Use university name + degree type + year combinations to precisely locate theses, resolving indirect university clues first
When a question provides university clues — either directly (university name) or indirectly (e.g., "founded the same year as a novel", "a university in California with X applicants").
University + degree type + year is a powerful combination for locating theses. If the university is described indirectly, resolve it first. For example, "founded the same year as a novel narrated from a boy's perspective" requires identifying the novel and its publication year to determine the university's founding year.
Always resolve indirect clues before searching for the thesis itself. This two-step approach is far more effective than guessing.
university founded [year] [country/region]"[university name]" [discipline] [degree type] [year] thesisAdventures of Huckleberry Finn published 1885 USA (identify the novel and year)"multiethnic eastern province" dissertation PhD European (search for the thesis)Not resolving indirect clues — skipping the university identification step and searching for the thesis directly will fail when the university is described indirectly.