When the oral defense is passed, students undergo manuscript preparation, formerly copyediting. To initiate the process, the department manager or Dissertation Designee must submit the Dissertation Processing Tracking Form through Maxient. Before transitioning to the manuscript preparation phase, students and the department must ensure the manuscript fulfills all committee required components and revisions. Once the department has submitted the Dissertation Processing Tracking Form to Dissertation Processing ([email protected]), Dissertation Processing will notify students to proceed with manuscript processing. Department managers and designees do not submit the thesis/dissertation for students.
Writing Specialists review manuscripts for APA style, formatting, and grammar issues, and prepare them for publication via ProQuest. They do not review for content in theses and dissertations. The entire manuscript preparation process, including revisions, could take up to 60 days after students upload to ProQuest as an Initial Review.
The final manuscript must be neat and clean, free of typing, grammatical, and format errors. Students are responsible for editing and proofreading the final thesis or dissertation before and during manuscript processing. When a TCSPP manuscript preparer reviews the final draft and highlights required changes, students are responsible for accurate transcription of the document presented and for uniformity of alignment, grammar, citations/references, and all other mechanics of typing.
Any errors will result in additional costs and will delay final approval of the manuscript.
Before final submission, it is students' responsibility to ensure the manuscript is ready for publishing and adheres to the TCSPP Style and Format Manual. Students must remain continuously enrolled in their degree program to complete manuscript preparation. From Planning to Post Defense, students will find information here to guide them toward fulfilling the manuscript preparation requirement. The Manuscript Preparation Institutional policy can be found in the policy section of the
student handbook. Additional resources and guides for preparing the manuscript:
Formatting Resources
All-But Dissertation Survival Guide
APA PERRLA
Bold-Ed Papermaker Program
How to Format Reference List Video-Presented by Purdue OWL
OWL Purdue Online Writing Lab
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Dissertation Format Checklist
Empirical Research Example
Style and Format Model Pages
TCSPP Style and Format Manual
The Filing Process
Electronic Processing- Students must upload the document in full text on the
ProQuest website. Dissertations and theses are also viewable through the ProQuest website.
Manuscript Preparation Electronic Submission Process:
STEP 1-Department Sends Tracking Form to Manuscript Preparation Office.
After successful oral defense (if oral defense is required), the Department Manager or Designees submits the Manuscript Processing Tracking Form to the NCTL Manuscript Preparation Maxient site signaling a student's readiness to enter Manuscript Preparation
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STEP 2-Student Receives Submission Instructions and Uploads Manuscript.
Upon receipt of the Tracking Form, NCTL e-mails a welcome letter to students, informing them to create a profile in ProQuest and upload the manuscript for review
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STEP 3-Student is Assigned A Copyeditor.
On the Monday following initial submission of a manuscript to ProQuest, NCTL assigns students a copyeditor, who contacts students to begin the manuscript preparation process.
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STEP 4-Student Begins Review and Revision Process.
The copyeditor confirms receipt of a manuscript, reviews each submission of revisions, and returns it via email, indicating areas of APA writing and formatting.
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STEP 5-Student Enters Final Review Phase and Prepares for Submission.
After the final review of the manuscript, copyeditors return it in a Word document via email for students to make final changes, convert to PDF format, and provide instructions for final submission to ProQuest.
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STEP 6-ProQuest Submission, Department and Registrar Notified.
Students upload final PDF of manuscript to ProQuest. The copyeditor approves manuscript and emails completed Manuscript Processing Tracking Form to student, Chair, Department Manager or Designee, and campus registrar, signaling students' completion of manuscript requirements. The NCTL Manuscript Preparation office delivers manuscript to ProQuest for binding and publishing.
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STEP 7-Dissertation is Published, Student Enters Degree Conferral Phase.
Students enter the conferral phase. All questions regarding degree conferral go the Registrar at [email protected] Any inquiries regarding publishing and binding can be directed to ProQuest Author Relations at 1-800-521-0600.
Ready to submit your dissertation? Click on the Library Pass logo below to get started:

Recordings:
Manuscript Preparation Expectations for Students by Ericka Sanders which includes tips and insight on how to prepare the dissertation or thesis for publishing.
Thesis and Dissertation Formatting Checklist and ProQuest Submission Walkthrough Webinar by Ericka Sanders and Robin Scholz, which provides insight on how to use the Thesis and Dissertation Formatting Checklist during the manuscript writing process and before entering copyediting and an in-depth look at the ProQuest manuscript submission steps and process.
Publishing Options
As a condition of submitting the dissertation or thesis, all students must select a publication agreement with ProQuest. Students may choose Traditional Publishing or Open Access Publishing. Traditional Publishing allows the dissertation or thesis to be available to the public for purchase, and students receive royalties from the profits. Open Access Publishing allows the work to be fully viewed and accessible through PQDT Open, ProQuest's subscription database, and major search engines, if applicable. However, if you choose Open Access, there is a fee.
TCSPP has no publishing preference, and each work submitted is housed in The Chicago School of Professional Psychology Library Catalog with a link to the student's work in ProQuest Dissertations and Theses.
If there are any questions regarding the publishing process, please contact
[email protected] or
Ericka Sanders at 312-379-1611.
If you choose Traditional Publishing |
If you choose Open Access Publishing |
Your dissertation will not be freely available in PQDT Open. |
Your dissertation will be freely available in PQDT Open. |
You will not be charged a fee. |
You will be charged $95.00. |
You will be eligible to receive royalties. |
You will not be eligible to receive royalties.
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Your dissertation will be available for purchase through ProQuest. |
Your dissertation will be available for purchase through ProQuest. |
Your dissertation will appear in ProQuest Dissertations & Theses, a subscription database. |
Your dissertation will appear in ProQuest Dissertations & Theses, a subscription database, and in PQDT Open. |
A record for your dissertation (may include citation, abstract, preview, etc.) will appear in other ProQuest resources, in library catalogs and in indexes. |
A record for your dissertation (may include citation, abstract, preview, etc.) will appear in other ProQuest resources, in library catalogs and in indexes. |
For more information, please contact:
Ericka Sanders
Manager, Dissertations and Theses
The National Center for Teaching and Learning
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 312-410-8953