Before you start looking for sources, think of your strategy. Just like you wouldn't hike in the woods without a compass or a map, you don't want to dive right into searching without a plan to guide you. There is a lot of information out there, and if you start looking for sources without a plan it's easy to become overwhelmed and frustrated. To have a successful search, be strategic. Try one of the worksheets linked below to help you plan out your search.
The library provides access to different databases, which are online resources that collect and organize information from different sources. They may include articles from academic journals, magazines, and newspapers; general information sources like encyclopedias or dictionaries; and information about print books or access to e-books. Databases tag their information with subject terms and keywords to make it easier to conduct complex searches to find specific information. You can find the databases available through the Holy Cross Libraries on our A-Z Databases List.
Different databases collect different types of information. They can be described as general or subject databases.
General databases include information and journals that cover many subjects and academic fields. These can be a good place to start if you’re not sure what subject your topic falls under, if your topic is interdisciplinary and falls under multiple subject areas, if you want to see perspectives from different fields about your topic, or if you simply want to find general information.
Some general databases available through Holy Cross are:
Journal articles, magazines, and news in almost every subject area.
Journal articles in almost every subject area, including some historical articles back to the 17th century.
Journal articles, magazines, and news in almost every subject area.
Journal articles, magazines, and news in almost every subject area.
To find general databases, go to the A-Z Database List. In the dropdown menu labeled "All Subjects," select "*General*." You will see a list of general databases, with some highlighted as "Best Bets."
Subject databases include journals and publications from a specific academic field. They may include a number of different publications, but they are all within the same academic area. These can be helpful if you want to look at one specific subject or field. Subject databases are also a good place to look if your topic is something that relates to a variety of academic disciplines, but you only want to focus on one. For example, “mercury” can refer to a chemical element, a Roman god, a planet, a car brand, or the last name of a famous singer. If you’re researching mercury levels in fish and search in a general database, you may find results about all of these other topics. To conduct a more effective search, you might try looking in databases specific to Biology or Environmental Studies.
To find subject databases available at Holy Cross, go to the A-Z Database list and use the drop down menu to select a subject.
CrossSearch is a one-stop search tool that lets you search most of the informational resources available through the library, including:
CrossSearch looks in many different places and for many different types of sources. In one search, you might find results for academic journal articles, books in the library’s collection, films, newspaper articles, and more. This can be a good place to start if you want to find a broad scope of the resources available on your topic. However, because CrossSearch includes so many types of resources, you might find you need to filter these results more than you would in a more specific database.
CrossSearch is best accessed through the library home page (www.holycross.edu/academics/libraries).
You may be familiar with searching a library catalog in your local public library or a school library. The catalog is where the library lists all of the print materials (and ebooks) available on our shelves. You can access the Library Catalog search through the library home page (https://www.holycross.edu/library). Above the search bar, select "Library Catalog." If a print book is owned by the Libraries, you will see the location, call number, and status. The location tells you which library the book is shelved in: Dinand, Music, Science, or WAM. The call number tells you where on the shelf the book is located - like an address for your book. The status will show "Available" if the book is on the shelf and available to be checked out.
The video below shows how to search the library catalog for books and read call numbers to find books on the shelves.