Find quality information

In many situations a simple approach to searching is enough. For example, when:

• you're new to searching and just want to get started
• you just need to find some good information on your topic, and don't need to take a more thorough approach.

You can move on to more advanced searching later, if needed.

Summarise what it is you are searching for. It can be helpful to write this as a single sentence or question.

If you are doing an assignment, visit the Student Support webpage on Analysing the Topic for more information on this process.

Ask yourself 'what is my topic really about?' to help you identify the best keywords.

To check what resources are available on your topic, type your keywords into Library Search:

Then try using synonyms:

or

• Note the words that relevant sources are using and try those in your search.
• Try to limit or refine your results if you're not quite getting what you want.
• If you still want more results, search the key database in your discipline. Our subject guides list key databases in various disciplines.