Great Tools - Google Scholar

Google Scholar is a great way to find academic literature like books and journal articles on any given subjects.  While many of you are probably familiar with this tool, I wanted to point out a particular feature of Google Scholar that may help you get quality results from your searches. 

 

Surely if you’ve ever done research with Google scholar you are familiar with the frustrations of finding a great article and realizing that you don’t have the rights to view or save it unless you pay a fee.  Some articles cost a few dollars but some can be very expensive.  If you’re like me, you probably don’t want to spend more money than your education already demands.  You may also be turning to Google Scholar because the online library research tools from your institution are less user friendly to work with.  That’s where Google scholar’s settings come in handy.  

First, go to Google Scholar and access the settings menu at the top.

Then go to the Library Links Tab.

Type the name of your institution in the search field and press ENTER then check the box next to it and click save at the bottom. *Unfortunately not all institution are available :o(

Once you've saved your settings you can perform a search and you will see a quick link to the article that is accessible from your institution's library and that is more than likely available to view or download free of charge by logging in the same way you would at your institutions' online library. 

Hopefully this will help you with your future searches.  More info on Google scholar and perfecting your searching techniques available HERE. 

Happy academic researching. 

Mathieu Leclerc