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The Research Process

Find Full Text, academic sources with the ease of Google searching. 

Looking for a way to find full text, academic sources quickly? Don’t just “google” it, use Google Scholar! Online search engines are designed for general information searches, background information, travel and shopping. Google Scholar uses Google's simple, clean interface to find scholarly articles, citations and case law. It even lets you know when full text is available from Mears! That means you can use it, with a few cautions, to search quickly online and access premium academic content from the library.

Here’s a quick list of what to expect with Google Scholar:

  • It feels like a search engine but works like a premium research database

  • It helps you “discover” citations for items, but may not provide links to full text articles

  • Look for Find @ Mears Library and use your MyUSF credentials to access premium content from journals

Link Google Scholar to Mears Library

Make it easier to find full text, premium academic content available to USF students. Create an account in Google Scholar and link to Mears' Library. 

  • Go to https://scholar.google.com

  • Click the menu and navigate to Library Links

  • If you are on campus, the resources will already be selected

  • If you are off campus, search for: University of Sioux Falls. Then select:

    • University of Sioux Falls - ProQuest full text

    • University of Sioux Falls - Find @ USF-Mears Library

    • Open WorldCat - Library Search

Works Consulted: 

  • Alfonzo, Paige. Teaching Google Scholar : A Practical Guide for Librarians. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Incorporated, 2016. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/siouxfalls-ebooks/detail.action?docID=4593359.
  • Caulfield, Mike. “SIFT (the Four Moves).” Hapgood, 15 Feb. 2021, hapgood.us/2019/06/19/sift-the-four-moves/
  • Lehnen, Carl A., and Glenda M. Insua. "Search Tools and Scholarly Citation Practices in Literary Studies." Reference Services Review, 50.3 (2022): 406-18. ProQuest. Web.
  • Giustini, Dean, and Maged N Kamel Boulos. “Google Scholar is not enough to be used alone for systematic reviews.” Online journal of public health informatics, vol. 5,2 214. 1 Jul. 2013, doi:10.5210/ojphi.v5i2.4623
  • Oh, Kyong Eun, and Mónica Colón-Aguirre. “A Comparative Study of Perceptions and Use of Google Scholar and Academic Library Discovery Systems.” College & Research Libraries, Sept. 2019, crl.acrl.org/index.php/crl/article/view/23532/30841.