How to find materials for your assignment?
We have hundreds of thousands of print books, eBooks, articles and a wide range of media items available for you to use. There are a number of different ways to find information relevant to your assignment. Here are the basic steps to get you started.
The library Search box is a good place to start your search.
Enter your search terms in the box in the centre of the library homepage (as shown below). There are three tabs: Search; Books & media; and Course reserves.
Search searches across the majority of UVic Libraries' resources (books, articles, databases, videos, reports etc)
Books & media searches the print books and eBooks in our collection
Course reserves searches course reserves system
Once you run a "Search" search, a list of search results will be returned. Results can be narrowed down in many ways including: format (i.e. eBooks, newspaper articles, peer-reviewed journal articles or videos); publication date; full-text availability; and, language.
Top tip! If you want to limit your search to items available to you online, click Full Text Online under the REFINE YOUR SEARCH menu in the top left of the screen.
Subject Guides (aka Libguides)
Subject guides are created by librarians to highlight and recommend the best books, journals, and databases to get you started.
For example, if you are enrolled in a psychology class check out the psychology guide for the best resources (journals, encyclopedias, databases, and videos) and research tips.
The UVic Libraries also subscribes to a large number of interdisciplinary and subject specific databases. Start by considering the frequently-used databases.
Other databases can be found by searching by words in the database title, or browsing by subject, and a few databases are specific for searching newspapers.
Check out the Research Anywhere guide and these research tips for more in-depth details.
Contact askus@uvic.ca if you have any questions.
Librarians available for consultations
If you're looking for materials for your assignments and you would like advice on finding academic resources then contact a librarian, make an appointment, or email askus@uvic.ca.
Citations & writing help
Your course instructor will state the required citation style guide for your course. Please consult your course syllabus for specific details.
Citation style guides provide rules on how to cite your sources for your assignment.
The most common citation styles are APA, MLA and Chicago Manual of Style. Check out our Citation Help page to learn how to cite and see the different citation styles.
The Centre for Academic Communication (CAC) offers support in academic writing, reading, and speaking. Virtual tutoring appointments are available over email, through Zoom, and on the phone.
Ask us