Shaw University Library Guides: Using the Library: Research Help

About Library Guides

For help with a research assignment or understanding Library resources, use our LibGuides!

Shaw's librarians create online guides (like this one) to help you use the Library. Many provide advice and resources for doing research in a particular subject area. Others offer how-to guidance and explain important topics and library resources.

There are LibGuides for every major course of study at Shaw, as well as for most of the course topics available outside of your major. These guides can walk you through how to perform research, and are tailored to fit the needs of your subject.

If you'd like more information on how to use our LibGuides, visit our simple tutorial here.

Free Tools for Students

Grammarly

All Shaw University students have FREE ACCESS to Grammarly premium software - a tool to use for grammar, spelling, plagiarism, citation assistance, and copyright issues!

To activate your account, look for an email from Grammarly in your Shaw email.
Click on the link in the email and set up a password.
Your login name is your Shaw email address.

Their website also offers free access to many of their tools, providing access without an account.

Microsoft 365 for Students

All Shaw students and faculty can access their FREE online use of Microsoft 365 for Students by registering for an account with Microsoft using their active Shaw Bears email.

Students will be able to:

access Microsoft products including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Microsoft Teams
log in to Microsoft products on any computer through a web browser

If you need assistance with registration, please reach out to IT - helpdesk@shawu.edu

Get Help by Meeting With Us Online

Use the tool above or click here to schedule an online appointment with us. For research help, select Research Assistance. We can help you narrow your research topic, select your search terms, and find sources.

Step One: Choose Your Topic

The first step when starting research is to pick a topic or a question to guide your search. Watch the video below to understand how to choose and refine your topic, ensuring it isn't too broad or too narrow.

Search Strategies

Learn about turning your research topic into keywords for a strategic search.

Learn about search tools: AND and NOT for narrowing your search, OR for broadening your search, asterisk (*) for truncation, and quotation marks for phrases.

Interrogating Texts: Six Reading Habits to Develop in Your First College Year
How to read critically and deliberately.
Evaluating Sources
Tips on the next step of the research process after finding your sources: evaluating their quality and usefulness.

A few search tips in addition to those offered in the videos on this page:

Check out a quick tutorial for help choosing good keywords.
Watch your spelling. Not every catalog or database will correct your spelling like Google.
Use filters. Filters offer a range of criteria to narrow your search results. Some are available on the page where you enter your search terms, and some are available on the left side of your list of search results. Look out for:
- Full text - A full electronic copy is available.
- Peer reviewed - Articles of higher quality for research because they have been reviewed by other experts in the author's field.
- Format - Whether the resource is a book, article, video, etc.
- Language - If you only speak English, filter out anything in another language.
- Publication date - To filter older resources if currency is important for your topic.
Check that you are using proper resources
- Use our Information Literacy LibGuide to help evaluate if your resources are proper for your research
Find a good article and use it to adjust your search. Once you find an article that's perfect for your topic, use the following to find more resources like it:
- Subjects - Sometimes they are even linked enabling an immediate search.
- Find new search keywords using terms from the resource's title or abstract.
- References - Find the sources that this resource cites. In a database, they are often linked if available
- Related items - Some databases suggest other resources that they think are on a similar topic.
Save your resources as you go. It's very frustrating to try to find something twice; as you research, save resources that might be useful later. Catalogs and databases provide options for saving, emailing, downloading, and citing their resources.