All PhD candidates must personally register their doctoral thesis in The Norwegian Research Information Repository (NVA) for archiving once they receive the final approved file from the printing service. Publishing the thesis with an open file is optional.

Norsk versjon: Registrere og publisere doktoravhandling

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How to Register a Doctoral Thesis in The Norwegian Research Information Repository

Once you have received the final approved file from the printing service, you must register it in NVA.

• Create a new entry in NVA and upload the file.
• Enter the title, abstract, and metadata such as ISBN, series number, language, year, and contributors.
• Select 'Doctoral Thesis' under the category tab.
• Choose 'Open File' and 'General Terms of Use' as usage conditions.
• Save and finish.

NTNU University Library will then review the file and metadata before your registration is approved and archived. Your doctoral thesis will not be published with an open file unless you choose to do so. Only the abstract and metadata will be visible to the public.

To make your thesis openly available, you must sign an author agreement that grants permission for this. There is no deadline for making your doctoral thesis openly available.

How to Publish a Doctoral Thesis with accessible file in The Norwegian Research Information Repository

If you want your doctoral thesis to be published with accessible file in NVA, you must also sign and upload the Author Agreement for Consent to Electronic Publishing of Doctoral Thesis at the same time as you upload your thesis file.

Include the following in a separate attachment to the agreement:

• Information about whether you, a publisher, or others hold the rights to the material.
• Status of any manuscripts and articles included in the thesis.

In addition to reviewing the file and metadata, NTNU University Library will check the rights for your included articles. Unpublished material will be removed from your thesis before publication unless you request that it be retained.

NTNU University Library archives the author agreement in Elements.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who has the rights to publish the thesis if it is a monograph (not a collection of articles)?
You hold all rights yourself. Submit the author agreement to publish the thesis openly.

Who has the rights to publish the thesis if it is a collection of articles?
As the author, you hold the copyright to the abstract and can publish it electronically in The Norwegian Research Information Repository (NVA) without issue. For published articles where an author agreement has been signed with a publisher, the publisher’s guidelines apply. In these cases, journals may hold the rights to the articles, while you retain the rights to the compiled thesis. The library will investigate journal policies and help determine whether all or parts of the thesis can be published openly.

Can I make my doctoral thesis available later?
Yes, you can make your thesis available at any time. When you wish to publish it, submit the signed author agreement—either by uploading it as a file to your thesis in NVA or by emailing it to nva@ub.ntnu.no.

You can check applicable rights at Jisc Open Policy Finder.

Contact

If you have questions about registering research and NVA reporting, please contact us at nva@ub.ntnu.no.
For other questions, please contact NTNU Help or ask your local library.

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