This guide is designed to teach Doctorate of Education LICI program students basic and advanced library searching skills necessary for success.
Help Available: Ask a Librarian
How to Find Empirical Research Articles
On This Page
Video Tutorials
APA: Finding the DOI
Finding Sources from References
Google Scholar
Getting Started Guides
As a new student at CUW, there are a few new resources and procedures to learn.
- Start Here: Overview of Resources and Services
- For more information about finding, accessing, and renewing library materials: Find Books & Ebooks & Find Journal Articles
Research Process
Ebook recommendation: Oxford Guide to Library Research
- Use books to learn more about your research topic, locate terms for searching, and find important researchers on the topic (inside the bibliography).
- Review our Literature Searching Tutorial for information on the types of resources recommended.
- Complete the using databases tutorial.
- Review the tips on finding Primary Research Articles.
- Use Interlibrary Loan to request items from other libraries. Doctoral students utilize this service often.
- If you need more guidance, consider a research consultation with a CUW Librarian.
Find Citations
Doctoral students often need to locate journal articles or books from citations. Watch a Video Here are some tips:
- Try “link to full text” options in databases. Items indexed in one database may be full-text in another.
- Try searching the full article title in PRIMO. The item should appear on the first page of results if we have it.
- Try searching Google Scholar for the title. Look for a Full-Text @ CUW link.
- Use Inter-library Loan. Online students can request articles and individual chapters of books from other libraries. Use this form to request items.
- Ask a Librarian for help. We have more options we can try or recommend.
NOTE: If you live in the Metro Milwaukee area, you are welcome to pick up SWITCH materials and use, checkout, and return physical items at other SWITCH Libraries. SWITCH library locations span the west, south, and north-east parts of the Milwaukee area. Another option is public university libraries near your home.
Dissertation Examples
Looking for other dissertations? References from recently published dissertations can provide the latest research and research methods. Authors are more and more sharing their dissertations online or are available through university online repositories.
However, remember that dissertation quality can vary significantly.
Open Access Search Tools
PQDT Open
ProQuest Open Access Search for Theses and Dissertations
OATD
Open Access Search for Theses and Dissertations
ETHOs
UK Theses and Dissertations Search
NDLTD
Theses and Dissertations Search from Center for Research Libraries
Semantic Scholar
Academic Search engine which includes some dissertations
Is it Peer Reviewed?
Trying to determine if an article is published in a peer-reviewed journal?
- Click on the journal title in the database record to open the journal’s page (you may have to click a more or show all to see peer-reviewed status):
2. Check the journal’s website for a description of the journal or editing process
Writing Resources
The library does not help with grammar, mechanics, or citations, however we can provide advice on choosing the correct source type for your citations and give advice on how to best use your sources or identify gaps in your argument or research.
Guide for academic writing: Writing With Sources
We recommend all graduate students use a citation manager like Zotero: