No Google Searches!

Many students make the mistake of using the same type of search strategies that they use in Google. They cram their search terms into one search box when Advanced search boxes allow the researcher to combine multiple terms.

You can use ONESEARCH to simultaneously search the library catalog for books and the majority of the databases to locate eBooks and newspaper, journal, and encyclopedia articles. You can also select and search in a specific database. Remember that not all databases are in ONESEARCH.

Search tips:

• Click on Advanced Search to be able to combine multiple search terms using more than one box.

• How can we improve the search below?

• Separate your search terms into different search boxes by their subject

• Combine synonyms or related terms by putting them in the same search box and combining them with OR. 

• Truncate keywords to retrieve various endings for your search terms. Truncation is useful for pulling up both singular and plurals of your word.

Examples:  teen* will search for teens, teen, teenager, teenagers, teenaged

                 Japanese American* will search for Japanese American and Japanese Americans

     camp* will retrieve camp, camps, camping, camper, campers but paired with terms like japanese american*, concentration,

internment, relocation, or world war II, you should eliminate results having to do with camping in the outdoors. 

• Phrase searches. You may put phrases in quotation marks to keep the words next to each other. This is optional and only recommended if you see that you're getting false hits when the words in your phrase have been separated. Try your phrase without quotation marks to see your results.

Examples: “underground railroad”  "social change"  "concentration camp*"