Rationale for and Relationship of the Thesis and Dissertation Requirement to Research and Publication
This guide for the preparation of theses and dissertations at North Carolina State University (NCSU) is designed to assist graduate students, major professors and other members of graduate advisory committees in understanding the requirements and suggestions of the Graduate School for theses and dissertations. A written thesis is required for most Master of Art and Master of Science degrees and a written dissertation for all Doctor of Philosophy and Doctor of Education degrees at NCSU. The purpose of the thesis or dissertation is to provide an experience in scholarship which will be of enduring value to the student in understanding how new knowledge is acquired and communicated within his/her chosen field. Thus, the thesis or dissertation should provide tangible evidence of the student's development as a scholar and especially his/her capacity to discover and effectively communicate research findings. The thesis or dissertation should also enlarge the body of knowledge in the student's chosen field.
North Carolina State University is one of two research universities of the sixteen constituent institutions of the University of North Carolina. By virtue of this designation and its long-standing tradition of scholarship and research in agriculture and life sciences, design, education and psychology, engineering, natural resources, humanities and social sciences, management, physical and mathematical sciences, textiles, and veterinary medicine, a major mission of NCSU is the discovery and communication of knowledge. One significant means of achieving this important mission is the education of graduate students.
Preparing thesis or dissertation research directly for publication provides economic and educational advantages both to the student and to the department supporting the research. It is a long standing tradition in many departments at NCSU that the costs of producing a thesis are borne by the student but that the costs of producing manuscripts for publication are usually borne by the department supporting the research. In the interest of increasing their output of scholarly research, many departments are making computer, word processing, photographic, figure drafting and other manuscript preparation equipment and support services available to graduate students. The Graduate School applauds these developments and encourages departments to develop policies and procedures for the support of research by graduate students which will (1) enhance the educational value of the thesis research experience, (2) increase the quality and quantity of research published by the department and (3) insure that appropriate use is made of whatever resources are available within the department for the support of scholarly research.