Metadata Implementation Guidelines for UNT ETDs

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Introduction

This document presents the recommendations for modification of the UNT Libraries’ Metadata Element Set in light of the requirements of electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs). The recommendations are based on state wide, national, and International best practices, including: the Texas Digital Library’s (TDL) and the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations’ (NDLTD) metadata standards for ETDs.

Texas Digital Libraries

The Texas Digital Library (TDL) provides a digital infrastructure for the scholarly activities of Texas universities. The Texas Digital Library serves as the center of excellence for the creation, curation, and preservation of digital scholarly information including ETDs.

TDL MODS Application Profile for ETD

The following list (Table-1) outlines the minimum elements for ETDs descriptive metadata for members of TDL. In addition to the following 16 elements (15 mandatory and 1 optional elements), other valid MODS elements may be included in ETD records as appropriate. Detail information regarding the MODS Application Profile for ETD can be found at: TDL home page.

Title Information
    title
    subtitle
Name of Author
    type=personal
    namePart=given
    namePart=family
    namePart=date
    roleTerm=Author
Name of Thesis Advisor
    type=personal
    namePart=given
    namePart=family
    namePart=date
    roleTerm=Thesis advisor
Name of Committee Member [Optional]
    type=personal
    namePart=given
    namePart=family
    namePart=date
    roleTerm=Committee Member
Name of Degree Grantor
    type=corporate
    namePart=University Name
    namePart=Department
    roleTerm=Degree grantor
Type of Resource
    typeOfResource=text
Genre
    genre=theses
    authority=marcgt
Origin Information
    dateCreated
    dateIssued
Language
    languageTerm
Physical Description
    form=electronic
    internetMediaType=application/pdf
    digitalOrigin=born digital
Abstract
Subject
    authority
    topic
    geographic
    temporal
Identifier
    type
Location
    url=permalink
Degree Information
    name=Doctor of Philosophy
    level=Doctoral
    discipline=Educational Administration
Record Information
    recordContentSource
    recordCreationDate
    recordChangeDate
    recordIdentifier

Table 1: The minimum elements for ETDs descriptive metadata for members of TDL

National Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations

The Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (NDLTD) is an international organization dedicated to promoting the adoption, creation, use, dissemination and preservation of electronic analogues to the traditional paper-based theses and dissertations.

Since its inception in 1996, NDLTD has worked to improve graduate education, increase the availability of student research, empower students and universities, advance digital library technology, and lower the costs of submitting and handling ETDs.

NDLTD Metadata Standards Outline

Universities and higher learning institutions dealing with ETDs have developed their own standards or adapted existing metadata standards. NDLTD provided the following (Table-2) 14 metadata elements as a guideline to develop a faithful cross-walk between local metadata standards and a single standard used for sharing information about ETDs.

dc.title
    dc.title.alternative
dc.creator
dc.subject
dc.description
    dc.description.abstract
    dc.description.note
    dc.description.release
dc.publisher
dc.contributor
    dc.contributor.role
dc.date
dc.type
dc.format
dc.identifier
dc.language
dc.coverage
dc.rights
thesis.degree
    thesis.degree.name
    thesis.degree.level
    thesis.degree.discipline
    thesis.degree.grantor

Table-2: NDLTD’s standard set of metadata elements used to describe an electronic thesis or dissertation

Detail information can be found at the ETD-metadata standards page. To learn about the NDLTD initiative and obtain more information visit NDLTD home page.

UNT Libraries’ Metadata for ETDs Initiative

Considering the role of standardized metadata in digital resource life cycle management, the UNT Libraries actively promote metadata-based digital resource management. The existing UNT Libraries metadata elements set comprises of a locally qualified Dublin Core-based descriptive metadata set and locally developed preservation metadata recording how digital resources are created, formatted, arranged in relevant software applications, and sustained with application of appropriate preservation procedures.

In order to facilitate interoperability and enhance ETD sharing, metadata for the ETD’s should be created in a way that it supports the international standards set by the NDLTD as well as the published standards set by the Texas Digital Library TDL, which UNT is a member.

