Library Research for ENGL Composition (w/ Julia Stephani, Claire Weber, and Stephanie Martin)

The purpose of this course guide is to assist you with doing research for Composition | ENGL 1151. It includes resources to use for searching for scholarly resources, some library services you can use, and how to contact a librarian for further assistance. Use the menu on the left to navigate. 

This guide is intended for the following courses:

Using the library's resources for research.

The library provides you access to over 100 different article, book, and research databases. But if you know these simple steps, you should be able to search for resources in any of them! All databases or catalogs, just like search engines like Google, have 3 things in common: 

1. You'll perform a search for your topic.
2. You'll get a list of results.
3. There will be some mechanism to access or obtain those results. 

Where to start? Here are some tips on using the library's resources listed below for finding research on your topic:

• If you're looking for some background information on a topic, try Britannica Online.
• If you just want to dive in, try OneSearch. This will allow you to search almost all of the Library's online article databases, e-books, and books from our physical collection all at once. 
• Sometimes the large amount of results from OneSearch can be overwhelming. If that's the case, I recommend trying a database that is specific to the subject you're researching. You can find specific databases by choosing the subject most closely related to your topic in our Research Guides.
• CQ Researcher is an excellent resource that provides in-depth reports on current issues (COVID-19, media, immigration, climate change, gun control, etc)

If you have any problems accessing these resources or finding what you need, please don't hesitate to contact us for help. See the menu or chat box on the left. 

Here are some resources to help you get started with your research: