FAQs

I don’t see my field, area, or discipline on Dissertation Reviews. Can I recommend a new branch?

Yes, absolutely. Each season, we accept applications for new series. The call for new fields is announced on or around December 1 of each year, with applications due on or around March 30. Please stay tuned for further details.

Does Dissertation Reviews post dissertations online?

No, Dissertation Reviews does not post dissertations online, or make them available in any way.  We only post reviews.

Do you contact authors before reviewing their dissertations?

Yes. Before featuring a review on the site, we make contact with the author and ask for his or her permission.

Who are the reviewers?

Our reviewers are early-career scholars:  junior faculty, post-docs, advanced (post-generals) Ph.D. students, and others at this career stage.

Can I suggest a reviewer for my dissertation?

Absolutely. When you make contact with us, please let us know if there is someone you would like us to approach about reviewing your dissertation.

How do you choose which dissertations to review?

We currently do not have the personnel to review all dissertations currently being defended, though that is our goal. At present, we choose dissertations based upon the willingness of the author and the availability of a suitable reviewer (i.e., a reviewer with appropriate expertise to offer a thoughtful review).

Are the reviews critical?

No. It is the policy of this review site not to publish critical reviews of dissertations. In the spirit of constructive feedback and improvement, however, reviewers also send private criticism to his/her respective author regarding areas for improvement.

Does the author receive any critical feedback?

Yes. In addition to the review itself, the reviewer also prepares a separate private email for the author (which is not published on the site) in which constructive criticism is offered.

How can I review for Dissertation Reviews?

We would be very interested in having you review for us. To be eligible, you must be an early-career scholar, ranging from advanced (post-generals) Ph.D. student to junior professor. To sign up, please click here.

How can I get my dissertation reviewed on Dissertation Reviews?

To request a review of your dissertation, please provide the necessary information on our Request for Review page.

Why hasn’t my dissertation/my advisee’s dissertation been reviewed?

Unfortunately, due to limited personnel it is not possible for Dissertation Reviews to review all of the relevant dissertations defended each year. That said, we do our best to review as many of them as possible, guided by whether or not we are able to match the dissertation with a reviewer whose area of expertise pairs well with that of the author. Also, due to our goal of reviewing only recently defended and unpublished work, a review will not appear on Dissertation Reviews if you or your student’s dissertation was defended prior to 2011. We do encourage you to make contact with us, however, if you think there is a dissertation that should be featured.

Does Dissertation Reviews review every dissertation each year?

Due to limited personnel, and in rare cases when authors do not wish to have their dissertations reviewed, Dissertation Reviews is not able to review every relevant dissertation each year.

I would like to read one of the dissertations featured on Dissertation Reviews. Can I get it from you?

Dissertation Reviews does not provide copies of original dissertations – only reviews. To acquire a copy of a given dissertation, we recommend using the Proquest search engine.

Do you review dissertations from universities outside the U.S.?

Yes. While Dissertation Reviews is starting off with an American academic focus, one of our goals is to begin reviewing dissertations defended in departments outside of the U.S. and written in languages other than English. If you are interested in helping us with this goal, please let us know. In such cases, our goal would be to have your review published both in English and the language of the dissertation.