Stetson Theses: How to find them

Welcome to the Stetson theses research guide. In this guide, you will learn how to search theses collections held at the du-Pont Ball library. The library houses both circulated AND non-circulated theses collections authored by former Stetson students, depending on their degreed programs. Stop by and check out what former students have researched for their final project. If a student's thesis paper helps with your current research, be sure to properly cite the thesis and acknowledge its source.                      

Want to learn more about theses requirements for Stetson master's programs? Check out Theses Course Requirements for more information about the course, proposal and submission process. 

First, lets answer an important and FREQUENTLY asked question!

Dissertation v Thesis. What's the difference?

Dissertations and theses are extensively researched papers that follow a research methodology. These final projects demonstrate how well a student supports an argument or a theory. For some programs, dissertations and theses are the final component for graduation and the experience is supported by a program's committee.

• A thesis is the final research paper to complete a master's degree. A thesis is a 100+ paged scholarly paper that analyzes existing research in an area of study and allows students to dig deeper into a topic of interest. 
• A dissertation is the final research paper to complete a PhD degree. A dissertation is 2-3x times longer than a thesis and is based on a student's original or expanded research on a new or existing topic in an area of study.                      

Where to begin

If you are interested in accessing Stetson's theses collection, hardcopies are located on the main floor of the library between the N call numbers and the Folio collection. Only selected theses are available for checkout.

How to search

In OneSearch, choose "author" from the drop down field, enter the last name of your author, and limit the search to "Stetson." In this example, I am searching by the author's last name, "Messersmith."

After entering the author's last name and limiting the search to Stetson, click on the magnifying glass icon to launch your search. The results page will appear and works written by Messersmith will be listed. Notice, Messersmith's thesis is #2 on the result's page!   

In addition to OneSearch, you can access some theses papers online by visiting our Student Research Collection in digital archives. Here, you will also find undergraduate senior research papers. 

Can I submit my work?

The library is not currently accepting theses at this time. However, we invite all undergraduate seniors to submit your research project to the library's digital archives! If interested, please contact archives@stetson.edu.