When your professors advise you to use credible or reliable sources for a research project, you will need to evaluate each potential source to decide if it is acceptable to use for your assignment. Here are a few tips.
1. Consider the source.
Whether you are looking for sources in library databases or on the open web, our "Consider the Source" handout will guide you to ask important questions about any information source's relevance, credibility, purpose, and timeliness.
Visit the library's guide to Evaluating Sources for more information and resources for evaluating both news and scholarly sources.
2. Seek out peer-reviewed scholarly sources.
Scholarly sources are:
- written by professors, researchers, or subject experts;
- intended for academic audiences;
- characterized by serious tone, sophisticated language, and careful documentation of sources.
Most, but not all, scholarly sources are peer reviewed, meaning that they are reviewed by other experts in the same field before they are published. This is done to ensure that they are reliable, high-quality resources.
3. Use library databases.
You can use the library's databases, like Academic Search Complete, to search for peer-reviewed scholarly articles in any academic discipline. Academic Search Complete also includes news and magazine articles.
Use WorldCat Discovery to find books (and more). Remember, you can use our tips for finding information in books that will help with your research project.
Visit the library's News Sources guide to look for information in news databases, newspapers, and other news sites.
The library subscribes to over 100 databases and digital collections, all with unique content. You can visit the research guide for your academic subject to see recommended databases for that discipline, or see the full list of databases here.
