Get Connected: Start the Semester Strong with these tools: Journals and Databases

A database is an online collection of items that can be sorted and categorized.

Amazon is a database that allows you to sort items you can purchase by categories, such as books, clothes, etc. You can also use filters, such as price, to find the best deals.

Library databases provide you with access to information that isn't available for free online, such as scholarly peer-reviewed journal articles, magazine articles, newspaper articles, and more. The library databases allow you to sort and filter information sources by source type, publication date, language, etc.

Picking a database to search in is like picking which streaming service you are going to use to find a movie to watch. Are you going to look in Netflix? Hulu? Amazon Prime? Your information need will help you with making decisions about where to look for information. You may have to try a variety of tools to find what you need.

To find all of the library's databases:

• Go to the Library Homepage
• Click on FIND, in the menu on the left.
• This will take you to the library's Databases A-Z list. You can search for a specific database by name or use the filters to limit the databases by subject area.

To select an appropriate database from the list: 

1. Think about your topic. 2. Which of the subjects represented in the Subjects drop-down list does your topic most closely fall under? Health? History? Science? There may be more than one relevant category, and that's okay. Just start with one subject area. 3. After you select a subject area, you will find a list of databases that are good for topics related to the selected subject. But each is different. Read the database descriptions to determine if the database contains the kind of information you are interested in.