Based on our preliminary assessment, (see ETD at the UNT Libraries: Setting the scene document), there is a need to slightly modify the existing UNT Libraries metadata (See Appendix 1 and 2). Accordingly, the recommended change will incorporate the required metadata schemas and be able to describe ETDs adequately.

While promoting interoperability with widely accepted standards, the recommended UNTL ETD metadata elements (See also Appendix-2) allow flexibility at the local level that provides for optimum searching, discovery, and retrieval by users, which in turn increase the visibility of UNT and its scholarship to the wider international communities.

The following metadata implementation guidelines provide practical explanation and examples for creating content for UNT ETDs. Instead of describing the elements generically, the specific values of interest from an ETD will be described and their appropriate container in the UNTL Metadata Element set will be identified. Special attention has been paid to the elements as outlined by the TDL document with additional elements following at the end. For crosswalks to NDLTD and TDL, see Appendix-3.

Title Information

UNTL Metadata Name:	Title
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	The name given to the resource. This is the title of the work as it appears on the title page or equivalent.
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	This element will record the name given to the resource. Typically, a title will be a name by which the resource is formally known, and it should be transcribed exactly from the resource as it displays to the user. Use the spelling, punctuation, and capitalization shown on the resource, including initial articles such as "a," "an," "the," "der," etc. Then select the appropriate 'Title type' for ETD, which usually is "officialtitle".
Examples:	Title="Work Function Study of Iridium Oxide and Molybdenum Using UPS and Simultaneous Fowler-Nordheim I-V Plots with Field Emission Energy Distributions" Title.type="officialtitle"

Name of Author

UNTL Metadata Name:	Creator
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	An entity primarily responsible for creating the content of the resource. In the case of ETD, this field is appropriate for the author of the work.
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	The creator name will consist of a person's last name and first name and, if known, middle name. In the case of ETD, select "Personal" creator type from the dropdown list, which is appropriate for a personal name. The role is usually "Author". But, the list of roles in the controlled vocabulary is based on relator codes found in the Library of Congress's MARC Code Lists for Relators. Creator information is optional but it can contain facts about the creator, such as dates, fuller or other form of name, contact (email and physical) addresses, jurisdiction, etc. Because creator information is a displayed field, care should be taken with formulating the text, and it should not be used for sensitive personal information such as the unpublished phone number. Note: co-authors of parts of the work as well as advisors or committee members would be more appropriate for the "Contributor" field.
Examples:	Creator.name="Bernhard, John Michael" Creator.type="personal" Creator.role="Author" Creator.information="."

Name of Committee Members

UNTL Metadata Name:	Contributor
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	An entity responsible for making contributions to the content of the resource. In the case of ETD, typical use would be for advisors or committee members.
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	The contributor name will consist of a person's last name and first name and, if known, middle name. In the case of ETD, select "Personal" contributor type from the dropdown list, which is appropriate for a personal name. Role the person played in the creation or approval of the work can be selected from the drope down list. The most common contributor-role include: Advisor, Committee member, Chair or Major Professor, Referree, Juror. But, the list of roles in the controlled vocabulary is a combination of both locally developed list and based on relator codes found in the Library of Congress's MARC Code Lists for Relators. Contributor information is optional but it can contain facts about the contributor, such as dates, fuller or other form of name, contact (email and physical) addresses, roles (example Co-chair, major/minor professor, etc.). Because contributor information is a displayed field, care should be taken with formulating the text, and it should not be used for sensitive personal information such as the unpublished phone number. Note: Though not common in ETD, co-authors of the entire work would be more appropriate for the "creator" field.
Examples:	Contributor.name="Golden, David E." Contributor.type="personal" Contributor.role="Chair or Major professor" Contributor.information="Major Professor" Contributor.name="Brostow, K. Brostow" Contributor.type="personal" Contributor.role="Committee Member" Contributor.information="Minor Professor"

Type of Resource

UNTL Metadata Name:	Resource Type
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	Resource Type is the nature or genre of the content of the ETD. This field is used to distinguish the resource from works in other genres and to identify the types of content included in the resource.
Chief Source of Information:	The content of the ETD
Guidelines for Content Creation:	The resource type field is used to distinguish the resource from works in other genres and to identify the types of content included in the resource. Resource types are defined in the controlled vocabulary document. If more than one resource type is applicable, repeat the element as many times as is necessary to fully describe the resource and the string "txt_etd" or (Text-Electronic Thesis or Dissertation) is recommended as one of the repeatable values for this element.
Examples:	Resource Type="Text-ETD (Text-Electronic Thesis or Dissertation)"

