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APA 7th Edition — Theses & Dissertations

APA 7 Citation Generator for Theses and Dissertations

Cite master's theses and doctoral dissertations in APA 7 format. Handles published (ProQuest, institutional repository) and unpublished versions with the correct bracket labels.

APA 7 Format for Theses and Dissertations

Published doctoral dissertation (repository):

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the dissertation [Doctoral dissertation, University Name]. Repository. URL

Published dissertation (ProQuest):

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the dissertation (Publication No. xxxxxxxx) [Doctoral dissertation, University Name]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

Master's thesis (published):

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the master's thesis [Master's thesis, University Name]. Repository. URL

Unpublished dissertation or thesis:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the work [Unpublished doctoral dissertation / Unpublished master's thesis]. University Name.

APA 7 Thesis Citation Examples

Published dissertation (institutional repository)

Paste the repository URL to auto-fill metadata

Lastname, F. I. (2023). Title of the doctoral dissertation: Subtitle for context [Doctoral dissertation, University Name]. University Repository. https://repository.university.edu/example-id

Published dissertation (ProQuest)

Include the ProQuest Publication Number when available

Lastname, F. I. (2022). Title of the dissertation (Publication No. 12345678) [Doctoral dissertation, University Name]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

Master's thesis (published)

Same format as dissertation, with "Master's thesis" label

Lastname, F. I. (2024). Title of the master's thesis [Master's thesis, University Name]. University Repository. https://repository.university.edu/example-id

Unpublished dissertation

No URL, no repository — the institution name is the final field

Lastname, F. I. (2021). Title of the unpublished dissertation [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. University Name.

How to cite a thesis in APA 7 — 3 steps

1

Locate the thesis

Find the thesis on ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, the university's institutional repository, or the author's personal archive page.

2

Collect the metadata

Author, year, title, degree type (master's vs doctoral), institution, and source (ProQuest, repository, or unpublished). Paste the URL into CiteMe to auto-fill most fields.

3

Generate the citation

CiteMe formats the thesis with the correct bracket label, italicized title, and URL. Copy it for your References page.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you cite a thesis or dissertation in APA 7?

APA 7 template: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the thesis or dissertation [Unpublished doctoral dissertation / Unpublished master's thesis / Doctoral dissertation, University Name]. Source (Repository or ProQuest). URL. Use "[Doctoral dissertation, University]" for published/archived versions and "[Unpublished master's thesis]" when not publicly available.

What is the difference between published and unpublished dissertations?

In APA 7, "published" means deposited in a repository or database where others can access it — ProQuest Dissertations & Theses, an institutional repository, or a personal archive with a stable URL. "Unpublished" means only the university archives hold it, with no public access. The citation format differs slightly: published dissertations include the source and URL; unpublished ones include only the bracket label and institution.

How do you cite a ProQuest dissertation in APA 7?

For ProQuest: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the dissertation (Publication No. xxxxxx) [Doctoral dissertation, University Name]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global. Include the ProQuest Publication Number when available. CiteMe generates this automatically when you paste a ProQuest URL.

How do you cite a master's thesis in APA?

APA 7 uses "master's thesis" (lowercase) in the bracket label. Template: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the thesis [Master's thesis, University Name]. Repository or Database. URL. For unpublished theses, use "[Unpublished master's thesis]" and include only the institution, no URL.

Should I italicize the thesis title in APA 7?

Yes. APA 7 italicizes the title of a thesis or dissertation in the reference list (treated as a standalone work, like a book). The bracket description "[Doctoral dissertation, University]" is NOT italicized — only the actual title is.

How do I cite a thesis from an institutional repository?

Paste the institutional repository URL (e.g., https://repository.upenn.edu/exampleurl) into CiteMe. Most university repositories embed structured metadata that the tool can extract. Provide the author, title, degree, institution, and year — CiteMe formats them per APA 7 with the repository name as the Source.

What goes in the in-text citation for a dissertation?

Same as any APA 7 citation: (Author, Year) or Author (Year) in narrative form. Example: Research shows a positive effect (Last, 2023) or Last (2023) found a positive effect. No special rule for dissertations — only the reference-list entry uses the bracket description.

Cite Other Source Types in APA 7

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Cite a Thesis in APA 7

Paste a ProQuest, repository, or institutional URL — your APA 7 thesis citation is ready in seconds.

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