Once you have decided what sort of research materials you want to work with, you can choose the best research tool to help you find that material. There are two Library Research tools that will help you find print and electronic primary and secondary materials:
1. Library Search
2. A-Z Databases
Don't just use Google for information!
Google will find lots of information and is a great tool for examining certain kinds of material such as blogs and other openly accessible web resources. However, the information you find will vary greatly in terms of accuracy, currency bias etc. Always evaluate the material for research quality.
As well as containing information that is not exposed through Google, the Library research tools also allow you to be more precise with your searching as they offer specialist research database features to improve your research discovery.
If you are using Google Scholar, there are a number of settings you can change in order to improve your search experience. Find out more on the Making the most of Google Scholar Libguide.
Over 50% of our collection is available in digital format. Browsing the shelves can be useful but you'll miss a substantial part of the library collections if you rely on this approach alone.
Library Search
Search across the print and online collections for books, chapters, articles, journals and lots more.
Library Search will help you discover books, journals, articles, audio visual material and more on your chosen topic. This is a good place to start when you are beginning to research a topic as you can draw on content from a variety of different sources.
For more in depth research in databases and archives, use the A-Z Databases List.
University of Exeter LibGuide is licensed under CC BY 4.0
