QuickSearch is a discovery tool that retrieves books, articles, media and more found in the High Library Catalog, databases, and digital collections. Use the facets on the left side of the results screen to narrow your search by publication type, language, date, topic and more.
Be persistent in your searching.
Try both keyword and subject searching
Narrow a search by using subject headings. Locate subject headings by looking at the descriptors associated with pertinent articles and books.
Try these tips to narrow your search.
Try synonyms (AIDS or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). Can't think of any synonyms? Try an online thesaurus. Try these tips to expand your search
Try both singular and plural forms of words (use a "+" sign in SocSciAbs to search both singular and plurals e.g. religion+). Use an "*" in Academic Search Premier to get a variety of word endings.
If searching a compound word, try it as one word and as two words (e.g. rain forest or rainforest) to see which retrieves the most useful results.
If searching a term with an internal dash, search the term in each database with and without the internal dash (e.g. x-ray vs. x ray) to see which retrieves the most useful results.
Use Journal Finder to see which journals you can get. Some titles are within the High Library itself (in print, microfiche, or microfilm), others are available electronically in various databases. If the journal is held, check to see if the dates you need are available. This is a powerful gateway to about 33,000 titles!
If the periodical you want is in microfilm or microfiche, you can order copies of the articles online by using ILLiad. Click on Request an Article and fill out the form. You will receive an email with a link when the article is available, usually within 24-48 hours (M-F).
Articles that are not available either in the library or in library databases can be ordered on interlibrary loan, through ILLiad. ILL can take anywhere from 3-5 business days, on average.