Background Reading:
It's important to begin your research learning something about your subject; in fact, you won't be able to create a focused, manageable thesis unless you already know something about your topic.
This step is important so that you will:
If you're working from off campus, you'll be prompted to log in just like you do for your MJC email or Canvas courses.
Top Picks:
All of these resources are free for MJC students, faculty, & staff.
Other eBooks from the MJC Library collection:
Use some of the questions below to help you narrow this broad topic. See "substance abuse" in our Developing Research Questions guide for an example of research questions on a focused study of drug abuse.
Use books to read broad overviews and detailed discussions of your topic. You can also use books to find primary sources, which are often published together in collections.
You'll use the library catalog to search for books, ebooks, articles, and more.
If you need materials (books, articles, recordings, videos, etc.) that you cannot find in the library catalog, use our interlibrary loan service.
All of these resources are free for MJC students, faculty, & staff.
If you're working from off campus, you'll be prompted to log in just like you do for your MJC email or Canvas courses.
Use Google Scholar to find scholarly literature on the Web:
Browse Featured Web Sites:
Your instructor should tell you which citation style they want you to use. Click on the appropriate link below to learn how to format your paper and cite your sources according to a particular style.