Submitting Your Dissertation

Submission deadlines and checklists:

May 2023 graduation - Doctoral Dissertation Submission Checklist

         Preliminary dissertation deadline: March 24, 2023

         Final dissertation deadline: May 5, 2023

September 2023 graduation - Doctoral Dissertation Submission Checklist

         Preliminary dissertation deadline: August 4, 2023

         Final dissertation deadline: September 8, 2023

January 2024 graduation - Doctoral Dissertation Submission Checklist

         Preliminary dissertation deadline: December 1, 2023

         Final dissertation deadline: January 12, 2024

Note: GSAS submission deadlines are earlier than University Graduation Deadlines.

Please Note: The Office of the Registrar takes up to a month AFTER the graduation date to fully process all degrees. DO NOT count on being able to demonstrate completion of your degree on or soon after the graduation date simply because you turned everything in by the deadline. If you need proof of degree completion, please plan to get all your materials submitted and defend your dissertation well before the final deadline. Please also contact the Office of Academic and Student Affairs at the email address below so we are aware that you may need your degree requirements reviewed in an expedited manner. If you wait to tell us until after the deadline, we will not be able to do much to help speed the process for you.

Dissertation Formatting Requirements and Other Informational Guides:

Dissertation Submission In Six Steps:

The following guide presents the necessary steps involved in a doctoral candidate's dissertation submission as required by the Graduate School of Arts and Science. All candidates should check with their dissertation advisor and department administrator regarding additional departmental requirements.  Some additional helpful information regarding these steps and other graduation related issues that we are frequently asked about may be found in this document.

  1. The candidate must meet with his or her dissertation advisor to discuss research goals, timeframes, and scheduling of an oral defense. If an outside reader is being considered as part of the dissertation committee, the candidate's department must complete and sign the Outside Dissertation Reader Approval Form to include in the candidate's graduation file. 
  2. The candidate is required to register for graduation on Albert at least 3 months prior to the expected date of graduation. Application deadlines may be found here.
    Preliminary Dissertation Filing Steps
  3. The candidate must submit the Preliminary Dissertation Paperwork to the GSAS Office of Academic and Student Affairs by the preliminary dissertation deadline. The Preliminary Submission Paperwork consists of the following:
    • One copy of the Title Page, unsigned. If you will need to have this electronically signed, please also submit to us the name and official University email address of your advisor and we will have this done. If you are gathering a physical signature, then only the unsigned Title Page is needed.
    • Survey of Earned Doctorates, submit the completion certificate
    • Dissertation Publishing Agreement submitted on the ProQuest site when you submit your preliminary dissertation. We do not need to receive a separate copy.
    • Dissertation Abstract submitted on the ProQuest site when you submit your preliminary dissertation. We do not need to receive a separate copy.
  4. A candidate must upload his or her dissertation to ProQuest by the preliminary dissertation submission deadline. The preliminary dissertation submission will be reviewed for adherence to the formatting requirements, not content. (The dissertation advisor oversees content review.) Once the preliminary dissertation is reviewed, the candidate will receive an email notification that details formatting changes that need to be made before final submission. However, candidate do not have to wait for the preliminary dissertation review email, and should upload any new revision to their ProQuest account when it's ready. The latest revision on ProQuest will be reviewed. 
    Final Dissertation Filing Steps
  5. The candidate is advised to take the Doctoral Thesis Oral Defense Form to the oral defense. The dissertation committee Chair and members sign the Doctoral Thesis Oral Defense Form according to the result of the oral defense in the spaces provided and return it to the department administrator, by the final dissertation deadline. You may not handle this form once committee members begin to sign. If gathering some or all physical signatures is not possible, the department administrator will help gather the remaining digital signature(s). The department administrator will then forward the Doctoral Thesis Oral Defense Form to Office of the Registrar. If revisions to the dissertation are required by dissertation committee member(s), the Chair will retain the form until the revisions are made. 
  6. After editing the text to ensure it is consistent with the comments made during the defense and and any comments you may have received from the review of the preliminary dissertation upload, the candidate must upload a final dissertation to ProQuest by the final dissertation deadline, using the link provided after the preliminary dissertation review or by login to your ProQuest account. Occasionally such a large volume of dissertations may be submitted that we are unable to review the formatting for everyone before the final deadline date. The final dissertation filing date is for content only, so whether or not you have received formatting revisions, make sure you have uploaded the final version of your dissertation in regards to content by this date. If you and your committee are satisfied with the content of your initial upload, then there is no need to upload again until you have made any requested formatting corrections. You will have plenty of time to correct any formatting issues after the final deadline should you need it. If you elected to get a physical signature on your Title Page, you must also submit a signed copy at this time.
    Steps beyond dissertation submission
  7. The candidate should check with his/her department to ensure all degree requirements have been met, and the department have submitted the signed Doctoral Thesis Oral Defense Form to the Office of the Registrar by the graduation deadline.
  8. The candidate should contact the Office of the Bursar to confirm that his/her account is not in arrears.
  9. The candidate should review his/her permanent address on Albert. Diplomas will be mailed to this address, unless the candidate indicated a specific diploma address. You may also elect to have your official or preferred name on your diploma at this time.

Note: Completion of these steps does not guarantee conferral of a candidate's degree. The final conferral decision rests with the Graduate School of Arts and Science and New York University's Office of the Registrar. After completing the final dissertation submission, candidates should contact the Office of the Registrar at graduation@nyu.edu if there are any questions regarding graduation status or degree conferral.

Additional Resources:

Contact Us:

The Office of Academic and Student Affairs is located at 6 Washington Square North, 2nd Floor. Questions regarding the dissertation submission procedure should be directed to Academic Affairs at gsas.dissertation@nyu.edu or by phone at 212-998-8060.