Find theses and dissertations

Theses are useful if you want to keep up with the latest research or are writing a thesis yourself and want to see examples.

This guide gives you an overview of key theses resources and what material they include.

If you're new to theses and want to know how they can support your studies: check out the theses and dissertations section in our Library Research Skills Moodle module.

UK and international theses

Many UK theses are available on the British Library EThOS site. You need to register/login to download a thesis or order a digitised copy - it's free.

If the thesis you need isn't available on EThOS or you're asked to pay for it, make a document delivery request. Your school or department may pay for you to get access to the thesis.

ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global is a collection of dissertations and theses from around the world.

 See our full list of theses and dissertations databases.

University of Kent theses

Kent theses completed since September 2014 are held indigital format in the Kent Academic Repository (KAR).

Older theses are held by the Library in print format; they can't be borrowed - you can only read them in the Library building.

Before using the methods below to search for theses, it's worth checking EThOS, which includes over 4000 Kent theses, including digitised print theses.

  1. Go to Advanced Search.
  2. Change one of the filters to "Awarding body" and enter "University of Kent".

Kent theses completed since September 2014

These are all included in LibrarySearch and you can find them by keyword. But the easiest way to browse Kent theses in a particular subject is to go directly to KAR:

  1. use the Advanced Search
  2. scroll down and under the heading ‘Item type’ tick the box next to ‘Thesis’
  3. to narrow your search, complete other relevant fields (for example the school, date or date range, or a term in the title). 

Videos:

You can download most theses in KAR, but some may be restricted. If you want to access a restricted thesis, click Contact us about this publication and complete the form. We'll contact the author for you.

Kent theses before September 2014

All print theses are included in LibrarySearch. To request a print thesis, click Place Reservation and we'll email you when it's ready to pick up. Theses are confined, which means you can only use them in the Library building.

To find all print theses in a particular subject, browse this list:

Help

Find out all the ways you can get in touch: 

Contact us

More IT and Library services

Library and IT

Last updated