Date

UNTL Metadata Name:	Date
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	In the case of theses and dissertations, the creation date should be the date that appears on the title page or equivalent of the work.
Chief Source of Information:	The title page or equivalent of the work
Guidelines for Content Creation:	A date associated with an event in the life cycle of the resource. In the case of theses and dissertations, there might be different dates inculuding: the date the degree is conferred or the student graduates, the date the ETD is released to the public (or publication date), etc. To avoid confusion and to promote consistency, creation date should be the date that appears on the title page or equivalent of the work. Recommended best practice for encoding the date value is defined in a profile of ISO 8601 [W3CDTF] and follows the YYYY-MM-DD format.
Examples:	OriginalCreationDate="1999-08"

Language

UNTL Metadata Name:	Language
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	Language or Languages of the intellectual content of the ETD
Chief Source of Information:	The content of the ETD
Guidelines for Content Creation:	This should record both the primary language in which the work is recorded and portions of the work that appear in other languages. Recommended usage is to utilize a standard schema for language names as defined by ISO639-2 (three letter language codes).
Examples:	language="eng"

Abstract

UNTL Metadata Name:	Description
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	No
Definition:	The full text of the abstract of the ETD
Chief Source of Information:	Abstract provided by the author.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	In the case of theses and dissertations, this is the full text of the abstract provided by the author. Additional information regarding the thesis or dissertation may be recorded in "Note" element.
Examples:	description="The characterization of work functions and field emission stability for molybdenum and iridium oxide coatings was examined. Single emission tips and flat samples of molybdenum and iridium oxide were prepared for characterization. The flat samples were characterized using X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction to determine elemental composition, chemical shift, and crystal structure. Flat coatings of iridium oxide were also scanned by Atomic Force Microscopy to examine topography. Work functions were characterized by Ultraviolet Photoelectron Spectroscopy from the flat samples and by Field Emission Electron Distributions from the field emission tips. Field emission characterization was conducted in a custom build analytical chamber capable of measuring Field Emission Electron Distribution and Fowler-Nordheim I-V plots simultaneously to independently evaluate geometric and work function changes. Scanning Electron Microscope pictures were taken of the emission tips before and after field emission characterization to confirm geometric changes. Measurement of emission stability and work functions were the emphasis of this research. In addition, use of iridium oxide coatings to enhance emission stability was evaluated..."

Subject

UNTL Metadata Name:	Subject
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	The subject or topic of the ETD that succinctly describes the content of the ETD.
Chief Source of Information:	The content of the ETD including the title page and abstract.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	Typically, a subject will be expressed as keywords, key phrases, or defined headings that describe the topic of the resource. In the case of theses and dissertations, keywords or subjects listed on the title page can be entered as free text. Authors usually provide a couple of keywords. Recommended best practice is to select additional values from a controlled vocabulary and the scheme qualifier should be used to indicate a controlled vocabulary. If catalogued, the Library Catalog provides controlled subjects list (usually, LCSH). If both authors and library catalog provide the same term, use just the one from controlled list.
Examples:	Subject="Molybdenum." subject.authority="LCSH" Subject="materials characterization" subject.authority="keyword" subject="pulse laser deposition" subject.authority="keyword"

Identifier

UNTL Metadata Name:	Identifier
Type:	Optional
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	A unique identifier or "permanent name" for a resource that identifies it uniquely and persistently. This field should be used to provide a URI where the work can be viewed or downloaded.
Chief Source of Information:	Library Catalog (if already Cataloged)
Guidelines for Content Creation:	If cataloged, OCLC number can be used as an identifier. Persistent URNs such as PURLs (http://purl.org/) or Handles (http://handle.net/) are recommended.
Examples:	Identifier="http://www.unt.edu/etd/all/May2005/Open/rorissa_abebe/dissertation.pdf" Type="URL" Identifier="45155941" Type="OCLC"

