Guidance Document - Controlled Thesis Submission Process

Updated 02-07-2025

Students who have controlled theses/dissertations must submit their documents through the Research Security and Export Controls (RSEC) Office. Data subject to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and/or Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) must meet specific federal security requirements and cannot be handled or stored in standard university systems.Theses with these security designations and requirements cannot be submitted to the Hammer Research Repository.

Scope

These procedures are applicable to theses and dissertations that were derived from or contain data that are designated as controlled by government regulation or proprietary to the source.

Process

There are multiple steps involved in submitting a controlled thesis:

• Formatting (Thesis and Dissertation Office)
• Plagiarism Check (Thesis and Dissertation Office)
• Marking
• Submittal
• Presentations
• Secure System Storage
• Previously Stored Theses

Formatting (Thesis and Dissertation Office)

Thesis and Dissertation Office formatting guidance must be done in person. Generally, controlled theses are limited to access by U.S. persons only. For guidance with formatting, reach out to thesishelp@purdue.edu to schedule an in-person consultation.

Plagiarism Check (Thesis and Dissertation Office)

Export controlled theses cannot go through iThenticate. Plagiarism check will be conducted manually by the Thesis and Dissertation Office.

Contact Nicole Moody (nbarr@purdue.edu) for guidance on completing the iThenticate section on the Electronic Thesis Acceptance Form (Form 9).

Marking

The document should be marked in accordance with the relevant regulations. Additional information on Marking research documents, including theses can be found here.

• If the thesis contains CUI, each page should include a banner/header with the following label: CUI//EXPT

• For theses that are export controlled but do not contain CUI, include a general export control disclaimer on title page: WARNING - The information within this file is subject to the U.S. export control regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (“ITAR”) and the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”). Use and dissemination within the United States is subject to restrictions. Any unauthorized transfer of this information to non-authorized entities or for non-authorized purposes is strictly prohibited. The recipient is responsible for ensuring compliance with all applicable U.S. export control regulations. Any violation of these export control provisions may result in severe penalties under U.S. law.

Submittal

Contact rsec@purdue.edu with “Controlled Thesis Submittal” in the subject line and include the required information below in the email to request access to a secure submission portal. Controlled theses MUST NOT be submitted to the Hammer Research Repository.

Required Information

• Advisor name
• Thesis Title
• Current location of thesis and related data
• Corresponding Technology Control Plan (TCP) number and project name, if known
• Thesis/dissertation committee members
• Estimated graduation date
• Estimated preliminary exam date, if applicable

Presentations

For controlled thesis projects, RSEC must review and approve anyone invited to participate in the student’s preliminary exam/defense. Participation in the presentation of the thesis/dissertation is limited to U.S. persons. RSEC requires the participant list, including the thesis committee members, at least five business days in advance of the presentation. Submit the participant list to rsec@purdue.edu.

Secure System Storage

Controlled theses must be stored in a Purdue-approved secure environment, which is maintained by RSEC.

For Controlled Theses that are already in a Purdue secure system, requests to move controlled theses out of the secure environment must be reviewed and approved by RSEC.