LibGuides: Library Research Basics: Getting Started

The Assignment

Understanding Your Assignment

Before you begin your research, you should make sure you understand your assignment. Some good questions are:

• How many pages should it be?
• How many sources do I need?
• What kinds of sources? Books,
   articles, websites? Scholarly or
   popular articles?
• In what format should it be
   written?

Assignment Calculator

San Jose State's Assignment Calculator is a good resource to help you determine how much time you have to complete various aspects of your research and writing, given your starting date and due date.

Encyclopedias & Background Information

If you are having difficulty selecting a topic, sometimes the best idea is to begin with a general topic and then let your background reading lead you to a more specific idea. Background research in an encyclopedia or other general source can also

Provide a good overview of the subject.
Help you identify important facts related to your topic -- dates, events, history, overviews.
Help you refine your topic by suggesting ways to broaden or narrow a subject
Identify keywords and related terms
Lead you to bibliographies that you can use to find additional sources of information.

Use one of the resources below to start your research:

AccessScience This link opens in a new window Offers access to all the articles, fully illustrated, from the latest edition of the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology, Research Updates from the McGraw-Hill Yearbooks, thousands of illustrations, and the latest Science News® headlines, biographies, and more.
Biography in Context This link opens in a new window
CountryWatch This link opens in a new window An information provider for corporations, government agencies, universities, schools, libraries and individuals needing up-to-date news and information on each of the recognized countries of the world.
CQ Researcher This link opens in a new window Original, comprehensive reporting and analysis on issues in the news. Topics range from social and teen issues to environment, health, education and science and technology. Controversial topics are addressed in a balanced, unbiased manner. Every 12,000-word report is written by an experienced journalist and features comments from experts, lawmakers and citizens on all sides of every issue. Numerous charts, graphs and sidebar articles -- plus a pro-con feature, a chronology, lengthy bibliographies and a list of contacts -- round out each report.
Credo Reference This link opens in a new window Credo Reference offers background information on topics from hundreds of full-text general and subject-specific reference/encyclopedia titles, as well as 500,000+ images and audio files and over 1,000 videos.
Encyclopædia Britannica This link opens in a new window One of the oldest and most well-known reference sources, with both short and book-length overview articles in almost all disciplines. Also includes historical timelines, multimedia, selected magazine articles, notable quotations, and a dictionary and thesaurus.
Opposing Viewpoints in Context This link opens in a new window One-stop shopping for information on a variety of controversial social issues. Contains articles from pro-con essays, journals, magazines, and news sources, as well as statistics, biographies, court cases, profiles of special interest groups and more.

Search the Library

Use OneSearch to find books and e-books, videos, articles, digital media, and more. Make sure you sign-in with your CWID to get the best user experience.

Off-Campus Access

For off-campus access to the online databases and eBooks, you'll need your student ID.

You can also renew your books online from home.

Chat with a Librarian

If you need immediate research assistance, chat with a librarian online! A librarian is online M-TH 8am-7pm and F 8am-2pm.

Contact Us

Reference Desk
(650) 949-7608

Circulation & Reserve
(650) 949-7611