All theses and dissertations at Boston University are indexed in our BU Libraries Search catalog.
If you know the title or author, just simply search that information.
If you don't have a name or title, or just wish to browse, you can search dissertations and theses using a subject search on our online catalog.
Boston University's Institutional Repository, OpenBU, contains documents authored by people affiliated with Boston University (students, faculty, and staff), including full-text electronic copies of all dissertations at the University since 2008.
In addition to uploading all current theses and dissertations (2008-present) into OpenBU, digitization projects are underway to scan and upload out-of-copyright dissertations and those dissertations for which authors have provided digital permissions.
If you are an STH alum with a BU STH thesis or dissertation in our collection, and would like to make it available online to scholars around the world through our OpenBU repository, please fill out our Dissertation Rights form to grant us the digital permissions necessary.
Follow the prompts in ProQuest to fill in keywords and subject tags, and to make important decisions like whether to embargo your work.
NEW! Please use DocuSign to submit signed approval pages electronically: https://www.bu.edu/library/sth-dissertations-docusign. As of Wednesday, April 10, 2024, the approval pages for all STH doctoral dissertations (PhD) and thesis projects (DMin) can be signed and submitted electronically using DocuSign. Instructions are available on the DocuSign log-in page listed in the first sentence of this paragraph.
[Please note that in the full dissertation file that you upload for ProQuest to publish, the approval pages should remain unsigned to protect your readers’ signatures from online identity theft, per ProQuest’s and BU’s policies.]
Please submit the dissertation processing fee in the form of a check or money order for $115 (made payable to “Boston University”). This can be dropped off in person with Stacey Duran at the library or mailed to: BU School of Theology Library, re: dissertations, 745 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA, 02215. Unfortunately, there is currently no way for STH students to pay dissertation fees online.
4. OPTIONAL: Embargo Letter
An embargo letter is required only if you request in ProQuest ETD that your work not be displayed (in ProQuest or OpenBU) for any period of time (usually two years). This is usually done to pursue commercial publishing, although it is not always necessary. More information on embargoes can be found at BU’s main library page here : https://www.bu.edu/library/files/2011/05/EmbargoesETDFAQ.pdf. A sample embargo letter template can be found here : http://www.bu.edu/cas/files/2020/03/Embargo-Letter-Template.doc.
The embargo letter must be submitted as a physical paper with ink signatures, signed by both yourself and your advisor (no photocopies or scans.) It can be submitted to Stacey Duran, either in-person at the STH Library or via mail to: Boston University School of Theology Library, 745 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA, 02215. After the first 2-year embargo, you will be able to renew your embargo (without a letter) via email or phone, for two years at a time.
For more information, please contact the STH Library thesis coordinator, Stacey Duran, at sbattles@bu.edu.
Follow the prompts in ProQuest to fill in keywords and subject tags, and to make important decisions like whether to embargo your work.
NEW! Please use DocuSign to submit signed approval pages electronically: https://www.bu.edu/library/sth-dissertations-docusign. As of Wednesday, April 10, 2024, the approval pages for all STH doctoral dissertations (PhD) and thesis projects (DMin) can be signed and submitted electronically using DocuSign. Instructions are available on the DocuSign log-in page listed in the first sentence of this paragraph.
[Please note that in the full dissertation file that you uploaded for ProQuest to publish, the approval pages should remain unsigned to protect your readers’ signatures from online identity theft, per ProQuest’s and BU’s policies.]
For the thesis project fee, you will need to mail a check or money order for $115 (made payable to “Boston University”) to: Boston University School of Theology Library, 745 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA, 02215. Unfortunately, there is currently no way for STH students to pay dissertation fees online.
Embargo letters are required only if you request in ProQuest ETD that your work not be displayed (in ProQuest or OpenBU) for any period of time (usually two years). This is usually done to pursue commercial publishing, although it is not always necessary. More information on embargoes can be found at BU’s main library page here : https://www.bu.edu/library/files/2011/05/EmbargoesETDFAQ.pdf. A sample embargo letter template can be found here : http://www.bu.edu/cas/files/2020/03/Embargo-Letter-Template.doc.
The embargo letter, like the approval pages, must be submitted as a physical paper with ink signatures, signed by both yourself and your advisor. It can be submitted to Stacey Duran, either in-person at the STH Library or via mail to: Boston University School of Theology Library, 745 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA, 02215. After the first 2-year embargo, you will be able to renew your embargo (without a letter) via email or phone, for two years at a time.
For more information, please contact the STH Library thesis coordinator, Stacey Duran, at sbattles@bu.edu.
When you upload to ProQuest, you will be prompted to respond whether you’d like to request an embargo.
An embargo simply means that you ask ProQuest and/or OpenBU to refrain from publishing your work for a specific period of time. This embargo is possible for 2 years, and can be renewed at the end of 2 years.
Note: Most theses and dissertations do not need a publication embargo. However, some authors pursuing publication of their dissertation do request an embargo to prevent their dissertation from being shared online while they seek publication of the revised dissertation as a book.
If you choose to embargo your work, you will need to submit an embargo letter:
More information about embargoes, reasons to embargo, and embargo letters can be found on the BU Libraries Guide for Writers of Theses & Dissertations (under "Do you need a temporary embargo?").
Once your disertation has gone through the upload checklist and been accepted, it will be delivered to ProQuest. If no embargo is applied, the dissertation will be made available in both ProQuest ETD and in the OpenBU repository, usually within 1-2 months.
