Check out the new and improved Graduate-Level Research Guide!
Research Assistance
Need someone with whom to discuss your research? Want to find out how to start a major research project? Librarians are glad to meet with you individually to help you get started. Contact us through Ask a Librarian.
Circulation Interlibrary Loan (ILL)
Login with your StarID and complete an interlibrary loan request form to order a book or article that is not available from our library. You will receive an email when your item is available for you.
Husky Fetch
Need books from the Library, but don't have time to go search for them in the building? Husky Fetch is the name of our paging service. Just place a hold on the book/s you want through the library catalog, and Husky Fetch will assemble them for you and have them waiting at the Circulation Desk.
Need someone with whom to discuss your research? Want to find out how to start a major research project? Librarians are glad to meet with you individually to help you get started. Contact us through Ask a Librarian.
Circulation Interlibrary Loan (ILL)
Login with your StarID and complete an interlibrary loan request form to order a book or article that is not available from our library. You will receive an email when your item is available for you.
Husky Fetch
Need books from the Library, but don't have time to go search for them in the building? Husky Fetch is the name of our paging service. Just place a hold on the book/s you want through the library catalog, and Husky Fetch will assemble them for you and have them waiting at the Circulation Desk.
Academic Search Premier (all topics) from EBSCO 
Full-text articles in biology, chemistry, education, engineering, humanities, physics, psychology, religion and theology, sociology, etc. Tip: Click the check box to limit to Academic (Peer Reviewed) Journals.
Business Source Complete
Premium full-text content and peer-reviewed business journals covering all disciplines of business, including marketing, management, accounting, banking, finance and more.
ERIC (EBSCO)
ERIC is the primary database supporting research in all areas of education, including psychology, administration, and library science.
Google Scholar
While Google Scholar doesn't find everything, you will discover some resources not included in databases. Google Scholar ranks results by how often an article has been cited by other scholars.
PsycINFO
PsycINFO is the premier source for finding scholarly articles and other information relating to all aspects of psychology and related fields.
ScienceDirect
Search over 1,200 scholarly journals published by Elsevier. ScienceDirect is multisubject, but specializes in science. Note: We do not have full text access to all journals. 1993 to present for Academic Press journals; 1996 to present for Elsevier journals
Research Databases
The complete list of databases from the University Library.
Full-text articles in biology, chemistry, education, engineering, humanities, physics, psychology, religion and theology, sociology, etc. Tip: Click the check box to limit to Academic (Peer Reviewed) Journals.
Business Source Complete
Premium full-text content and peer-reviewed business journals covering all disciplines of business, including marketing, management, accounting, banking, finance and more.
ERIC (EBSCO)
ERIC is the primary database supporting research in all areas of education, including psychology, administration, and library science.
Google Scholar
While Google Scholar doesn't find everything, you will discover some resources not included in databases. Google Scholar ranks results by how often an article has been cited by other scholars.
PsycINFO
PsycINFO is the premier source for finding scholarly articles and other information relating to all aspects of psychology and related fields.
ScienceDirect
Search over 1,200 scholarly journals published by Elsevier. ScienceDirect is multisubject, but specializes in science. Note: We do not have full text access to all journals. 1993 to present for Academic Press journals; 1996 to present for Elsevier journals
Research Databases
The complete list of databases from the University Library.
Search for Books in the Library
WorldCat
Search for materials beyond SCSU, from thousands of libraries and institutions around the world. Click on the FindIt! button and sign in to and request items through Interlibrary Loan.
Dissertation Abstracts - PQDT Open 
Selective index to open access masters theses and dissertations from U.S., Canada, Great Britain, and Europe. Note: This is an open access subset of Dissertation Abstracts International (DAI).
