Policies and Author FAQ

General Author Frequently Asked Questions

Copyright FAQ

Technical FAQ and How-To

  • What is the process for submitting a work?
  • What is the process for submitting a Graduate Capstone/Master's Project, Undergraduate Senior Project, or Graduate Thesis or Dissertation?
  • My department/degree/document type is not listed as an option on the submission form. What should I do?
  • I don't have electronic versions of old working papers that I'd like to include in the DIR; is it ok to scan the printed page to a PDF file?
  • When I copy and paste abstracts into the Submit Form, some of my text loses its formatting. What's going on?
  • How do I include accents and special characters in the abstracts and titles?
  • How do I report an error or missing page?
  • Can I post related files (soundclips, datasets, etc.) alongside the published work?
  • How can I submit a multi-part file, such as multiple chapters for a book?

  • Have any questions or concerns that were not addressed above? Feel free to contact us at repository@rit.edu

    General FAQ

    Who can submit to the Digital Institutional Repository (DIR)?

    Faculty and staff affiliated with any RIT college, department, lab center, institute, or other campus unit are eligible to contribute content. RIT Graduate theses, dissertations, Master’s Projects and Capstone Projects are automatically input by DIR staff.

    Other RIT student works may be submitted by an RIT faculty or staff member on the student’s behalf, but the faculty or staff member is responsible for first obtaining permission from the student to publish the student’s work. For more information on how to submit see: What is the process for submitting a work? and What is the process for submitting a Graduate Capstone/Master's Project, Undergraduate Senior Project, or Graduate Thesis or Dissertation?


    What can be submitted to the DIR?

    Submitted works must be scholarly in nature. “Scholarly” is defined here as work that has been published or officially disseminated in some form, and must contain an element of peer review. For example, an article published in a journal, or a painting included in a juried exhibit are both appropriate submissions. Further guidelines on what constitutes “scholarly” work can be found on the Faculty Scholarship Report submission page:

    Examples of works accepted into the DIR:

    • Published articles
    • Technical reports
    • White papers
    • Book Chapters
    • Published Reviews
    • Conference proceedings
    • Conference presentations
    • Poster Sessions
    • Invited keynotes/presentations
    • Creative works

    Conferences hosted by RIT are also eligible to have their schedules and proceedings included in RIT Scholar Works.

    Works must be submitted by the author or creator. Submissions must have been created while the author is affiliated with RIT. Scholarship completed while employed at another institution is not appropriate.

    Service and teaching materials are not accepted into the DIR.

    Deposits are intended to be permanent contributions to the DIR. Therefore, works that are in progress, or are ephemeral in nature are not recommended for contribution.

    Additionally, all works must be compliant with the copyright policies set by their publishers for inclusion in an Open Access platform, as reviewed by DIR staff.

    All submissions are reviewed by DIR staff for policy compliance and appropriateness prior to acceptance into the repository.

    If you have any questions regarding the eligibility of a work, please contact DIR staff at: repository@rit.edu

    Policy updated 12/2017


    Is there a limit to how old a work can be that is submitted to the DIR?

    There is no age limit for works to be submitted to the DIR. As long as it was created while you are affiliated with RIT, and meets the criteria for a scholarly work, it is acceptable.


    Can I request that my work be removed after it has been posted to the DIR?

    The DIR is designed to provide long-term, persistent access to deposited work, and the removal of works is discouraged.

    If you would like to submit a request for removal, email us at repository@rit.edu, though there is no guarantee that it will be removed. DIR staff will provide you with relevant information and consult with the appropriate campus entities to determine if removal is appropriate. If a request is received from someone other than the author to withdraw a work, an embargo will be placed on the access to the work until a final determination is made.


    What if I need to correct something in my thesis/dissertation/capstone after it has been deposited?

    All files for theses, dissertations, and capstone projects are considered permanent record upon deposit into the DIR. If you discover a minor error or typo in the document after the fact, we cannot change the deposited file, however we can add a note to the information page indicating the corrections. For more substantial corrections, we will contact your department to determine the best course of action.


