When you start planning your dissertation process check the important dates, ie. Dissertation Committee and Academic Council meetings and deadlines (see Files below. Note! Schools have different schedules).

You can read more about the dissertation process from the dissertation process booklet (see Files below), which is compiled by the LUT Doctoral School, LUT Academic Library and LUT University Press. 

You have to be enrolled as an attending student when you start the dissertation process as well as when you graduate. Enrolment is obligatory even if you do not take any courses during the academic year. Enrolment is open during May-August, please see further information.

Study carefully the instructions concerning dissertations, see Files below. Dissertation regulations dated June 1, 2024 replace all previous LUT dissertation regulations.

Please note that before submitting the manuscript to the Dissertation Committee, the content and layout of the manuscript should be in its final form. This means for example that the language check by a professional linguist or a native speaker must already be done. More information about the university's cooperation partners, please see LUT Universities intra (restricted access). Your own school is responsible for the costs of the language check, so discuss it with your supervisor.

You should use the dissertation templates (Word and LaTeX), maintained by LUT Academic Library. In the templates the layout and other specifications are already as they should be. You are also responsible for ensuring the accessibility of the dissertation document. Download the 6/2025 updated templates and check further instructions on the accessibility from the LUT Academic Library website, see Links section. 

The final check of studies is done at LUT Doctoral School when you start the dissertation process. If you have completed all your studies earlier, please get in touch with Study Programme Coordinator Sari Damstén (see contact information).

If you have been assigned any supplementary studies (extra studies required), they have to be completed when you submit your manuscript to the Dissertation Committee.

All studies to be included in the doctoral degree have to be completed before the permission to print is given by the Academic Council.

Make sure that also the personal study plan in Sisu is in order.

Note! From January 1, 2022 onward the study attainments included in a doctoral degree may not date back more than seven years. If any of your studies have expired or will expire before you graduate, see further information on extending the validity of studies on Planning your studies.

Turnitin

• The manuscript of the dissertation must be checked with Turnitin (a web-based service for checking the similarity of the text) early enough before starting the dissertation process.
• You need to join the Moodle course Turnitin check for doctoral students year (https://moodle.lut.fi/). This course is available by self-enrolment.
• Your supervisor is responsible for the interpretation of the similarity report.
• Further information and technical support for the Moodle course: opetushelp@lut.fi.
• Turnitin check must be mentioned in the dissertation.

AI

• AI cannot be used to generate text but it can be utilized as a tool in improving grammar, text and style.
• The use of AI must be mentioned in the summary part of the dissertation and its role must be clearly described. It must also be mentioned if AI has not been used.

Commercial licensed software

• If licensed commercial software is used in the dissertation research, it must be mentioned in the dissertation according to the license terms. If the terms do not stipulate that the license needs to be mentioned, the information can be left out.