Get started with research

A library database is a searchable digital index of published, reliable resources. Databases provide access to research materials from academic journals, newspapers, and magazines. Some databases also include statistics and data, market and industry research, laws and legislations, e-books, relevant Web resources, and multimedia. The information found in databases is either originally created or comes from different, reliable sources.

Databases can be multidisciplinary or they can specialize in specific subject areas. There are statistics databases, education databases, psychology databases, etc. Search more than one database for a comprehensive search on a topic. Although there may be some overlap, each database contains different resources and provides different results.

In most cases, you can find what you need in our databases by searching in Discovery or Google Scholar. These tools let you search for material across most of our databases all at once. However, sometimes you may need to access a specific database -- for example, if you are looking for news, industry information, or information that's specific to a particular geographical region, a specialized database can be helpful.

The Library has access to 90+ databases for your research. Use the Subject and Database Type filters to find databases that are relevant to the topic or type of material you're interested in.

Finding the right database can be tricky. Don't hesitate to ask a librarian for help with choosing a database to search for your topic.