By Haley Morrison, Reporter
For anyone starting the research process, the university libraries offer plenty of research resources, such as planning or citation tools, and many online databases.
Library resources include databases, and tools such as the research paper planner and Zotero. Zotero is an online tool that helps students bookmark sources, gives citations and more. The research paper planner gives students a timeline for working on papers, which is helpful to students who are prone to procrastination.
Liaison librarian Eileen Bentsen recommends using the library’s databases and the research paper planner, all of which can be used to combat the three biggest mistakes Bentsen sees students making during the research process.
“The biggest mistakes that I often see is that students don’t leave themselves enough time to read the info and take it in, also, being satisfied with a surface-level education on what they are researching with first 10 or 15 things they get, and also, choosing to use Google instead of the databases,” Bentsen said.
“It walks you through the research process,” said liaison librarian Ellen Filgo. “It works with Chrome, Firefox and Safari, downloads articles into your library, works with databases such as Ebsco, Bearcat, Jstor,” and Google Scholar, saves articles into a folder, and you can drag and drop info into Microsoft word and it will give you a bibliography.”
Along with attending seminars, Filgo believes that talking to professors and peers are other good ways of learning more about Zotero.
“Getting it out to professors is important because the more that know about it, the more that can get the word out,” Bentsen said. “When professors say ‘Oh, I use this program called Zotero; it’s really great’ students take notice. There are a lot more resources at the library then you would think,” Bentsen said. “It’s not just a good quiet place to study.”
However, not all of the library’s resources are found on a computer.
“The most under used resource is the librarians themselves,” Bentsen said. “Even faculty say, ‘I don’t want to disturb you’ but no, it’s my job to help you.”
Liaison librarians, such as Bentsen and Filgo, help the university’s departments obtain the research resources they require.
Bentsen is the liaison librarian for the Honors College as well as the medical humanities, English and history departments.
“I enjoy working with the honors students because I am very interdisciplinary,” Bentsen said. “I like the medical humanities because I get to bring them into the humanities, and English and history are just loves of mine.”
Liaisons typically work with the departments, but also work with individual students at times too.
