for Master's
Whether you're planning a literature search, trying to find one or two things to read for a reading group, or putting together a reading list, you'll need to develop a strategies for searching effectively, comprehensively and efficiently. This may feel familiar to you, but developing these practices is an essential part of graduate work in most subjects.
This page gives details of a particular search strategy, which you will probably find you need to adapt to suit your subject or research better.
Think, first, about the results you want.
Understanding the scope of the task ahead will help you to determine your search strategy.
Write down all of your search terms, all potential search terms, and all potential keywords or synonyms, and then do some critical analysis on them. How broad or specific are they? How might they be misinterpreted? How well do they reflect what you're actually looking for?
In addition, many search engines and databases allow you to use operators to improve your searches, such as:
Note that the specific functionality for each individual search engine will differ, as will the symbols you use. But most sites have an FAQ section which gives clues about the symbols and functionality they offer.
Always use quotation marks when you're using Google Scholar so it brings back exactly what you're looking for.
- MPhil Music student
Reflecting on your results - why you've found them, and what you might subsequently do to modify your search - is an important part of the process.
Some material is harder to find than other material: social, political and economic forces shape the creation of both primary and secondary sources, and this means that minority voices and the lives of those with less power are not always well represented in the databases and catalogues you're searching. If you are seeking perspectives that seem to be difficult to uncover, incorporate this in your evaluation of your search strategy.
Searching is iterative and non-linear. Your results will lead you to additional search terms, additional ways of understanding those terms, and additional questions.
Try out a few speculative searches assess the results.
Think through why a search worked, or didn't work, and what might be done to improve it. It might be that your search terms are too broad or narrow, an issue with the database, or that you're trying to find information that is harder to find or access.
Whatever the reasons, getting into the habit of assessing what you find, and adjusting your methods for finding it, will make you a far more accomplished user of all sorts of resources.
There is a request form you can use to request books, ebooks, journal subscriptions and databases, amongst other things, including DVDs and music scores.
Google is a resource that you will use a lot of the time and if used well it is perfectly acceptable. Top tips for using Google more effectively include:
Many students use Google Scholar and link through to Cambridge resources. To do this:
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CC0 by Kyle Popineau via Unsplash
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