations.

Including your previously published work

Journal articles or other material that has been previously published by the student may be incorporated within a thesis, major paper, or dissertation, provided this material describes work done during the student’s graduate registration at the University of Windsor. Please note that publication or acceptance for publication of research results before the presentation of the thesis or dissertation does not supersede the University’s evaluation and judgment of the work during the examination process.

If the student wishes to use material which she/he authored AND which has already been published or submitted for publication, permission must be received from the copyright holder (e.g. journal) if copyright is not held by the author. This regulation applies whether the copyrighted material appears in the body of the thesis/ major paper/dissertation, or in an appendix.

If you are including your previously published article(s), you have likely already signed a "Copyright transfer agreement" with the journal/publisher that would determine how your work can be reused. The publisher, as the copyright holder, may outline the rights you have for different versions of the work as well as the purpose of the reuse. Refer to the Copyright transfer agreement you signed with the publisher to determine your rights, and if you are unsure contact the publisher to request clarification and permission.

When requesting permission from the publisher/copyright holder, it is important to note that the University will include major paper, theses, and dissertations in the institutional repository Scholarship@UWindsor, and that theses and dissertations are also submitted to and included in ProQuest's ETD database. 

Students can use the Sample letter to request permission to use Copyrighted material.

For additional considerations review the Leddy library resources:

• Copyright & Theses and Dissertations.
• Copyright Guide for Graduate Students at the University of Windsor - provided by the Leddy Library (updated Sept. 2018)
• Campus Copyright Information

Documenting co-authored or copyrighted material included in your thesis

A “Declaration of Co-Authorship/Previous Publication” must be included in the thesis, to clearly document copyright permissions as well as the student’s contribution to each multiple-authored work. Refer to the format requirements for details.

Letters of permission from co-author(s) or copyright holders may be included as an Appendix within the thesis document, or uploaded as supplementary files when the electronic thesis pdf is uploaded as part of the final deposit.

Students can use the Sample letter to request permission to use Copyrighted material.

The student is expected to be the principal author and have had a major role in the preparation and writing of any jointly-authored manuscripts that are incorporated in the thesis or dissertation. Students wishing to include any co-authored material (published or unpublished) in their dissertation/thesis/major paper must receive written permission from each co-author.

• Refer to the Senate Policy on Authorship for guidance about authorship issues and attribution of co-authorship.
• Material that has been previously published by the student may be used as part of a thesis, major paper, or dissertation, provided that this material describes work done during the student’s graduate registration at the University of Windsor.

Where manuscripts are co-authored by the student and others: 

• An explicit statement by the student is required as to who contributed to the work and to describe the nature and extent of this contribution.
• A “Declaration of Co-Authorship/Previous Publication” must be included in the thesis, to clearly document the student’s contribution to each multiple-authored work. Refer to the format requirements for details.
• The candidate’s original contributions should be indicated, justifying the work’s inclusion in the main body of the thesis, major paper, or dissertation.
• Supervisors must attest to the accuracy of these statements at the oral defense. 

It is the student's responsibility to disclose any jointly authored material that has been included in the thesis, as well as to obtain Letters of permission from each co-author. Such letters may be included as an Appendix within the thesis document or uploaded as supplementary files when the electronic thesis pdf is uploaded as part of the final deposit.

• Avoiding plagiarism
• CTL teaching and learning resources for academic intergrity
• CAGS Guide to Intellectual Property
• Canada Copyright Act