Degree Information - Name

UNTL Metadata Name:	Degree Name
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	Name of the Degree associated with the work as it appears within the work
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	Use the fully spelled out form of the degree name. (We are exploring the feasibility of compiling controlled vocabularies for Degree information (Degree name and discipline)
Examples:	degree.name="Doctor of Philosophy"

Degree Information - Level

UNTL Metadata Name:	Degree Level
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	Level of Degree being awarded.
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	The value for level of education associated with the document. Use the drop-down list to select a controlled Degree Information _ Level. If the Degree fields value starts with "Doctor", then select "Doctoral" or if the Degree fields value starts with "Masters", then enter "Master's" for Degree Level.
Examples:	degree.level="Doctoral"

Degree Information - Publication Type

UNTL Metadata Name:	Publication Type
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	No
Definition:	Type of ETD being produced.
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	The publication type field is used to distinguish and identify the ETDs by type of publication. Use the drop-down list to select a controlled Degree Information _ Publication Type that include the following drop down list: - "Doctoral Dissertation" - "Master's Thesis" - "Problem in Lieu of a Master's Thesis" - "Others"
Examples:	degree.publication.type="Doctoral Dissertation"

Degree Information - Discipline

UNTL Metadata Name:	Degree Discipline
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	Name of the degree (major Discipline)
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD
Guidelines for Content Creation:	This element record area of study of the intellectual content of the document. Usually, this will be the name of a program.
Examples:	degree.discipline="Physics"

Degree Information - Department

UNTL Metadata Name:	Degree Department
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	Name of the department or school awarding Degree.
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	This element record the name of a department or school associated with the work. Most title page has the chair of the student's dept listed under the committee members, which will help to complete this field's value. We are exploring the feasibility of developing a controlled list with a link to a respective department's website. In the meantime, this field require a little bit of investigations.
Examples:	degree.department="Department of Physics"

Degree Information - Grantor

UNTL Metadata Name:	Degree Grantor
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	Yes
Definition:	Institution granting the degree associated with the work.
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	Degree grantor institution element should be entered in free text form as it appears on the title page or equivalent.
Examples:	Degree.grantor="University of North Texas"

Publisher

UNTL Metadata Name:	Publisher
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	No
Definition:	An entity responsible for making the resource available. This is typically the group most directly responsible for digitizing and/or archiving the work. The publisher may or may not be exactly the same as degree grantor.
Chief Source of Information:	Title page or equivalent of the ETD.
Guidelines for Content Creation:	Like other names and institutions, this field should be entered in free text form as it appears on the title page or equivalent. The place of publication sub-field will be used to record the place. Publisher information sub-element extends the publisher element by providing further information about the entity primarily responsible for publishing the ETD. Any qualifiers such as dates of existence, fuller form of name, other form of name, corporate names, contact (email and physical) addresses, jurisdiction, etc. can be recorded in this field.
Examples:	publisher.name="University of North Texas" publisher.place="Denton, Tx" publisher.information="

Rights Management - Access

UNTL Metadata Name:	Rights Access
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	No
Definition:	The level of access that this ETD is allowed
Chief Source of Information:	Copy rights information form
Guidelines for Content Creation:	Select the correct rights value from the Rights-Access drop box in the metadata entry form: -Public - (These ETDs are open or there are no restrictions on these ETDs.) -UNT - (Access to these ETDs are restricted to users associated with the University of North Texas. Users are normally required to login using their EUID, if they are located outside UNT campus.) -UNT-Strict - (These ETDs are restricted to UNT Community. This will be strictly enforced and users are always required to login using their EUIDs, regardless of their location. ) -UNT_Libraries - (These ETDs are restricted to users physically located within the Libraries' Buildings, which is a rare case).
Examples:	rights.access="Public" rights.access="UNT"

