Events

 Start Your Research with Primary Sources. Curious about working with original materials for your papers or projects? This quick workshop will show you how to set up an account, search for items in the collections, request materials, and book an appointment. It’s a great way to learn the basics and feel confident using primary sources in your research.

This workshop will be presented hybrid, simultaneously at the Deering Library and online via Zoom. Register to receive connection information.

The workshop will be led by Catie Huggins, Public Services Coordinator for McCormick Library.

Keeping track of your research can be an overwhelming task. Fortunately, EndNote can help! In this session, we will introduce you to a powerful citation management application, EndNote, which can help you organize your research materials and save you countless hours in the course of your researching, reading, and writing. EndNote is available at no cost to Northwestern students, staff, and faculty. It's easy to use and allows you to collect, manage, and share your research sources. You can also insert properly formatted citations and bibliographies as you write in Microsoft Word.

Copyright is a growing concern among researchers, who may have questions like “When can I use someone else’s copyrighted work?” or “What rights do I have in my own research?” This workshop will cover basic copyright principles, as well as taking a deeper dive into how exceptions to the law like fair use apply in an academic setting. Expect large-group discussion of real-life fair use case studies. Participants are encouraged to bring examples of texts, images, and other copyrighted materials they would like to incorporate into their work for the group to discuss.

This workshop will be presented over Zoom, led by Liz Hamilton, Copyright Librarian.

A Northwestern Zoom Account is required to access the session.

Keeping track of your research can be an overwhelming task. Fortunately, Zotero is a tool that can help! In this session we will introduce you to the citation management application, Zotero, which can help you organize your research materials and save you countless hours in the course of your reading and writing. Zotero is a freely available citation management software application that works as standalone software or through a web browser. Zotero is easy to use and allows you to collect, manage,  and share your research sources. You can also insert properly formatted citations and bibliographies as you write in Google Docs, Microsoft Word, and LibreOffice.

As you prepare your dissertation, you may have questions about copyright. Can you use articles you’ve published during your time at Northwestern? What about images and texts by other creators? This workshop will help you understand copyright as it applies to your dissertation, from the basics of copyright ownership to exceptions like fair use. No matter where you are in your program, come to discuss real-life examples – and feel free to bring your own. 

This workshop will be presented over Zoom, led by Liz Hamilton, Copyright Librarian.

A Northwestern Zoom Account is required to access the session.

This session will introduce undergraduates to strategies for completing a literature review. The session will include tips and guidance on scoping, developing the research question, choosing databases and searching, organizing materials, and constructing a review.
 
This session will be presented in person at the University Library by Jason Kruse, Undergraduate Engagement Librarian and Geoff Morse, Head of Distinctive Collections & Research Services.

Keeping track of your research can be an overwhelming task. Fortunately, EndNote can help! In this session, we will introduce you to a powerful citation management application, EndNote, which can help you organize your research materials and save you countless hours in the course of your researching, reading, and writing. EndNote is available at no cost to Northwestern students, staff, and faculty. It's easy to use and allows you to collect, manage, and share your research sources. You can also insert properly formatted citations and bibliographies as you write in Microsoft Word.

This workshop will be presented online via Zoom. Please register to receive connection information. A Northwestern Zoom account will be required to access the meeting.

"Generative Artificial Intelligence (ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, and others) was introduced three years ago but its place in the learning process is unclear to many: Can these tools enhance learning; what is considered 'ethical' use; and what is my role as a user versus GAI's function as an optional learning assistant? This session will highlight the basics of what GAI is useful for, as well as its limitations, and will define the active steps that users need to take if they choose to use these tools.

This workshop is hybrid (in person at University Libraries and online over Zoom) and geared toward Northwestern undergraduate students. Plese register for location and connection information. A Northwestern Zoom account is required to access the online session.

This workshop will be led by Tracy Coyne, Distance Learning and Professional Studies Librarian; Frank Sweis, User Experience Librarian; and Jeannette Moss, User Education Librarian.

Want to better your chances at winning up to $2500? Learn how you can improve your submission to the Libraries’ second annual Undergraduate Archival Research Project Prize, a prize awarded to the best scholarly work that uses primary sources and presents a significant and well-researched analysis on a historical topic. Projects will be judged on their clarity of focus, originality of argument and historical analysis, relevancy and comprehension of applied primary sources, and contribution to their related field of study.

Part 1 of this workshop will address the basics of developing a strong thesis and help you clarify your point of view through storytelling exercises. Bring your thesis statement for practice (optional).

Note that participation in this workshop will earn you an extra point toward your submission!

A Part II of this workshop will be held on Thursday, February 26.

This workshop is hybrid (in person at University Libraries and online over Zoom) and geared toward Northwestern students. A Northwestern Zoom account is required to access the online session. Please register to receive location and connection information.

