Initial Submission

Initial submission to the SGS should coincide with the submission of the T/D to one’s supervisory committee (which should occur at least two weeks before one’s defense) or by the deadlines posted on the Theses and Dissertations web page—whichever comes first.

To submit one's T/D, a student should start the online Preliminary Approval Kuali form and attach the following items to it before submitting:

1. A PDF of their thesis or dissertation draft
2. A PDF of an Adobe PDF Accessibility Report of their thesis or dissertation draft
3. Recommended, but not required: A PDF of the PAC accessibility checker's WCAG 2.2, or higher, report
   • Note: Students' use of the PAC checker should only be done if using the CURRENT downloadable PAC PC version. Students should NOT use web versions of accessibility checkers.

• Lastname-FirstName-Thesis (or Dissertation)-SemesterAbbreviationYear.pdf
  • (e.g., Doe-Kay-Dissertation-SP26.pdf)

On this form, students will also provide their planned T/D defense date, the title of their T/D, and indicate the citation style they are using in their document.

Students also need to complete the MOSpace License Agreement Kuali form as part of this process.

If needed, students may submit a Thesis-Dissertation Embargo Request Kuali form to delay the release of the publication.

Format Review

After a student has submitted their T/D with the required forms to the SGS, they will typically be notified within one to four weeks that the initial format review is complete. Students will be notified of what formatting revisions, if any, they need to complete. They can schedule a formatting consultation with Program Manager, Sarah Beach, within one week after they have been provided feedback, to discuss the review and receive formatting guidance. Students should complete formatting revisions and follow the instructions provided.

SGS program managers do not troubleshoot for digital accessibility issues in T/D documents.

• Students can utilize the resources provided on the UMKC Digital Accessibility web page.
• There are additional resources listed on the SGS web page Theses and Dissertations.
• Microsoft Support and Adobe, for Acrobat Pro, offer instructions, including videos.
• Students are encouraged to schedule consultations with the Graduate Writing Initiative.

The deadlines for T/D defenses in the term a student plans to graduate are posted on the Theses and Dissertations web page.

The deadlines for T/D format reviews, defenses, form submission, and submission to ProQuest are posted on the Theses and Dissertations web page.

Immediately following the T/D defense, the supervisory committee chair/primary advisor should initiate the online Kuali forms, which must be submitted to the SGS by the deadlines for the term the student plans to graduate:

1. T/D Defense Results (to be completed by all committee members within 48 hours of the defense) and
2. T/D Final Approvals of the final written document by the committee (due before the student can submit to ProQuest).
   • Several tasks are completed as part of this form
     
     • The Supervisory Committee Chair (or approved designee in the unit) initiates the form
     • Students verify their title and upload two files, and a third is recommended:
       1. A PDF of their final T/D (following formatting guidelines and UMKC digital accessibility instructions)
       2. A PDF of the Adobe PDF Accessibility Report of their T/D showing they passed all criteria (32 of 32 Options in all categories of the document)
       3. Recommended, but not required at this time: A PDF of the PAC accessibility checker's WCAG 2.2, or higher, report showing 100 percent compliance 
          • Note: Students’ use of the PAC checker should only be done using the CURRENT downloadable PAC PC version and the downloadable MAC version after it is available later in 2026. Students should NOT use web versions of accessibility checkers.
     • Each committee member submits their evaluation
     • After having viewed and approved the final document and its accessibility report(s), the Supervisory Committee Chair completes the Attestation of Final Approval step and submits the form to the SGS for format review

Any additional assessment forms needed by an individual unit/program are not included in this process.

After the SGS receives the T/D Defense Results and T/D Final Approvals Kuali forms, with the required items, the SGS staff complete a final format check. Students will be notified if they need to complete formatting revisions and resubmit their T/D for format review before they are approved to submit a PDF/A of their document to ProQuest.

The deadlines for T/D format reviews, defenses, form submission, and submission to ProQuest are posted on the Theses and Dissertations web page.

Once all formatting corrections have been completed by the student, the SGS will issue a certificate of acceptance of the T/D and give them instructions on how to submit it as a PDF/A to UMKC’s Electronic Thesis and Dissertation (ETD) Administrator ProQuest.

Please Note: If a T/D is found to be unacceptable or incomplete, students may be asked to consult with their advisor/supervisory committee and reapply for graduation and resubmit their T/D for a future semester.

• Warning! Papers submitted to ProQuest before SGS format review and certification will be deleted from the system.

After a student uploads their PDF/A and completes their submission to ProQuest, then it is checked by SGS staff. If it is the correct file and the submission is complete, it can be accepted. Next, the SGS staff will finalize the certification and notify the UMKC Office of the Registrar the student completed the T/D requirement for graduation.

After an ETD has been delivered to ProQuest, then the abstract and citation, and in most cases the full-text version, will be available through ProQuest and MOspace, which is a digital institutional repository for the University of Missouri System.

Please see the Theses and Dissertations web page for more information.