Q. I am a New School alum looking for a copy of my master's thesis. Can I get this from the library?

The New School Archives and Special Collections collects theses from a limited number of master’s degree programs. Some master’s level thesis collections in The New School Archives are available online, while others are available in print form only or are digital but restricted, requiring an in-person consultation by appointment. Archives staff may be able to provide scanned portions of print theses for credit evaluation and verification purposes.

If the program you are seeking does not appear above, please contact the department that granted your degree. For PhD dissertations, please see the related FAQ answer: http://answers.library.newschool.edu/faq/6827. 

Please contact The New School Archives by email for assistance locating a specific thesis, or to schedule an in-person visit to the Archives: archivist@newschool.edu

Digital theses available online include:

New School Creative Writing MFA program theses, 2015 only

https://digitalarchives.library.newschool.edu/index.php/Browse/objects/facet/collection_facet/id/232

New School for Social Research MA Liberal Studies theses, 1993-2022

https://digitalarchives.library.newschool.edu/index.php/Browse/objects/facet/collection_facet/id/625

Parsons School of Design MFA Design and Technology program theses, 2001-2022

https://digitalarchives.library.newschool.edu/index.php/Browse/objects/facet/collection_facet/id/234

Parsons School of Design MFA Lighting Design program theses, 1987-2017

https://digitalarchives.library.newschool.edu/index.php/Browse/objects/facet/collection_facet/id/457. See the note below for more information about where to find additional theses from this program.

Parsons School of Design MFA Photography program theses, 2005-2019

https://digitalarchives.library.newschool.edu/index.php/Browse/objects/facet/collection_facet/id/236

Print-only theses (requiring appointment)

All print theses are stored offsite and require two weeks advance notice for retrieval.

Note that links provided are to inventories of theses, not to digitally accessible documents.

Julien J. Studley Graduate Program in International Affairs theses, practica, and International Field Program reports, 2003-2015

https://findingaids.archives.newschool.edu/repositories/3/resources/208

The New School Creative Writing MFA program theses, 1998-2011

https://findingaids.archives.newschool.edu/repositories/3/resources/280

Robert J. Milano Graduate School of Management and Urban Professions student papers, 1978-2005

https://findingaids.archives.newschool.edu/repositories/3/resources/309

Parsons School of Design MA Architecture and Design Criticism program theses, 1987-1995

https://findingaids.archives.newschool.edu/repositories/3/resources/339

Parsons School of Design MA Design Studies, 2014-2018

Access to these digital theses is restricted to in-person appointment in the Archives reading room. Visit https://findingaids.archives.newschool.edu/repositories/3/resources/342 to browse the finding aid and collection inventory. 

New School for Social Research MA in Anthropology, Economics, Politics, Psychology, and Sociology

No inventory available. Please inquire by email. 

The joint Parsons School of Design/Cooper Hewitt MA History of Design and Curatorial Studies (formerly MA Decorative Arts and Design) theses are kept at the Cooper Hewitt Research Library. See this FAQ for details. 

Some Parsons School of Design MFA Lighting Design theses are housed at the University Center Library Main Collection. To locate them, search the library catalog using the keywords, ”Master of Fine Arts in Lighting Design" and limit your results to Library (New School)/New School University Center, which will retrieve 69 individual records for theses.