Rights Management - License

UNTL Metadata Name:	Rights License
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	No
Definition:	Rights/License associated with the ETD
Chief Source of Information:	Copy rights information form
Guidelines for Content Creation:	Select the correct Licence rights value from the drop down list in the metadata entry form. The controlled list consist of the Creative Commons licenses as well as public domain and copyright. -Copyright -Public-Domain -Attribution -Attribution Share Alike -Attribution No Derivatives -Attribution Non-commercial -Attribution Non-commercial Share Alike -Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives Even for ETDs that are out of copyright and considered in the public domain, the digital representations would carry an assumed license of "copyrighted". We declare our intended license for each digital object that we manage in our systems. Information about License rights held in and over the resource may describes the conditions under which the work may be used, distributed, reproduced, etc., how these conditions may change over time, and whom to contact regarding the copyright of the work.
Examples:	rights.access="Copyright"

Rights Management - Holder

UNTL Metadata Name:	Rights Holder
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	No
Definition:	The one who holds the license/rights to this ETD
Chief Source of Information:	Copy rights information form
Guidelines for Content Creation:	Type the rights holder name in the metadata entry form. It is necessary to establish who the rights holder of an ETD is for situations where there is a question of what can or can't be done or whom to contact regarding the copyright of the work. It cannot be assumed that the rights holder is the same as the institution and it cannot be assumed that an ETD will always have the same rights holder. (though in many cases this is true).
Examples:	rights.holder="Bernhard, John Michael"

Rights Management - Statement

UNTL Metadata Name:	Rights Statement
Type:	Mandatory
Repeatable:	No
Definition:	Statement or a link to a detailed statement of the rights for the ETD
Chief Source of Information:	Copy rights information form
Guidelines for Content Creation:	Typically, information about rights held in and over the resource describes the conditions under which the work may be used, distributed, reproduced, etc., how these conditions may change over time, and whom to contact regarding the copyright of the work.
Examples:	rights.statement="Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved." rights.statement="..."

Appendices

Appendix-1: Current UNTL Descriptive Metadata Element Outline

Title
    type
Creator
    name
    type
    role
    information
Contributor
    name
    type
    role
    information
Publisher
    name
    place
    information
Date
    originalCreationDate
    digitalCreationDate
Language
Description
    contentDescription
    physicalDescription
Subject
    authority
Primary Source
Coverage
    placeName
    timePeriod
       date (Single)
       dateRange
           startDateRange
           endDateRange
Source
Relation
Collection
Institution
Rights
    access
    license
    holder
    rightsStatement
Resource Type
Format
Identifier
    type
Note

Appendix-2: Modified UNTL Metadata Element Outline (recommendation)

Title
    type
Creator
    name
    type
    role
    information
Contributor
    name
    type
    role
    information
Publisher
    name
    place
    information
Date
    originalCreationDate
    digitalCreationDate
Language
Description
    contentDescription
    physicalDescription
Subject
    authority
Primary Source
Coverage
    placeName
    timePeriod
       date (single)
       dateRange
           startDateRange
           endDateRange
Source
Relation
Collection
Institution
Rights
    access
    license
    holder
    rightsStatement
Resource Type
Format
Identifier
    type
Degree:
    name
    level
    publicationType
    discipline
    department
    grantor
Note

Appendix-3 UNT-ETD Metadata Crosswalks to ND-LTD and TDL

UNTL-ETD Element	ND-LTD	TDL
Title:	Title (and alternative)	Title Information
Creator:	Creator	Name of Author
Contributor:	Contributor (and role)	Name of Thesis Advisor & Committee Members
Publisher:	Publisher	---
Date:	Date	Original Information
Language:	Language	Langauge
Description:	Description	Abstract
Subject and Keywords:	Subject	Subject
Primary source:	---	---
Coverage:	Coverage	Subject
Source:	---	---
Relation:	---	---
Collection:	---	---
Institution:	---	---
Rights Management:	Rights	---
Resource type:	Type	Type of resources
Format:	Format	Physical Description
Identifier:	Identifier	Identifier, (and Location)
Metadata Information:	---	Record Information
Note:	(Description-Note)	---
[Degree Information - Name]	Degree (name, level, discipline, grantor)	Degree Information
[Degree Information - Level]	Degree (name, level, discipline, grantor)	Degree Information
[Degree Information - Discipline]	Degree (name, level, discipline, grantor)	Degree Information
[Degree Information - Degree Grantor]	Degree (name, level, discipline, grantor)	Name of Degree Grantor
---

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