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Whether you are researching for a PhD or a master’s, casting a wide net when conducting your research is key. Online resources provide infinite content which can help inform your research, while providing a diversity of perspectives, data and analysis on which to draw upon. However, sifting through the sheer abundance of data online can be overwhelming; moreover, it requires a certain degree of digital literacy as well as due diligence in order to discern between ‘the good’ and ‘the bad’: ‘the reliable’ and ‘the unreliable’ in terms of citable sources.
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Your university will have their own intranet and VLE (virtual learning environment), which will give you access to numerous online resources through their own subscriptions. Accessing information from books and journals within your own institution’s system, will provide you with reliable and citable sources; where you can read peer reviewed articles in journals that have an ISSN index number and books that have an ISBN index number—meaning, they have undergone the necessary peer review and editorial processes and can be cited in your research. Moreover, you will be able to consult with librarians should you have any doubts about sources. Your university's library should be your primary source; however, limiting yourself to only what’s available from within your institution’s intranet, could mean you are missing out on some of the most up-to-date developments in your field. Using online resources in conjunction with your university’s facilities, will enhance your research capabilities and make for a broader and more informed body of work, while reflecting the very latest developments in your filed of study.
Google Scholar is an academic search engine that indexes scholarly articles, theses, books, conference papers and other academic resources and ranks them according to citation record. It is a valuable tool for postgraduate students and widely accessible.
JSTOR is a digital library which provides access to more the 12 million journal articles as well as books, images and other primary sources in over 70 disciplines. Postgraduates can find a range of scholarly articles, research papers, including historical documents, to support their research. JSTOR is available through most universities’ subscription; it will ask you to either log in through your institution or register for a personal JSTOR account, where you can read up to 100 articles per month for free.
ResearchGate connects more than 20 million researchers from over 180 different countries, providing open access and opportunities to connect and collaborate. Postgraduates can connect directly with experts in their field, discover new research opportunities as well as valuable academic resources.
ScienceDirect is a leading scientific database offering free downloadable and peer reviewed articles. With open access to scientific journals and books from reputable publishers, postgraduates have access to a range of content for: life sciences, physical sciences and engineering, health sciences and social sciences.
Science.gov is a US government funded research body, providing access to scholarly scientific and technical reports which have been peer reviewed.
PubMed is a free database of biomedical and life sciences literature, imainly including the MEDLINE database of references and abstracts. It provides access to research articles, reviews and clinical studies. This is a valuable resource for postgraduate in the field of medicine, biology and related disciplines.
Scopus is a multidisciplinary bibliographic abstract and citation database which covers science, humanities, art and social sciences. Scopus enables users to identify the source of citations and provides access to journal articles, conference proceedings, trade publications and web resources.
Vitae is aimed specifically at postgraduate students and supporting them as researchers. It provides a range of useful information related to doctoral degrees and access pathways. Moreover, it provides resources, careers advice and professional development.
Sematic Scholar is an AI-driven free research tool that provides a brief summary of scientific papers available online. It aims to simplify the search process by capturing the overall essence of a paper and extracting the most important elements.
ProjectMuse is a non-profit collaboration between some of the world’s leading libraries and scholarly publishers, providing access to high-quality full texts in the areas of humanities, arts and social sciences.
SSRN (Social Science Research Network) is a repository of working papers and preprints (drafts of papers or articles which have not been peer reviewed or published) for social sciences and humanities. Postgraduate students can access research papers, conference papers and working papers in disciplines such as law, sociology and economics.
arXiv is an open access repository providing open access to more than 2 million articles which have been approved for posting after moderation, but NOT peer reviewed. The ‘e-prints’ provide postgraduate students with scientific papers in the following subject fields: mathematics, physics, astronomy, electrical engineering, computer science, quantitative finance and economics.
IEE Xplore has been produced by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. A technical organisation which produces a large proportion of global research in engineering and computer science. The IEE Xplore digital library provides access to high quality research articles in areas such as telecommunications, engineering, bioengineering, robotics, computing, physics and astrophysics.
The internet can be a great source of information, particularly in what is commonly referred to as ‘grey data’. Grey data refers to information which is not peer reviewed; however, originates from reputable sources such as governmental and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), think tanks, which specialise in public policy, research and analysis, as well as global organisations. Although, these can be great sources of information when looking for up-to-date statistical or analytical data, there is always the potential for bias. For example, some think tanks may be more left leaning or more right leaning; hence, the views presented may have an element of subjectivity, which is why they are considered ‘grey’ literature as opposed to primary sources such as scientific and scholarly journals or academic books, which will have undergone editorial refereeing and peer review processes; thus, qualifying them for publication. Below are just some examples of grey data sources which can be useful when looking for the latest developments in geopolitics or socio-econmics.
| Global organisations | NGOs (non-governmental organisations) | Think tanks |
| WHO | Red Cross | Chatham House |
| UNESCO | Oxfam | Rand Corporation |
| World Bank | MSF |
Despite the internet being a great source of information, it is important to exercise caution when using sources found online. Open access is a huge ‘game changer’ in terms of the democratisation of access to publicly funded research; this can only be a good thing for researchers and institutions alike. Moreover, some institutions have even created their own open access repositories like the University of Nottingham’s Sherpa project: OpenDOAR and the Open University’s Core project. Open access means research is available to all, but it is an evolving movement and a certai n level of digital literacy and good judgement is needed when trawling through these immense data sources.
Before deciding to cite sources you have found online, ask yourself the following questions:
Finally, your institution's library should be your first port of call. Providing access to books, academic journals and numerous subscriptions to databases; in conjunction with trained academic librarians, your uni's library should be your primary source of research.
*The above article is not endorsing any of the online sites mentioned, purely demonstrating that there is a wealth of information out there on online, which could be helpful in terms of research, networking and advice for postgraduates.
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