    How can I track my readership on the DIR?

    Log into the DIR with your RIT computer account, under the "My Account" tab.

    *IF YOU ARE A GRADUATE STUDENT make sure to use your full RIT email address (username@RIT.EDU-- make sure the email suffix is ONLY @rit.edu). You should be able to log in, however, if you are not, you will be prompted to create an account with your RIT email address. Do so (make sure it is with your RIT email address) and then log in. This is so the system knows to link your works with your account. *Note: If you submitted your thesis prior to Fall 2015, contract us first at repository@rit.edu

    When you are logged in, look for the module on your account page that says "Dashboard Tools" and click on the link that says "Author Dashboard". This page will show how often your works were downloaded within a specific time-frame, the search queries that led readers to your work, pages that led visitors to the full-text download ("referrers"), and institutions that have downloaded your works.

    You can also receive monthly emails reports with general download statistics for your works. To make sure this setting is turned on, return to your account page and lick on the "Research Alerts" link in the top module. Under the heading 'My Email Preferences" make sure the setting "Please send me monthly hit reports for my articles" is checked.

    For more detailed information, see the RIT Scholar Works User Guide


    How is the content of the DIR promoted?

    The DIR is promoted wihtin the RIT community, including integration with RIT Summon, the RIT Library's online catalog.

    Beyond RIT, the DIR is a member of the Digital Commons Network, a portal to content stored within the Digital Commons platform. Free, full-text works posted to repositories from any institution currently using Digital Commons to support their repository are included in the Digital Commons Network To view, visit: http://network.bepress.com/. Additionally, the DIR is registered with OpenDOAR (Directory of Open Access Repositories) and Open Access Theses and Dissertations.

    RIT Scholar Works is also indexed by Google and will therefore show up in the results for searches performed on Google and Google Scholar.


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    Copyright FAQ

    How do I ensure that submitting and posting my work in the DIR complies with copyright law?

    Publishers customarily require that the writer give the ownership (copyright) of the paper to the publisher in return for publication. If you are unsure of what rights a publisher has over your work, you can look them up at SHERPA/RoMeo--a website that provides a summary of journal publishers' archiving and copyright policies. Many publishers also provide information about their policies on their own websites.

    A publisher's default policy may be modified by negotiation in individual publishing agreements or through the use of an author's addendum. If you are interested in pursuing this option, we recommend use of the SPARC Author Addendum. Information on how to use this addendum, as well as a link to the PDF can be found here: http://www.sparc.arl.org/resources/authors/addendum. You must include the addendum prior to accepting the publishing agreement.

    You can contact DIR staff (repository@rit.edu) for assistance with requesting copyright clearances for previously published materials and to obtain information on how to retain rights for future work.


    For published articles and papers, which version should I submit? Can I post a reprint from a journal?

    It depends on what the journal allows, which is usually specified in their agreement with the author.

    An article often exists in several different versions:

    • Author's Draft: the version of the paper initially submitted to a journal publisher for consideration, or any earlier draft (the SHERPA/RoMeo site refers to this as a "pre-print").
    • Author's Final Version: the version of the paper accepted by the journal publication, including all modifications from the publishing peer review process (the SHERPA/RoMeo site refers to this as a "post-print").
    • Published Version: the version of the paper distributed by the publisher to readers of the journal, incorporating any copy editing done by the publisher, showing the final page layout and formatting of the published version, and possibly including the publisher's logo.

    Very few publishers allow for authors to re-post the exact article printed in the journal. If it does not violate copyright to post the pre-print or reprint on a repository site, you're welcome to do so. Permissions for many publishers can be found at SHERPA/RoMeo.


    A working paper I submitted to the DIR has been published in a slightly revised form in a journal. What should I do?

    Many journals do not have any restrictions on working papers that preceded an article, especially if substantial revisions were made. You should check your author agreement with the journal to confirm that there is no problem with leaving the working paper on the site. The DIR constitutes noncommercial use.

