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ENGL 202A: Effective Writing in the Social Sciences

Professor Gerritsen

Start Here

Start with these databases, and remember to think about what type of information will be helpful for you in your research. You may not need scholarly or academic articles! 

Below are a couple worksheets to help keep yourself organized while researching. 

The first is a keyword worksheet, which will help you think about different ways to talk about your topic. 

The second is a research log, which will help you to keep track of which databases you've searched in already and what keywords were successful in your search. 

Google Scholar

When searching Google Scholar from home, manage scholar settings so that you are recognized as a Penn State student:

  1. click on the three stacked, horizontal lines on the upper right of the Google Scholar search page
  2. click on SETTINGS
  3. click on LIBRARY LINKS
  4. enter Pennsylvania State University and click on the search icon
  5. when "Pennsylvania State University" appears, place a check in the box preceding it and click on SAVE

After searching in Google Scholar, use the Get it! @ Penn State link to access full text journal articles.