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Copyright Guide

This guide will help you to find out how copyright affects your study, research and work here at the University of Derby. Please note that information on these pages is for guidance only: it should not be construed as formal legal advice.

Studying and copyright

image of a bird carrying books by OpenClipart-Vectors

As a student you need to be aware of copyright and how it will affect you whilst you are studying and being assessed. You have a responsibility (as mandated in the IP policy for students) to make legitimate and appropriate use of third-party material. The exclusive rights of copyright holders should not be infringed.

This section gives you a brief summary of how copyright affects your work as a student and once you have graduated, but please look at the other sections of this guide for more information. 

The University of Derby does not claim ownership of the copyright in scholarly works created by students in the course of their studies at the University, unless there are specific exceptions or a separate agreement. Scholarly and creative works include but not limited to:

  • Books, articles, theses, critical appraisals, essays, reports;
  • Creative writing, poems, musical works, films, videos;
  • Drawings, paintings, exhibitions, photographs, sculptures;
  • Textile and fabric designs, prototypes.

All students grant the University of Derby a perpetual, royalty-free, worldwide, in all formats (now known or yet to be devised), sub-licensable, non-exclusive licence to use the material(s) they create as part of their studies whilst enrolled at the University for academic (i.e. research and teaching), promotional and administrative purposes, including for archival and open access requirements. 

What is copyright?

  • Copyright is part of the Intellectual Property rights that cover Trademarks, Patents, Design Rights and Copyright. See the UK Copyright Service for concise definitions of each area. 
  • Copyright is an automatic right that arises whenever an idea is given a fixed expression, i.e. written down, painted, filmed, photographed etc.
  • Copyright doesn't protect ideas, only the expression of the idea.
  • Only the creator or the copyright holder (rights holder) can decide how others can use their content.

For more information, such as how long copyright protection lasts, please see sections on the left of this guide: What is copyright?

Understanding copyright as a student

This quick video* is a great introduction to understanding how copyright will affect you as a student. Read this libguide to explore further and develop your knowledge.

*This video is from the University of South Australia and therefore may contain subtle differences to UK law but it does talk about the basics of copyright from a student's perspective.