This page is part of MIT's Guidelines for Ethical Authorship and Publication Practices.
Since 2023, MIT students generally own the copyright to their theses, while giving MIT permission to archive and share the work through MIT Libraries. However, if your thesis includes figures, images, or other material created by third parties, it’s important to consider whether that content is copyrighted and whether your use qualifies as fair use. Often, you may not need permission at all—MIT Libraries have agreements with many major publishers that allow reuse of content in theses at no cost. When fair use or library licenses don’t apply, you may need to request permission from the copyright holder of that material. Publishers often control the copyright to journal articles. If you plan to include your own previously published articles in your thesis—or publish articles based on your thesis—be sure to check the publisher’s policies on reuse and prior publication. For help, the MIT Libraries’ Scholarly Communications team and your advisor are great resources.