Do you have questions about the research process, finding or evaluating information? Ask your librarian in the comments below!
It always helps to be specific about what you need, but I’m happy to help you figure things out if you’re not completely sure. Questions can be about any part of the research process, from forming a research question, to finding information (not limited to the library), or organizing your citations.
This site is designed to help you get your research projects off the ground. The library at City Tech has lot of resources that you can use to explore your topic, and the librarians are available to support you throughout the research process.
Each post on this site is designed to introduce you to a research skill or collection that you will use throughout the research process. Please take advantage of the comments sections to ask questions about the research projects.
You can explore all of these topics in more depth on the tutorials page at the City Tech Library.
Use our New York City Research Guide to explore resources that will help you to locate information about your topic.
Open search engines like Google.
You can fine-tune your results by adding keywords or using the âadvanced searchâ option. There is a lot of great information out there, but it can take a while to sort through irrelevant or poor-quality results.
Library Catalogs and Databases.
Libraries offer a wide variety of print and online resources. Using academic library collections can be helpful, because those are designed to support the kind of research that students are asked to do. Most libraries require you to have a library card in order to borrow books or use online collections.
Library CATALOGS tend to point towards books, ebooks, and mulitimedia. Learn more about using the CIty Tech Library catalog here.
Library DATABASES let you search large collections of online information. Learn more about using City Tech Library databases here.
Research is a skill that you will apply both in and out of the classroom. This site focuses on the tools that are most likely to serve in writing a research paper, but being able to locate the information you need to learn about a topic or solve a problem is a skill that you will use in many parts of your life. Being able to search efficiently and effectively will save you time and help you to organize your writing.
Use the posts below as guidance during the research process. The Research Starter is designed to help you to outline your research in a way that will help you think about incorporating your sources into a written paper. Print it out so that you can take notes along the way.
Questions? Feel free to use the discussion feature to ask questions (or share tips!) about fine-tuning your research question, finding and evaluating information, creating citations, and more. If you prefer to contact the librarian directly, you can send a note directly to the librarian.
Identify your research topic.
You might have been assigned a research topic my your professor, or you may simply be exploring something that you are interested in. Research topics tend to be very broad (New York City, Current Events, Technology). Broad topics can be tempting, but they can be challenging to research because there are so many things to say.
Narrow your topic down! Identify a RESEARCH QUESTION
In some ways, your thesis statement and your research question are very similar: they identify the subject of your research/critique. The research question is whatever it is that youâre trying to find out about your topic. If my topic is technology, my research question might ask âhow does a particular kind of technology change the way we perform a certain taskâ or âhow does a certain technology influence behavior in a community). These examples are pretty basic, but you can find a good tutorial about developing research questions here.
You may need to explore a little before you find a research question that works well for your topic. Also keep in mind that your research question will evolve (or perhaps change completely) as you learn more about your topic.
Learn more here about developing a research question.
Identify what kinds of information you need to answer your question.
Are you looking for opinion? Facts? Creative work? News? Research? Youâll find different kinds of information in different places. This guide provides an overview of some of the things you might be looking for.
Evaluate!
Just because something you find addresses your topic, it doesnât necessarily mean itâs a great fit for your needs. Information you locate using the open internet (say, a search engine like Google) varies greatly in quality and youâll find that many sites donât measure up for academic use. Talk to your professor about their expectations for your research. We suggest using the RECAP test when you are trying to figure out what youâre looking at.
Part of being a responsible scholar is making sure that your reader knows what sources you used to develop your work. Youâll provide this information by citing all of your sources.
Learning to properly cite your sources can take a little bit of practice. If you are ever in doubt as to whether or not you should cite a particular source, you can always discuss it with your instructor. When in doubt, err on the side of citing the source. Failing to indicate when you are referencing a source is plagiarism, a serious academic offense.
We recommend The Owl at Purdue for information about how to format your paper and incorporate sources into your text.
Online citation generators (Bibme.org, EasyBib) will help you to format entries for your works cited page.
The OpenLab is an open-source, digital platform designed to support teaching and learning at City Tech (New York City College of Technology), and to promote student and faculty engagement in the intellectual and social life of the college community.
