As a student, does UMass own any of my classwork, or my thesis or dissertation?
Answer
No! UMass does not own the copyright to your classwork, or your thesis or dissertation -- you do!
Copyrightable works (like essays, papers, or other literary works, or videos, musical compositions, or art works) are automatically copyrighted from the instant they are recorded in a "tangible medium", including digitally. The creator is the copyright holder, unless the creator is an employee or working for someone else. As a student, your coursework is your own -- you're not an employee. So you own the copyright to your own coursework, including theses and dissertations.
When grad students submit their thesis or dissertation to the University, it is deposited with the Libraries, and is available for borrowing or access by other researchers. This is considered a "non-exclusive license", and is part of the requirements for graduation. It does not affect your ownership of your copyright.
A student who is working for someone else -- as a research assistant or teaching assistant or some other job -- is an employee, and works created for that job would usually be considered a work made for hire -- and the copyright would belong to the employer.
Graduate students may face a more complex situation. Some of the facts that may be relevant to graduate students:
- Is the graduate student an employee or a contractor? If the graduate student is an employee, then some works they produce might be considered works made for hire under copyright law.
- Is the graduate student's work a "scholarly work"? The UMass Intellectual Property Policy, however, establishes that students own their own "scholarly works", including "textbooks, class notes, research proposals, classroom presentation and instruction, research articles, research monographs, student theses and dissertations, paintings, drawings, sculpture, musical compositions and performances, dramatic works and performances, poetry, and popular fiction and nonfiction."
- Is there a patentable invention in the graduate student's work? Patents that may come from their work are governed by the UMass Intellectual Property Policy.
- Is there a grant, a donor, or a non-UMass partner that is providing funds, equipment, reagents, information or something else protected by a contract or non-disclosure agreement? Those agreements may specify ownership or rights that apply to the research or research outputs.
The UMass Tech Transfer Office can help explain the University's position around grants or contracts with partners, and with any potentially patentable inventions.