Research is often portrayed as a linear process of discrete parts to be followed in sequential order. In practice, the components of the research process overlap, are interconnected, and repeat. This session will explore the messiness of research and highlight tools, services, and tips to help you navigate the process. Drawing on real-world examples, the presenters will discuss pitfalls and opportunities to help normalize potentially stressful experiences and help you mitigate them.

This workshop will be presented in person at the University Library by Gina Petersen, Assessment Librarian; and Jason Kruse, Undergraduate Engagement Librarian.

This session will introduce graduate students to strategies for completing a literature review. The session will include tips and guidance on developing and refining a research question, choosing databases, advanced searching techniques, using citation management tools for organizing materials, and tips on constructing a review. The content will apply to literature reviews for short papers to articles to dissertations.
 
This session will be presented in person at the University Library by Jason Kruse, Undergraduate Engagement Librarian and Geoff Morse, Distinctive Collections & Research Services.

Keeping track of your research can be an overwhelming task. Fortunately, Zotero is a tool that can help! In this session we will introduce you to the citation management application, Zotero, which can help you organize your research materials and save you countless hours in the course of your reading and writing. Zotero is a freely available citation management software application that works as standalone software or through a web browser. Zotero is easy to use and allows you to collect, manage,  and share your research sources. You can also insert properly formatted citations and bibliographies as you write in Google Docs, Microsoft Word, and LibreOffice.

This workshop will be presented online via Zoom. Please register to receive connection information. A Northwestern Zoom Account will be required to access the workshop.

This session will provide an overview of systematic and scoping reviews, how they differ from literature reviews, what you should be thinking about as you plan your research, and the support available through Northwestern Libraries. This session is geared towards faculty, postdocs, graduate students, and other researchers.
 
This session is restricted to Northwestern faculty, students, and staff, please register with your Northwestern email address. This session will be presented virtually over Zoom by Jason Kruse, Undergraduate Engagement Librarian. Register to receive connection information.

A Northwestern Zoom Account is required to access this session.

Do you need to find statistics to support an argument?  Or a dataset to analyze as part of a research project?  Finding datasets from authoritative sources can be challenging. This introductory workshop will point you to the best places to start looking for data to streamline the discovery process.  How to cite datasets will also be addressed. 

Topics NOT addressed in this session: cleaning data, analysis methods or software.

This workshop is presented by Becca Greenstein, STEM Librarian.

A Northwestern Zoom account is required to access this session.

Keeping track of your research can be an overwhelming task. Fortunately, EndNote and Zotero are both tools that can help keep your research organized! In this session we will introduce you to the citation management applications, Zotero and EndNote, which can help you organize your research materials and save you countless hours in the course of your reading and writing. Zotero is a free and open-source citation management software application that works as standalone software or through a web browser, and EndNote is free to download for Northwestern users. Both are easy to use and allow you to collect, manage, and share your research sources. You can also insert properly formatted citations and bibliographies as you write in Google Docs and Microsoft Word.

No registration needed. Drop by any time during these hours for help getting started using EndNote or Zotero, if you're already using the software and need help, or if you're just curious how a citation management tool can work for you!

Want to better your chances at winning up to $2500? Learn how you can improve your submission to the Libraries’ second annual Undergraduate Archival Research Project Prize, a prize awarded to the best scholarly work that uses primary sources and presents a significant and well-researched analysis on a historical topic. Projects will be judged on their clarity of focus, originality of argument and historical analysis, relevancy and comprehension of applied primary sources, and contribution to their related field of study.

Part 2 of this workshop builds on your thesis and dives deeper into interpreting primary sources and applying your analysis to support your thesis. Bring your thesis statement for practice (optional)!

Note that participation in this workshop will earn you an extra point toward your submission!

A Part I of this workshop will be held on Thursday, February 5.

This workshop is hybrid (in person at University Libraries and online over Zoom) and geared toward Northwestern students. A Northwestern Zoom account is required to access the online session. Please register to receive location and connection information.

Do you need to find statistics to support an argument?  Or a dataset to analyze as part of a research project?  Finding datasets from authoritative sources can be challenging. This introductory workshop will point you to the best places to start looking for data to streamline the discovery process.  How to cite datasets will also be addressed. 

Topics NOT addressed in this session: cleaning data, analysis methods or software.

This workshop is presented by Becca Greenstein, STEM Librarian.

A Northwestern Zoom account is required to access this session.

This session will introduce you to the steps in the systematic review process, and the support services that Northwestern Libraries provides. Topics covered include different types of reviews, what to do before starting a review, software & tools, and scaling down projects using systematic review techniques. This session is geared towards faculty, postdocs, graduate students, and other researchers.
 
This session is restricted to Northwestern faculty, students, and staff, please register with your Northwestern email address.

This session will be presented virtually over Zoom by Jason Kruse, Undergraduate Engagement Librarian. Register to receive connection information.

A Northwestern Zoom Account is required to access this session.