SearchStart for Partner Colleges

This guide is aimed at students starting university. Here you will find library advice for new students on how to find the right resources for your assignments at university. There are video's and interactive quizzes to help you check your understanding along the way.

• Sources - Types of Information. A description of the different formats information can be delivered in - what they are and when you might want to use them.
• Search - How to search. General advice and tips on effective search skills.
• Choose - Deciding what to use. With so much information available, in different formats, it can be difficult to decide which is the most appropriate source to use. This section will provide you with some advice and tips on how to decide which source is the most relevant to your needs.
• Use - Using information in your work. This section covers where to go for support with academic skills such as writing, time management and critical thinking.
• Reference - Show what you have read to support your work.  Most students at Hallam will use the APA Referencing style. Some of you may use an alternative referencing style. This section covers why you need to reference, and how you would go about it, using APA or one of the other referencing styles used at SHU.

You will also find links to advice from other services in the university to help you study.

Your feedback is important. You can feedback on SearchStart using the Library Contact link below. The guide will be updated in response to your thoughts!