Q. How do I give the public access to my thesis?

The University’s Open Access to Research Policy mandates that publications and outputs of research conducted at Western (including research data) will be appropriately archived and made discoverable via University's institutional publications repository, ResearchDirect. for redistribution, wherever possible.

In keeping with these commitments, the following materials are made available on the web, via the University's institutional publications repository, ResearchDirect.

• Author deposits a PDF copy of their thesis (excluding the signed Statement of Attainment page)
• The University, or if not possible the author, sources Publisher Versions of Reportable Research Publication and deposits it into ResearchDirect. 
• If the Publisher Version of a publication cannot be made openly available, the author must deposit the most complete draft version in which they hold copyright;
• Authors of non-Reportable Research, refer to the  ResearchDirect Guidelines) makes these publications available in the repository
• Author or depositor, at the time of deposit into ResearchDirect, must provide details about any intellectual property, commercial, privacy, licensing, and/or ethical constraints on the redistribution of the publication.

Making your thesis publicly available via ResearchDirect has the following benefits:

• Allows more exposure and influence for your research.
• Helps build your scholarly reputation and research profile.
• Practitioners can apply your findings.
• Other researchers, especially in developing areas, can see and easily access your work.

• Through ResearchDirect, you:

• ensure that a digital copy of your thesis is preserved.
• receive a permanent and citable web link to your thesis.
• can track the usage of your thesis.

For further information, refer to  Open Access (OA) guide as this includes different pathways to making your work open, OA funder policies, and OA at Western Sydney University.