Google Scholar: An Essential Research Tool: Summary

Google Scholar is a valuable research tool. Most of the material found by a Scholar search will be suitable for use in term papers, project assignments and even theses. One of Scholar’s main advantages is that it is not confined to one specific subject area. It can search across them all. This makes it especially useful for a group project if the topic is quite broad. By using various search strategies, the group members can focus on widely varied aspects of the overall assignment while all using the single Google Scholar search system.

As indicated at the start of this LibGuide, learning to use Scholar has another significant benefit. The University’s academic search databases can only be used by University employees, and currently registered students. When you graduate, you immediately lose access to those databases.  But anyone can use Google Scholar by linking to it direct off the Internet at

https://scholar.google.ca/

After you graduate, when you need information for a personal or business project, use Google Scholar to find it. Then ask your company’s corporate library or the local public library to obtain it for you through the interlibrary loan process. 

Scholar can keep you connected to the high quality, reliable part of the electronic information world.