    Assuming the working paper does remain posted in the DIR, it is a good idea to include the citation to the published article on the cover page of the repository working paper. Please contact DIR staff (repository@rit.edu) to request this change.


    What if my work includes copyrighted materials owned by a third party?

    If you are submitting an article or other work that includes third-party material protected by copyright (such as an image) for distribution in the DIR, you must have permission to incorporate that material and to allow it to be posted in the DIR as part of your work. Depending on the situation/context, usage of third party materials may be covered under Fair Use (http://infoguides.rit.edu/copyright, http://fairuse.stanford.edu), in which case, no further authorization is needed.


    What rights will RIT have over works I submit to the DIR?

    Submission of works to the DIR grants RIT the nonexclusive right to host this material. Submissions are intended for educational purposes only. The original copyright holders will retain all rights. As part of the submission process, authors must agree to the RIT Scholar Works Contributor Agreement.


    What rights can I claim over works I submit to the DIR?

    All works on the DIR are considered Open Access. You (or the original copyright holder) retain any rights that you currently hold over the work, provided you are willing to have the work freely available online--as per the the DIR Contributor Agreement. You may additionally choose to apply a Creative Commons license to the work when it is submitted.

    • What is Open Access?

      Open Access refers to unrestricted online access of scholarly research. This means that scholarly works are freely available to the user without cost and without having to seek additional permissions for use. Open Access removes the barriers of toll access, which results in greater availability of information for both the public and academic spheres.

    • What is the Creative Commons License?

      Creative Commons licenses are public copyright licenses that enable an otherwise copyrighted work to be freely accessible, at varying levels, without having to release it to the public domain. There is a Creative Commons field available on the submission form if you choose to use one. For more information, visit: https://creativecommons.org/licences.

    What if someone else wants to use my work?

    As stated above, all works posted on the DIR are considered Open Accessvand therefore free to read and use without having to seek author permission first. If you would like to indicate certain limits on what others can do with your work, you can add a Creative Commons license (https://creativecommons.org/licences) during the submission process.


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    Technical FAQ and How-To

    Many of the procedures below are outlined in greater detail in our RIT Scholar Works User Guide. For any other questions you may have, or if you would like assistance, please feel free to contact DIR staff at repository@rit.edu.

    What is the process for submitting a work?

    Log into RIT Scholar Works with your RIT computer account.

    In the right sidebar there is a "Submit" link in the Author Corner. On the next page, select the type of work you are submitting.

    Write an abstract for your work. It should be approximately 250 words unless you are submitting a previously published work with a long abstract. Please also select keywords. These are words that will help users locate your paper through a search.

    After you submit your work, it will be reviewed by RIT Scholar Works staff. You will be notified by email of their decision.

    If it is a textual work, make sure it is in an acceptable format. We can accept papers in Microsoft Word, Rich Text Format (RTF), or Adobe Acrobat (PDF). PDFs are auto-generated by the site for submissions that are not already in PDF format.

    For works that are non-textual (PowerPoints, videos, audio, other multimedia), contact us at repository@rit.edu and we can provide you with more information depending on the format of your work.

    For more detailed instructions, see the RIT Scholar Works User Guide and the the Digital Institutional Repository Contributor Agreement.

    What is the process for submitting a Graduate Capstone/Master's Project, Undergraduate Senior Project, or Graduate Thesis or Dissertation?

    Graduate theses and dissertations submitted to ProQuest are automatically submitted to the DIR on the student's behalf.

    Graduate Capstone/Master's Projects that are not submitted to ProQuest can also be included in the DIR. For inclusion, it must be submitted by an RIT faculty or staff member on the students' behalf (see instructions below). Remember to exclude signatures from the electronic version of the paper and include up to five keywords. You DO NOT need to create a DIR cover page--this will be automatically generated when your work is uploaded. You only need to include the cover page as indicated in the Thesis Instructions guide.

