Higher Degree Research and Copyright in Thesis
Creating a thesis is a major piece of work that raises several copyright issues.
When you create a thesis you often utilise the work and research of others in order to generate new ideas. You might use other people’s research as a way to support your own arguments or as a counterpoint to them. Journal articles and books as well as images, diagrams, tables, sound files etc are all examples of copyright works. When you use other people’s work you are using their copyright material and you should therefore be aware of what you can and can’t do with it.
You can use:
- the ideas behind another person’s work providing you paraphrase and reference the original source (also be mindful of the Macquarie University policy on plagiarism).
- short quotations – see the information below on fair dealing
- material that is out of copyright (generally 70 years after the death of the author or creator)
- material owned by Macquarie University, except in the case of confidential or commercial sensitivity material.
- material that you have permission to use.
Remember to always reference the original source when using other people’s work.
Substantial parts and Fair dealing
You need to make an assessment as to whether the part of the copyright work you want to use and include forms a ‘substantial part’ of the original work. You would generally include the whole of an image or diagram, and would therefore be including a substantial part. For print works, if you are just including short quotes then it is probably not ‘substantial’, anything larger and depending on the content it may well be considered ‘substantial.’ If you are in any doubt then you should seek permission from the copyright owner.
The Copyright Act permits ‘fair dealing for the purpose of research or study’ which allows you to make copies of copyright works for yourself, your supervisor and your examiners.
Depositing your thesis in an online repository
Macquarie University encourages higher degree students to deposit their thesis with the library, who will then arrange for the thesis to be submitted to the Macquarie University Digital Repository and the Australian Digital Thesis Program. Both these programs enable your thesis to be publicly available via the internet. Make sure you obtain any necessary copyright permissions before depositing your thesis. Remember, while you may be able to include copyright material in your thesis legally under fair dealing, publishing to the internet may require permission.
How will my thesis be protected if it’s on the internet?
As strange as it sounds, publishing to the internet may be the best protection against plagiarism. While copying from the internet is inherently easy many thesis authors consider publishing on the web for all to see, an effective strategy against plagiarism, as opposed to a thesis lying in obscurity in a university library. In this way plagiarism is more likely to be traced. By making your thesis available you are also providing researchers with access to your work - encouraging further innovation. If your work is available online it is more likely to be discovered and cited by other researchers.
Will I be able to publish my thesis if it’s available in a repository?
By uploading a thesis to an online repository you are effectively electronically publishing your work. However this is unlikely to affect your subsequent chances of publication as extensive revision will likely be required before you publish with a publisher. It’s worth checking with the publisher if you’re unsure, or you could look at restricting access for a limited time while you seek publication of your work.
Seeking Permission
If you want to include other people’s material in your thesis but are prevented by copyright restrictions then you need to obtain permission. You will generally need to obtain permission if you are including a diagram or a photograph in your thesis. Permission is also required if you want to use any material that is unpublished, such as letters, manuscripts, company documents, or another student’s work.
Further useful information is contained in the document‘Copyright Guide for Research Students: What you need to know about copyright before depositing your electronic thesis in an online repository’ released by the OAK Law project. This guide outlines in detail a lot of the issues surrounding copyright in thesis.
A permission request template is available in the above Oak Law guide as Appendix 1.
For further information contact the University Copyright Coordinator.