Getting started with research can be intimidating, but we are here to help you. Below you will find some ideas of where to get started, how we can help, and some short videos to guide your research using the library's search system.
Getting Started:
When you want to search for information, the first place to get started is the library's SearchEverything page. From there, you can search almost all of the library's resources. Once you enter your search terms and start the search, there will be limiters on the left side of the results to help you narrow your search even further. These include being able to select the type of resource such as journal articles, peer-reviewed materials, books/ebooks, conference proceedings, book chapters, newspaper articles, reviews, reports, dissertations, and more. You can further narrow your results by publication year or year range, as well as by subject, author, language, and journal title. The results can be as broad or as narrow as you choose when you use the limiters.
If you are looking for standards, they are not as easily searched on the SearchEverything page. Instead, we recommend visiting our standards databases directly for the most accurate results. We have standards in the following four databases: ASTM Compass, IEEE Xplore (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers), SAE Mobilus (Society of Automotive Engineers), and TechStreet. If you need help searching these databases, email library@kettering.edu and we can either walk you through or complete a search on your behalf.
Other Places to Search:
If you're not seeing exactly what you're looking for in our vast array of journal articles, we'd encourage you to check Google Scholar, which you can link to your Kettering account (click here for details). Sometimes there are articles that the KU Library just doesn't have, but if you get the citation information (article title, author(s), journal name, year, volume/issue/number), we can usually get it for you from another library or purchase the access for you. You can email that citation information to mod@kettering.edu to get the process started.
How the KU Library Can Help:
The Kettering University librarians are always happy to assist you in developing your research skills. We are available for one-on-one instruction or we can visit your class or group to share our tips and tricks. Email library@kettering.edu to request library instruction. If you're feeling overwhelmed or would rather have a librarian search for resources on your behalf, we can do that too. Just email library@kettering.edu and let us know what you're looking for. If you have searched our system and still aren't finding what you're looking for, email our Materials on Demand department at mod@kettering.edu and they can usually help track down resources outside of our collection.