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Sometimes finding right among all the results is a challenge. How to make your search more effective and get relevant results more quickly? Below some brief advice, maybe these will help you proceed? Learn more in the Libguide Information searching.

Subject terms – which keywords give relevant results?

• Reflect on the keywords, check the terminology
• Identify words and concepts, do not search with whole sentences

Search Strategies – which methods can I take advantage of?

• Combine keywords, use phrase search, truncate
• Check what search possibilities the respective database allows.
• Take advantage of the database's possibilities for limitation, for example by: material type, year, language, peer reviewed

Where to search – Finna, LibGuides and different databases. In Trionia Finna | Novia, the search is directed to the e-resources acquired by Novia University of Applied Sciences, selected free resources and printed materials in the library. By narrowing the search to Articles and other international e-resources you remove the printed material from the result and will get mostly articles in the search result, however the search results do not include all available articles. Therefore, you should also search in the interface of the databases. This also allows you to make more precise searches by using the limit options as well as possible thesauri in the database.

Search in databases instead of Finna when you are doing a comprehensive, systematic literature review.

In most databases, you can limit the search to only full-text material. Note however that this applies to the database you are searching in, the full text of the article can usually be found through some other database or ordered as an interlibrary loan. If you directly limit to full text only, you will exclude many relevant and newly published articles from your search result.

If the fulltext, or the link to the full text can’t be found directly:

• The article can be freely available (open access), for example in a publication archive, try searching in a search engine.
• Most articles can be ordered as interlibrary loan, a copy of the article will then be sent to the library and can be collected at the service desk.

• According to most license agreements, library users have the right to use the e-resources on site (walk-in-user in the library). In Tritonia (Vaasa) the e-resources of the University of Vaasa, VAMK University of Applied Sciences, and Novia University of Applied Sciences can be accessed in compliance with the license agreements at the terminals for information retrieval.

• A good search strategy saves time and effort and leads to a quicker find of relevant sources.
• The extent of the information retrieval should be in proportion to the size of the assignment.
• Think creatively, be inventive in your choice of key words. Do not focus on one single key word.
• Create an overview of the subject in question, map important concepts.
• What different kinds of information sources will be required?
• Use different kinds of search strategies and benefit from the many search possibilities of the databases.
• Be critical, observant and question your sources. Be open to new ideas and perspectives.
• Ask yourself: Is this up-to-date, relevant, objective and reliable? What is the purpose?

All library resources can be found in Tritonia Finna | Novia.

In LibGuides you’ll find information resources within your field and you’ll get tips on how to search for information.

   Information Specialist: Gun Vestman
gun.vestman@uwasa.fi, 029-449 8262

As student or staff at Novia you can book an individual tutorial in information retrieval.

You can get help with defining your search strategy, choosing relevant information sources, databases and keywords.

You can book a tutorial with this form. Please describe the subject in which you are searching information.

Learn more about tutorials in the Guidance LibGuide.