Library Access for Distance Students
Literature Reviews: An Overview for Graduate Students
From North Carolina State University Libraries
Literature Reviews
From The Writing Center at the University of North Carolina
Write a Literature Review (Includes video tutorials)
From Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries
Write Place
The Write Place offers one-on-one tutoring at any stage in the writing process. Make an online appointment or visit Webster Hall 117 or University Library 135E.
From North Carolina State University Libraries
Literature Reviews
From The Writing Center at the University of North Carolina
Write a Literature Review (Includes video tutorials)
From Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries
Write Place
The Write Place offers one-on-one tutoring at any stage in the writing process. Make an online appointment or visit Webster Hall 117 or University Library 135E.
Click to access email (answered Monday - Friday), chat (available 24 / 7), and the online form to set up a one-on-one research consultation with a librarian.
As you work on your culminating project, schedule a meeting with a librarian for in-depth guidance on finding the best resources for your topic. We can meet with you by phone or via online conferencing tools like Zoom.
As you start your culminating project, use the Dissertation Calculator from the University of Minnesota Libraries to help you stay on track.
Your culminating project will be submitted to the Repository at St. Cloud State University (Institutional Repository) . The Repository provides open access to a diverse collection of academic, scholarly, scientific, and creative content produced by faculty, students, and staff at the University. As you progress through your program, watch for more information about preparing and uploading your proposal, draft for committee members, and final copy to the Repository. Your culminating project will also be available through the SCSU library catalog.
Your culminating project will be submitted to the Repository at St. Cloud State University (Institutional Repository) . The Repository provides open access to a diverse collection of academic, scholarly, scientific, and creative content produced by faculty, students, and staff at the University. As you progress through your program, watch for more information about preparing and uploading your proposal, draft for committee members, and final copy to the Repository. Your culminating project will also be available through the SCSU library catalog.
In his book, Writing the Doctoral Disseration (pp. 61-63), Gordon Davis identifies several sources for identifying your research topic:
- Current events
- Further research suggestions from past dissertations, articles, etc.
- Suggestions for research by authorities in the field
- Expressions of need for research by practitioners in a field or from professional associations
- Unproved or weakly proved assertations by an authority in the field
- Theories and concepts without supporting research
- Different approaches to testing of important results
Citation searching, also called citation tracking or citation tracing, is searching for scholarly resources through citations instead of keywords. Citation searching works best after you have found several relevant resources.
You can find resources by reviewing the reference list of an article or book you’ve determined is relevant to your research. Search for books using WorldCat . Your results list will indicate whether or not the Library owns the book. If the Library does not have the book, you can request it through Interlibrary Loan (ILL) . For articles, look for the journal title using Find a Journal.
You can also search forward in time by using a tool like Google Scholar . In this case, you search on the title of the resource you already have. In the results, you’ll see the link “Cited by.” Select this link to find works that cite your original research. See How to search by citations: Cited By searching in Google Scholar for more details. Other databases include this feature. Look for phrases like "Times Cited in this Database" or "Cited by."
You can find resources by reviewing the reference list of an article or book you’ve determined is relevant to your research. Search for books using WorldCat . Your results list will indicate whether or not the Library owns the book. If the Library does not have the book, you can request it through Interlibrary Loan (ILL) . For articles, look for the journal title using Find a Journal.
You can also search forward in time by using a tool like Google Scholar . In this case, you search on the title of the resource you already have. In the results, you’ll see the link “Cited by.” Select this link to find works that cite your original research. See How to search by citations: Cited By searching in Google Scholar for more details. Other databases include this feature. Look for phrases like "Times Cited in this Database" or "Cited by."
ELM: Electronic Library for Minnesota
ELM (eLibraryMN) gives Minnesota residents online access to magazine, journal, newspaper and encyclopedia articles; media including images, videos, audio files; and other information resources via a selection of databases.
On the eLibraryMN homepage, click All Databases. Academic Search Premier, Business Source Premier, and several other databases are available for you to search.
If you find an article that isn't available in full text, you may be able to order it through interlibrary loan at your public library.
