Guides: FYSE 1050 Filling in the Blanks: Research Basics

Top Tips for Starting Your Research

Not Sure Where to Start?

Start your research with these resources.

LibrarySearch
Middlebury library's search engine. It searches everything we own or have access to, including books, articles, films, and reference materials. It's multidisciplinary, so you'll find articles about German AND other countries. (go/LibSearch/)

MIDCAT This link opens in a new window
Middlebury College Library Catalog

Quick-Start Guide to Library Research
Starting points and next steps for doing research at the Middlebury Libraries. (PDF)

Research Guides

If you would like to take a subject-specific approach to your research then browse our Research Guides for a customized introduction to library resources.

Evaluating Resources

Scholarly vs. Popular Material
How to tell what's scholarly, and what's not.
Evaluating Information Found on the Internet
Provides tutorials for evaluating information found on the internet, social media, and more. From Johns Hopkins University Sheridan Libraries.
Anatomy of a Scholarly Article
A visual introduction to the basic features of scholarly articles.
Primary vs. Secondary Sources
Learn to distinguish between primary and secondary sources, with lots of examples.

Primary vs. Secondary Sources

Primary Sources Handouts

History Research Worksheet
Step by Step Research Worksheet & Research Log
Searching for Primary Sources - Questions to Ask
Types of primary sources and how to search for them.
Finding Primary Sources in the Library Using MIDCAT
Examples of subject headings to use and more search examples.

Can't Find It at Midd?

Find at another library
Fill out a form to request an item through Interlibrary Loan (ILL). Learn more.
WorldCat
Use this union catalog of over 40 million books, documents, reports, and media from libraries worldwide to identify books to request via InterLibrary Loan. If we don't own the book and you want to borrow it from another library, click on the ILL icon from the record. (OCLC)