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Mae'r dudalen hon hefyd ar gael yn Gymraeg

MyUni Library Essentials - Researching

MyUni Library Essentials course

MyUni Library Essentials includes a section on Researching. Follow the link below to learn how to plan a search strategy and conduct your search. (You need to log in to Canvas to access the link.)

Search tips

Keywords

  • Find the keywords for your assignment topic. Don’t type in a long sentence.
  • Are there synonyms or related terms (broader or more specific) that might be relevant?

Getting more results

  • You can use a truncation symbol (usually an asterisk *) to find different endings to your keyword. For example, searching for read* would find read, reading, reads, etc.
  • You can find alternative terms simultaneously by linking them with OR; for example, you could search for adolescent OR teenager.

Getting fewer results

  • If you get too many results try searching just the title or abstract rather than the full record. You should get fewer, more relevant results.
  • Use quotation marks if you want your search terms to appear as a phrase; for example "artificial intelligence"
  • Use the filter options down the side of the results page to make your search more specific

Critically appraising your sources is a crucial element of any literature search.  You need to consider is your sources are:

  • reliable
  • academic enough
  • Free from bias

Ask yourself the following questions about the information you have found.

Who?  

  • Who is the author or organisation responsible for the information?
  • Are they qualified to write on this topic?

When?  

  • Is the information out of date?
  • Does it matter?

What sort of information?

  • Is it opinion or fact?
  • Is it reliable and independent?
  • Is it academic/research-focussed or commercial?

Research Support and Open Access

This Postgraduate course contains links to information useful to you as a Postgraduate, including Library Guides and external sources. It works best by navigating to the section on which you require information, although there are also a lot of useful links in the Support section. Use this guide to help you throughout your Postgraduate career.