This guide is designed to help you research sources for this specific class
This is a customized guide that will help you find the specific sources you need for your assignments based on your syllabus and your instructor's assignment information.
The top tabs are sorted by type of help you need. You don't have to read through the whole guide, just go to whatever task you want help with.
For more general research help, check out the box below and the boxes on the left column of this page. We have lots more guides, tutorials, and one on one help options!
For any questions or help you can always contact me, Jen Pesek, your subject librarian. I'll be very happy to answer your questions, help you find sources, help you learn how to research faster, create a research strategy, or any other research issues you might have. You can email me directly at jpesek@scu.edu or make an appointment here. There are no wrong questions, and wherever you are in the process is fine. I'm here to support you!
If you have an urgent question (maybe a link isn't working for you, or you just want to find a specific database), you can always use our 24 / 7 chat line. Give it a try.
Research Tips
Tips for getting better resources more quickly
Know which research tool you need. Sometimes the library databases are much faster and more effective than google or google scholar. Here's a handy guide to knowing when you will get the best results from each tool.
Remember that different authors will use different words for the same concepts. Think flexibly and use synonyms to find different sources on the same topic. How do you know what synonym to use? If you are using the library databases use the tools outlined in this video.
Remember that searching is a step by step process. If you don't find what you want the first time, you aren't doing something wrong. Test out different search terms, add and subtract terms to narrow and widen the field. Keep refining your search little by little to get the sources you are looking for.