Research & Writing Guides

Research Tips
Suggestions for a successful research project through each step of the process.

Finding Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Articles
How to recognize scholarly journals and find articles in print or online.

Evaluating Information Sources
What to look for in print and Web documents to assess the reliability and usefulness of the source for your needs.

How to Avoid Plagiarism
Specific steps you can take to keep from plagiarizing on your college assignments.

EBSCOhost Databases: Search Tips
Step-by-step guide for searching any database from EBSCOhost, one of our most popular suppliers.

Library of Congress Classification Outline
Detailed outline of the Library of Congress Classification system, used in all the DMACC libraries for organizing our book collections.

MLA Documentation
A brief guide to documenting your information sources using the Modern Language Association (MLA) format. Includes information, examples, and a sample list of works cited.

APA Documentation
A brief guide to documenting your information sources using the American Psychological Association (APA) format. Includes information, examples, and a sample reference list.

More Documentation Styles
(Online Writing Center, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison)
The UW-Madison Writing Center provides information on a variety of documentation styles, including APSA (American Political Science Association), CBE (Council of Biology Editors) and Chicago/Turabian, as well as the more commonly used MLA and APA styles.

Bedford St. Martin's Online!
Guides for documenting electronic sources in a variety of styles, provided by the well-known textbook publisher. Includes MLA, APA, CBE, Chicago, and other documentation styles.

NoodleTools Citation Software
Help for MLA or APA documentation. You set up your own files and create lists in the correct format by filing out a template for each of your sources. New users contact your campus library for an initial access password to set up your account.

RESEARCH, WRITING & DOCUMENTATION GUIDES