Columbia University Archives: Master's Essays & Dissertations

How to Find a Dissertation

• Ph.D. dissertations can be found in the Columbia University library catalog, CLIO. They usually have a call number that begins with COY, CWO CXO, CZO or LD1237.
• Another way to search for dissertation titles and authors is to consult a set of publications printed by the University listing authors alphabetically and arranging dissertations by department for a particular year. You can find links to these volumes in the Online Essay and Theses Lists tab above. The University Archives paper copies of these publications can be requested via three different CLIO records: 
  • List of theses submitted by candidates for the degree of doctor of philosophy in Columbia University, 1872-1910.
  • Master's Essays and Doctoral Dissertations from 1951/1952 through 1956/1957 (call number CW4 C724)
  • Master's Essays and Doctoral Dissertations from 1957/58 through 1970/1971 (call number CW4 C724);
  • Doctoral Dissertations from 1971/1972 through 1987/1988 (call number CW4 C725). 

After 1987/1988 you can find annual lists of Doctoral Dissertations in Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) Convocation Programs which can be accessed via our Commencement Collection. To request access to the cataloged publications go to the appropriate CLIO record and click on the link that says “Request from Special Collections”. At this point you may be prompted to log back into your Special Collections Research Account to schedule the retrieval date and once you do that you should see the request listed in your account.
 

How to Get a Copy

• To request to see a dissertation in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library (RBML) reading room, you will first need to create a Special Collections Research Account. Once you have your account, look for the dissertation in CLIO. From the catalog record, select "Request: Special Collections" on the right side of the page. You will then be able to add the request to your account. Please note that these volumes are stored offsite. We prefer 5 business days advanced notice to retrieve materials from offsite storage, but require at least 3 business days to process such requests.​
   
• Full text copies of dissertations published since 1997 (and some earlier dates) are available to Columbia UNI holders via ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global database. Non-Columbia patrons may order copies via ProQuest Dissertation Express. Various formats & fees apply.
   
• Academic Commons holds the full text of doctoral theses written since 2011 at Columbia. The repository also holds a comprehensive collection of Teachers College dissertations written since 2018, as well as many Teachers College dissertations written from 2011-18. Some dissertations from Union Theological Seminary, and from Columbia and Teachers College before 2011, are also available. If you are the author, or an heir of the author, of a doctoral dissertation written at Columbia or one of its affiliate institutions, and you would like to make a digital copy available in Academic Commons, please contact repository staff at ac@columbia.edu.
   
• If a dissertation is not available via Proquest, you may request a copy from the University Archives. There is no charge for a PDF copy of  dissertation serviced by the University Archives up to 650 pages in length. We reserve the right to charge a fee of $30.00 for each additional title requested. To place an order, please complete, sign and return the Photocopy or PDF Form. If payment is required, it can be made by MasterCard or Visa credit card at a secure online link provided by the Libraries' Financial Office.
   
• There is no fee for theses that have been already been digitized. Please consult the list of previously scanned and available Master's Essays and Theses. To place an order, please complete, sign and return the Photocopy or PDF Form and indicate you are requesting a previously scanned title. 

School of the Arts Writing Division MFA theses can be found in the Columbia University library catalog, CLIO. They usually have a call number that begins with ARTSMA.

• To request to see an MFA thesis in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library (RBML) reading room, you will first need to create a Special Collections Research Account. Once you have your account, look for the thesis in CLIO. From the catalog record, select "Request: Special Collections" on the right side of the page. You will then be able to add the request to your account. Please note that these volumes are normally stored offsite. We prefer 5 business days advanced notice to retrieve materials from offsite storage, but require at least three business days to process such requests.
   
• To request a copy of a School of the Arts Writing Division MFA Thesis, written permission of the author (or the deceased author's estate) is required. Researchers should request permission via SOA Writing Division Office (212-854-4391; writing@columbia.edu). Once permission is received, the reproduction order can be processed.
   
• There is no charge for a PDF copy of a MFA thesis serviced by the University Archives up to 650 pages in length. We reserve the right to charge a fee of $30.00 for each additional title requested. To place an order, please complete, sign and return the Photocopy or PDF Form. If payment is required, it can be made by MasterCard or Visa credit card at a secure online link provided by the Libraries' Financial Office.
   
• There is no fee for copies of MFA theses that have been already been digitized. Please consult the list of previously scanned and available Master's Essays and Theses. To place an order, please complete, sign and return the Photocopy or PDF Form and indicate you are requesting a previously scanned title.

To find Master's Essay and Doctoral Dissertation titles and authors, please consult the set of publications linked to below.  Printed by the Libraries, these volumes list authors alphabetically and arrange essays by department for a particular year.  Please note that some volumes list only Masters' Essays, some only Dissertations and only a few print both.

List of theses submitted by candidates for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

• 1872-1910

Masters’ Essays (List of essays submitted for the Master’s degree)

• 1891-1917
• 1918
• 1919
• 1920
• 1921
• 1922
• 1923
• 1924
• 1925
• 1926
• 1927
• 1928
• 1929
• 1930
• 1931
• 1932
• 1933
• 1934
• 1935
• 1936
• 1937
• 1938
• 1939
• 1940
• 1941
• 1942
• 1943-1953

Masters' Essays and Doctoral Dissertations

• 1952-1960
• 1966-1971

Doctoral Dissertations

• 1971-1974
• 1974-1976
• 1976-1977
• 1977-1981
• 1981-1987