Services

Books & Media

How do I find books & media?

Use the QuickFitz Library catalog. Search with a keyword, a title, or an author. Note the call number and location of the item you want and locate it on the shelf. Bring it to the Circulation Desk to check it out. There are no limits on the number of items you can check out. For more information on using the catalog watch a Tegrity tutorial.

How long can I keep my items out?

Check our policies for due dates, renewals, & late fees

Don't get a fine; renew your books online

Where will I find reserves?

At the Circulation Desk filed under your instructor's name. You need your St. Mary's ID to check out reserves.

What if I can't find books on my topic?

You can stop at the Reference Desk to get help finding more effective search terms or you can search in other libraries and request items from them. Go to the ClassicFitz catalog and click on "Other Libraries and Collections" to find other library catalogs to search. Use the directions on our Interlibrary Loan page for help ordering or ask a reference librarian.

Articles in Journals, Newspapers, & Magazines

How do I find articles?

Go to our databases list. Here you can choose a specific list of databases to search based on your topic or subject or just choose from the all titles list. Use keywords, authors, or titles to search. Many articles will come up in full text and you will be able to print them out. For more information about our databases view these Tegrity tutorials:

EBSCO & ProQuest | CQ Researcher & the Citation Trail

What if there is no full text, but just a citation or abstract?

Use the button to locate the article in another database or to order it from another library.

What is the Journal Finder?

You can use the Journal Finder to find out if this library has the journal, magazine, or newspaper title that you are looking for. Just type in the title and use the button to see if we have your title, either in our print collection in the Reference Room or online in a database.

What if the library does not have my title/article?

You can go to the Interlibrary Loan page and put in a request for that journal article. Please feel free to ask a librarian for help

Research Help

How do I get started on a research project?

Use our Research Strategy Guide or ask a librarian for help.

How can I get better search results?

Use our Search Tips

How can I find scholarly journals?

Use our What is a Scholarly Journal page

How can I tell if my sources are good quality?

Use our Evaluating Sources guideline

Apply the CRAAP test

I am not sure how to do a Works Cited page.

Use our Citing Sources examples