University Microfilms International (UMI), the firm that makes it possible for scholars throughout the world to consult your dissertation, offers to register the copyright of your dissertation with the Library of Congress Copyright Office. As you are making the decision whether or not to register your copyright, you should know that any work of original authorship is protected by copyright even without registration. It is our understanding, however, that without the registration of copyright, you cannot sue someone who infringes on your copyright for statutory damages. If you choose to do so yourself, you may register your copyright at anytime within five years of the completion of your dissertation. If you choose to have UMI register the copyright for you (See page A5 “Authorization to Apply for Registration of My Claim to Copyright”) please pay the appropriate fee “with copyright option”.

UMI will include your title in its database, your abstract in its catalog of abstracts, and will make available in microfilm or paper copy your dissertation to researchers who request it. The firm will pay you a royalty if the number of copies of your work ordered exceeds a specified limit. The agreement you sign with UMI does not preclude you from making any other publishing arrangements for your work. Please complete and sign the UMI agreement (See page A5 “Dissertation Publication Agreement”), and include it and a copy of your traditional title page and abstract with your dissertation packet.

Because your work will be published by UMI, it may be necessary for you to obtain the written permission of the copyright owner of copyrighted material you use in your dissertation. If you reproduce a survey or questionnaire in your dissertation, if you use a copyrighted photo or piece of music, or if you have numerous large quotations from the same source, then you must obtain permission for your own use and permission for the use of UMI from the copyright owner.

The UMI agreement form asks finally if you are willing to have your work reproduced by the Library of Congress for the blind and handicapped. There is no fee or obligation entailed in this request, and your giving your permission might make possible the work of a scholar who would not otherwise have access to your research.

You will also find at the back of the UMI brochure a Pre-Publication Discount Order Form (page A3) which you may use to order extra copies of your dissertation. If you choose to order these copies, please mail the form to UMI with your payment directly to the address provided in the booklet. This is not submitted with the dissertation packet to the GSAS.

For more information, visit UMI Online.

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