Can't find what you are looking for?
No library has everything. If you come across a resource outside of BU Libraries' collections, we can still obtain it for you for free. Interlibrary Loan (ILL) services are available to current BU faculty, staff, and students to request books, articles, and other items not available at BU Libraries. Sign in with your BUID to request materials from partnering libraries.
Why use books?
You can use books to find background and contextual information about your topic. Scholarly books can be hundreds of pages long, therefore can cover a large amount of information. Books generally take longer to be published and edited than journal articles, so they're able to cover a longer-term look at a topic and cover both general and deep information.
Book Chapters are also an excellent option for finding detailed information about your topic. You can use book chapters in a similar way as you might utilize an article or journal. *Hint* use the index (or ctrl + F) to identify important pages and chapters!
How to find books
- BU Libraries Search This link opens in a new window
BU Libraries Search provides a single place to search for a wide variety of research material provided by the library. Resources covered by the search includes books and eBooks, journals, scores and sheet music, video and audio recordings, and other physical and electronic items held by the library. Coverage encompasses materials relating to the prehistoric and antique world through to the present.
To find books and eBooks in the BU Libraries collections, use BU Libraries Search. Enter some keywords describing your research topic in the search bar and select the Books option to narrow your results to only books and eBooks.
Why use articles & journals?
Journal articles are much shorter than books, usually only 5-30 pages, which means they have a much narrower focus. Articles cover a focused, niche topic at a highly detailed level. Journals aren't the best place to find contextual or background information, but they are a great source to use to find the most recent academic information about a topic.
Journals contain articles about a shared topic. Articles are written by different authors who may not have anything in common besides their research interest. The highest quality journals require a peer review process where other scholars in the disciple review each others work to verify the rigor of the research before publication.
How to find articles
- BU Libraries Search This link opens in a new window
BU Libraries Search provides a single place to search for a wide variety of research material provided by the library. Resources covered by the search includes books and eBooks, journals, scores and sheet music, video and audio recordings, and other physical and electronic items held by the library. Coverage encompasses materials relating to the prehistoric and antique world through to the present.
You can find journal articles in BU Libraries Search and other library databases. BULS is a great place to start because it searches across the journals and databases that BU subscribes to, so you can search in multiple repositories of knowledge all at once! To search only for articles, select the articles option when searching your keywords in the BULS search box.
Why use newspapers & magazines?
Newspapers and magazines help you understand the popular conversation around your research topic. These types of sources are geared to a general public audience and are intended to inform and persuade. These types of articles go through an editorial process, which is quicker than the scholarly editing process. News articles are often published the same day as an event occurs. Others follow a long period of investigation. With these types of sources, pay attention to the purpose of the article and the journalistic integrity of the author and publisher.
How to find newspapers and magazines
- Find Newspapers at BU LibrariesUse this guide to connect to BU Libraries access to local and national news sources, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post.
- PressReader This link opens in a new window
Full-page images and article images with searchable full text of international newspapers and magazines from the last 90 days, in the original language. Includes computer-generated translations to English and other languages for some publications.
Critical Source Evaluation - How and Why to Use Different Source Types
Directed by Karly Stark. Written & narrated by Jen Brown. Editorial & directorial contributions from Gisèle Tanasse.
