Academic Writing

A guide to the academic writing process

Research Consultation

For Students, Staff, and Faculty: 

Need help finding sources?

Schedule a Research Consultation to discuss your topic and the best way to find sources.

To schedule a research consultation in person or via Zoom, click here

For Faculty: 

To schedule a class session, contact the Masland Library at library@cairn.edu.

Keywords

Many databases and search engines use keywords to locate information. To effectively find resources, you will need to break down your topic or research question into the most important ideas or concepts.

Example: 

  • The role of social media on college students' procrastination habits. 

The specifics of the topic will help with selecting sources, but for searching, you only need the most essential components. 

Try a Search: Social Media AND College Students AND Procrastination

Looking for a particular term? 
Use a "PHRASE SEARCH" strategy to search for several words in a phrase, such as a proper name. 

  • Cloning AND "Genetic Engineering" 

This will bring back results that only use that exact phrase. 

Searching for information 

Want to learn more? Check out these videos and tutorials.

Searching as Exploration

Choosing and Using Keywords 

Search Techniques, Part 1

Search Techniques, Part 2

Find more information about the research process here: Information Literacy Module

Brainstorm 

Most words have synonyms that mean the same or very similar things. For each keyword in your topic, try to come up with at least one synonym. Not every term will have an accurate synonym; however, exploring similar concepts or topics can help to find related material. 

 

 

Examples: 

Keep an Eye Out: 

Oftentimes, you can see Subject Terms while searching for resources. These can help you get an idea of what the article is about and provide relevant terms to explore. 

Use Your Resources: 

Sometimes, scholars use terms that you might not be familiar with or that might mean something very specific within the discipline. While searching, look for unfamiliar terms or words that appear regularly or repeat concepts. Try searching for those terms and see if you find more relevant sources. 

Search Tools

Most library databases have search tools built in. Try some of these: 

  • Subject: Think of subjects as tags for a topic. Use them to find sources about the subject. 
  • Date Range: Limit your search to sources published between specific years.
  • Peer Reviewed: Limit your search to scholarly journal articles.
  • Full Text: Make sure all of the results are available to read in full.

Look on the left and right of your search results for an "advanced search" page to find these tools -- and more! 

Subjects: Writing Helps