The process of searching for academic resources involves identifying your search terms, deciding which information sources you are going to search, using relevant search techniques and evaluating your search results. This section will introduce you to different techniques that you can use to help you find relevant information and introduce you to criteria that you can use to assess different academic sources.
The Study Skills Handbook by
This is the ultimate guide to study skills, written by million copy bestselling author Stella Cottrell. Her tried and tested approach, based on over 20 years' experience of working with students, has helped over a million students to achieve their potential. When it comes to studying, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. This engaging and accessible guide shows students how to tailor their learning to their individual needs in order to boost their grades, build their confidence and increase their employability. Fully revised for the sixth edition, it contains everything students need to succeed. This is an invaluable resource for undergraduate students of all disciplines, and is also ideal for postgraduates, mature students and international students. It prepares students for what to expect before, during and after their studies at university. New content in this edition helps students make the most of online learning, with a new self-evaluation page and more on working collaboratively online. This edition includes support tailored for students on hybrid, asynchronous or distance learning courses as well as more material on building study stamina and improving concentration.
The study skills book : your essential guide to university success by 
Academic Success by
This hands-on book introduces students to the demands of university study in a clear and accessible way and helps them to understand what is expected of them. It helps students to develop the core skills they need to succeed at university, and gives guidance on the key forms of academic writing, including essays, reports, reflective assignments and exam papers. It shows students how to recognise opinions, positions and bias in academic texts from a range of genres, develop their own 'voice' and refer to others' ideas in an appropriate way. It also features authentic examples of academic texts and engaging activities throughout to aid understanding. Packed with practical guidance and self-study activities, this book will be an essential resource for all students new to university-level study. Accompanying online resources for this title can be found at bloomsburyonlineresources.com/academic-success. These resources are designed to support teaching and learning when using this textbook and are available at no extra cost.
This reading list provides an overview of some of the Study Support resources that are available from the BPP Library.
The library recommends that you use the resources that are accessed from the Online Library website to find the information that you need. The search facilities available are listed below:
Find a Book-search for both print books and e-books
Find a Journal-discover which resource a specific journal title is available from and if it is available in full text
Search Everything-searches across most of the library’s collections providing access to books, e-books and journal articles
Online Resources-access to an alphabetical list of the resources that the library subscribes to.
Search engines like Google are not usually recommended for finding academic information as anyone can publish information on the internet.
Google Scholar searches for academic information such as journal articles, books and theses from academic publishers and open access resources across a range of subject areas. More information is available from the Google Scholar Search Help page.
The following online videos will provide you with information regarding using Generative AI tools in your assignments:
Before you start to search for information it is important to identify the keywords that you are going to use in your search. You could highlight the keywords in your assignment title and consider alternative spellings and words that you could use.
Different search techniques can be used to combine your keywords which will help you to find relevant information and reduce the number of search results.
The online resources that the library subscribes use these techniques in different ways. Click on the help function of the resource that you are using to discover the search techniques that are available.
Most online resources include an advanced search facility which enables you to increase the accuracy of your search. There are usually different search boxes which enable you to search specific fields such as author or title and combine search terms as demonstrated in the screenshot below.
A phrase search is used when you want to search for two or more keywords adjacent to each other in a specific order. Quotation marks are used at the start and end of the phrase.
Combining your keywords using the following words enables you to include or exclude specific keywords
AND
OR
NOT
| AND | Electric Car AND Environment | This will return search results that include both electric cars and environment |
| OR | Electric Car OR Electric Motor Vehicle | This will return search results that mention either electric cars or electric motor vehicles |
| NOT | Electric Car NOT Hybrid Car | This will return search results that only include the words electric car |
Some of the library resources use a truncation symbol which is used to search for different word endings and spellings.
For example, searching for comput* will retrieve results that include both computer and computing.
The search results page on most online resources provides you with filters that you can use to help you to find the information that you need.
The filters that are available may include the following:
| Full Text | Filter your results so that only items that are available in full text are displayed |
| Publication Date | Filter your results so that the items are published within a specific date range |
| Source Type | Filter your results, for example, to only display academic journals |
| Subject | Filter your results by associated subject headings |
If you have retrieved a large number of search results you could consider if there are more specific keywords and different search filters or techniques that you could use to increase the accuracy of your search.
Whilst if you have only a small number of search results you could check that you are using the correct spelling and whether there any alternative words that you could use.
Who has written the resource?
When was the information source published?
Why was the information source published?
Is the information source objective and impartial?
Where is the information from?
How relevant is the information to my research?
LinkedIn Learning provides access to a range of online courses which includes:
Criteria for Evaluating Information