Start Your Research Here

All research begins by learning basic facts about your topic and what others are saying about it. Use these databases to start exploring your topic..

Search below to discover books and other sources that the library has either in print at the L & LC or online.

Research is all about exploration. Sometimes we are exploring ideas, sometimes we are exploring current issues, sometimes we are exploring the lives of people or the repercussions of events.  Asking questions is the key to this exploration.

For an accessible text of this image, please click the document below.

After you've done your background reading and understand the basics about your topic AND after you've created some research questions to direct your exploration, you're ready to dig deeper and seek answers to your research questions. These tools below will help you do that.

Before you jump into hunting and gathering your information, be sure you know how not to be fooled by unreliable, false, or misleading information. It's not hard if you just follow some simple steps outlined in our guide, Evaluate Your Sources.

What if MJC Doesn't Have What I Need? 

If you need materials (books, articles, recordings, videos, etc.) that you cannot find either in OneSearch or in our databases, we can get it for you. Check out our Interlibrary Loan page below.

Once you're done with your research, you're ready to write.

When you write a research paper, you use information and facts from a variety of resources to support your own ideas or to help you develop new ones. Books, articles, videos, interviews, and websites are some examples of sources you might use.

Citing these sources of information in your work is essential because:

• It gives credit to the author of the original work who provided you with the information or idea
• It allows your audience to identify and find the source material in order to learn more about your topic
• It gives your paper more credibility because it shows you're supporting your arguments with high-quality source. It also helps earn your readers' trust because you're telling your readers the source of your facts so that they can confirm them for themselves
• It helps you avoid plagiarism

Watch this short video from The Learning Portal to learn why you cite and when you cite. Watch, Learn, and Enjoy!

"Why You Need to Cite Sources" by The Learning Portal is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

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.

Use NoodleTools  to create individual citations or full bibliographies, organize your research notes, and manage your research projects

Learn more on the go with our library of how-to videos on YouTube.

Learn how to research like a pro with our credit-bearing MLIB 100 or our free, non-credit courses.