To effectively and efficiently locate relevant information for your academic work, it can be useful to first plan how and what you are going to search.
We recommend the following workshops for help with planning your search effectively:
Finding information: searching for academic sources for your assignments
Literature reviews: searching for articles and research papers effectively
The InfoSkills Online Tutorial details how to plan your search effectively and outlines a systematic approach to locating information for an assignment, in the following sections:
Defining your topic and planning your search
Accessing resources that provide reliable information for your academic work
Evaluating the information you find online
Organising information
Communicating information
Watch our Search techniques video to learn about building an effective search.
The information on the Library catalogue, informing you about the books that we have in stock, includes a shelfmark (also known as a class number) which shows where an item is kept on the Library shelves. We put a shelfmark sticker on the spine of every book.
Example
To find a book with the shelfmark 370.152/COT:
Check the signs in the Library to find out where the books with shelfmark numbers 300-399 are kept.
Go to the floor/area you need.
Check the signs on the end of each row of shelves, they tell you the range of shelfmarks kept on each row.
Use Library Search to locate a specific journal article available electronically
Enter the article title into the search box
If available, the article will appear near the top of the results list
Check for Full text online under the title/details and follow the title or full-text link
You will be prompted to log in with your Manchester Metropolitan username and password
If you wish to browse a particular eJournal title, use the eJournals A-Z search box to see if we have online access to a particular journal title.
Journal articles available in print only
For journal articles available in print journals only, locate the journal issue from the journal shelves on the 2nd floor of All Saints Library (East Wing).
You will need to have the journal title, volume number and issue number to find the specific print journal article.
If you can't find the article that you're looking for, or it is not available in full text at Manchester Metropolitan Library, you might be able to obtain a copy via Inter-library loan
Complete the InfoSkills Online Tutorial which details how to plan your search effectively and outlines a systematic approach to locating information for an assignment.
Contact us via email, phone, our Chat service, or visit the Library Help Desk - see Opening hours and Chat availability times on the Library homepage.
Library Search can be used as a starting point for locating information for your assignments. A variety of sources of information can be located quickly and easily. This short video explains what it is and why you should use it when carrying out your research.
Databases
Databases are large collections of sources of information and are an essential and valuable resource for your studies. This short video explains what a databases is and why it is useful to use one.
Google and Google Scholar
Google can be useful for locating certain types of information sources, that you may need to consult for your studies. Google Scholar can return results, some of which will be academic sources. However, neither should be relied upon to locate information for your assignments. This short video explains the best use of Google and Google Scholar and the limitations of both.
Academic sources
Your tutor will ask you to use academic sources for your assignments, which includes academic books and journal articles.
The following videos provide an overview of these types of academic sources.
Plan your search