    If you are a Master's student at RIT's Kosovo campus, submit your Graduate Capstone Project to your main advisor, and your advisor will submit your project to RIT Libraries on your behalf. All project files from RIT's Kosovo campus must be submitted in PDF format.

    Undergraduate Theses and Senior Projects must also be submitted by a faculty member on the student’s behalf.

    To submit on behalf of a student: Faculty members should email repository@rit.edu with the following: PDF file of student’s work, Degree name, Department name, Publication date, Advisor(s).

    For RIT's official instructions regarding theses, dissertations and master's projects, see Information & Services for Graduate Students: How to Submit Your Thesis/Dissertation.

    My department/degree/document type is not listed as an option on the submission form. What should I do?

    In the event that our records do not yet reflect a name change that has occurred or a new unit that has been created, please contact repository@rit.edu and let us know about the discrepancy. Please do NOT add another degree or department in place of the one you intend to list. Degrees and departments frequently change names and we do our best to provide accurate information. By contacting us, you help us keep our records up-to-date.

    I don't have electronic versions of old working papers that I'd like to include in the DIR. Is it okay to scan the printed page to a PDF file?

    Yes, as long as it meets our submission and copyright criteria; scanning printed pages is a great way to create PDF files for inclusion in RIT Scholar Works.

    For more information on the scanning process, see the RIT Scholar Works User Guide. If you would like assistance with scanning your papers, contact DIR staff at: repository@rit.edu.

    When I copy and paste abstracts into the in a Submit form, some formatted text reverts to plain text. What's going on?

    When copying abstracts from a word processing or PDF file, and pasting the text into the submission form, you are taking text from an environment that supports fonts and text style changes. Because the abstract is intended to be presented on the web, text styles must be specified using HTML codes. Some formatting options are provided in the abstract module. You can also add your own HTML tags by selecting that option on the form.

    For more information on what HTML tags are recognized by the system, check the RIT Scholar Works User Guide.

    How do I include accents and special characters in the abstracts and titles?

    RIT Scholar Works' software supports the worldwide character set (Unicode, utf-8). Accents, symbols, and other special characters may be copied and pasted into the abstract or title field from a word processing file or typed in directly.

    Windows users may also use the Character Map (Start>Search "Character Map") to insert these characters. Macintosh users may use the Character Palette (available via Edit > Special Characters in the Finder).

    How do I report an error or missing page

    To revise a submission that has been posted to RIT Scholar Works, or to notify us of an error, contact the RIT Scholar Works staff with the new version: repository@rit.edu.

    During the submission process, you can save and return to your submission later to add more or to edit. Instructions on how to do so can be found in the RIT Scholar Works User Guide

    Please note that revisions are generally not accepted after you have submitted a work.

    Can I post related files (sound clips, data sets, etc.) alongside the published work?

    Yes-- the DIR refers to these supplementary items as "Associated Files." You will be prompted to submit Associated Files when you upload your submissions. The name of the files you upload will appear on the web site along with your short description of it. Viewers must have the necessary software to open your files; it is not provided by the DIR.

    Please be sure that there are no permissions issues related to use of the associated material. Sometimes, especially with images, you must seek permission to use the material before it can be posted. See: What if my work includes copyrighted materials owned by a third party?

    Also note that where possible, items such as images, charts, and tables that are referenced in the work (or otherwise an integral part of the work) should be included directly in the article itself and not posted just as associated files.

    How can I submit a multi-part file, such as multiple chapters for a book?

    Combine all the sections together as one Microsoft Word file or PDF file and submit that.

    If you feel that the one large PDF file might be too large for some people to download, we suggest that you submit the consolidated file as the full-text of the article, and then upload the separate chapters or section of the work as Associated Files. These files will appear on the web page alongside the complete work. For more information about uploading associated files, see the RIT Scholar Works User Guide.


    Have any questions or concerns that were not addressed above? Feel free to contact us at repository@rit.edu.

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