All Cambridge University Libraries courses

Finished your PhD thesis? It’s time to submit.

Unsure of your access level options? Confused about any third-party copyright in your thesis? Then this session is for you.

The final step after completing your thesis is to deposit an electronic copy into the University’s Repository, Apollo. This training session will cover how to ensure you meet all the requirements for submission, how to decide on the access level for your thesis and finally a demonstration of successfully depositing your work using Symplectic Elements.

The module covers the key things you need to know when depositing your electronic thesis to Apollo

• How to ensure you meet all the requirements for submission
• How to decide on the access level for your thesis
• A demonstration of successfully depositing your work using Symplectic Elements.

You will receive the URL for the course in the confirmation email after booking.

This tour of the Divinity Faculty Library is primarily aimed at members of the University who are not Divinity Faculty members, but any member of the Divinity Faculty is welcome too. Each tour will be led by a member of the Divinity Faculty Library team.

We start with an orientation session at the Divinity Faculty (ca. 30 minutes), followed by a tour of the University Library (ca. 30 minutes) for Divinity Faculty members, led by members of the Divinity Faculty Library staff.

A session with Louisa Vickers-Mills (ProQuest) looking at the new interface for the Early English Books Online (EEBO) database. EEBO contains around 17 million pages digitised from nearly 150,000 works printed in the British Isles and North America, as well as elsewhere in the world in the English language, up to 1700. It covers all subject areas, with particularly good representation for literature, theology, history, politics and the arts.

This session will explain how to use EEBO for your research and which features can help you get the best from the content.

Booking not necessary. If you have any questions or can’t make this date, please contact Dr Emily Dourish (ejm25@cam.ac.uk).

Electronic resources in Theology and Religious Studies will give a brief overview of the various e-resources, which are particularly relevant for undergraduate students.

E-resources in Theology and Religious Studies will give a brief overview of the most relevant online resources for undergraduates.

A drop-in session where members of the e-journals and e-books teams will be on hand to help with any questions you may have about these resources.

Fair attribution for technicians through either co-authorship or direct acknowledgement in research publications is a key component of the ‘visibility’ and ‘recognition’ areas of the Technician Commitment, of which the University of Cambridge was a founding signatory in 2017.

However, there is currently no policy or standard practice for acknowledging the role of technicians, equipment and facilities in the University or the wider sector. Technicians experience a great disparity in their recognition and visibility in scholarly outputs.

This interactive workshop, organised by the Biological Sciences Libraries Team, will introduce you to the scholarly communications process as well as tools such as CRediT and ORCID, and facilitate conversation amongst peers.

Fair attribution for technicians through either co-authorship or direct acknowledgement in research publications is a key component of the ‘visibility’ and ‘recognition’ areas of the Technician Commitment, of which the University of Cambridge was a founding signatory in 2017.

However, there is currently no policy or standard practice for acknowledging the role of technicians, equipment and facilities in the University or the wider sector. Technicians experience a great disparity in their recognition and visibility in scholarly outputs.

This interactive workshop, organised by the Biological Sciences Libraries, will introduce you to the scholarly communications process as well as tools such as CRediT and ORCID, and facilitate conversation amongst peers.

Finding secondary literature to inform and support your research is paramount to any higher-level research. This session focuses on the concepts as well as practical issues, to give participants a more comprehensive understanding of the issues and features of literature searching.

Please bring your own wifi-connected device, so that you can look at some of the platforms.

Please note that this session is for Postdoctoral researchers at the University of Cambridge

Academic publishing is currently undergoing rapid transformation across the scholarly disciplines. Based on the move to openness, researchers are exploring new forms of immediate and rapid dissemination through preprint servers and reaching wider audiences through open access books, journals and repositories. But what should this future look like and how can the University support researchers to get us there? This two-hour workshop will explore some the transformation underway in scholarly communication, taking into account potential issues that may arise such as access to funding, research assessment and career progression. Participants will be asked to discuss and advise on how the University can best support research communities to openly disseminate research.

The UL is unique: a national, legal deposit library with an amazing collection of around 8 million items - over two million of which you can browse on our open shelves. If that sounds a bit daunting, why not come on a brief orientation tour to help you find your way around? We’ll even tell you what we keep in the famous Library tower ...

Please note this tour does not cover the University's vast electronic and digital collections: to find out more about using these, please see check for courses on our timetable or ask a member of Library staff for help.

This session will provide an overview of the support and resources available from the Biological Sciences Libraries Team, as well as other useful services from across the University of Cambridge, for undergraduate students taking their Part II year in a Biological Sciences subject. It will also provide an introduction to the various training opportunities on offer from library staff to help students with research projects and/or dissertations.

Please note that some Part II cohorts will have a timetabled induction so be sure to check your course handbooks or other information before booking a place. These sessions are for Part II students based in departments with reduced or no library staffing during Michaelmas Term.

A recording of the content covered in this induction session will be made available on the dedicated Natural Sciences Tripos LibGuide.

This session will provide an overview of the support and resources available from libraries and other useful departments from across the University of Cambridge for new postgraduates and researchers. It will also provide an introduction to the various training opportunities on offer from library staff on a wide range of useful research themes and skills.

After this session, participants will have a better understanding of what services are out there to help support them in their time at Cambridge and who they can ask for help.

This short interactive module introduces you to Cambridge University Libraries and explains how to find resources for your subject. This module has a focus on the Medical and Veterinary Sciences Triposes, but will be useful for anyone who is new to Cambridge.

By law, a copy of every UK print publication must be given to the British Library by its publishers, and to five other major libraries, including Cambridge University Library, that request it. Since April 2013 Legal Deposit has included material published digitally and online.

Non-print Legal Deposit material is accessed via designated PCs in the University Library and Affiliated Libraries.

With the amount of material now deposited electronically increasing, the University Library is offering informal training sessions with staff from the Reference Department. Whether you require a general overview or have specific enquiries, these sessions will be of help to you.

A member of staff will be available from 11.30-12.00 every Wednesday. There is no need to book a place; please make yourself known to staff at the enquiry desk in the main Reading Room.

An introduction to the correct handling procedures for modern and medieval manuscripts, with demonstrations of how to use rests, cushions and weights, and how to deal with damaged or fragile materials, using items from the University Library collections.

Interested in using software to manage and organise your references, but not sure where to start? Or confused about the different software options available? Come along and hear about two popular reference management software packages - Zotero and Mendeley - and learn how they work and which of them might suit you best.

This online interactive course will give you advice on how to survive your first year at Cambridge. Topics include introductions to note making, referencing, writing essays, and managing your time.

The course is aimed at Part IA students, with a Science focus. However, the course is open to anyone who wishes to use it, and will be useful for any discipline, or as a refresher for those wishing to learn some new tips and tricks.

Do you feel you often experience 'writer's block' where you can't seem to start or make good progress with your writing? In this session, we will discuss ways of mitigating and getting past writer's block, particularly through seeing blocks as opportunities for writing.

Through discussing certain myths about academic writing and healthy ways of conceptualising the writing process, you will become familiar with techniques for freeing up your writing and making steady progress on your dissertation and other writing projects.

Need help with iDiscover? Call in at the General Enquiries Helpdesk (on the landing above the Entrance Hall) where a member of Library staff will be able to help you search our print and online collections, answer any questions you have, or give you a general overview.

Every Friday between 9.00 and 10.15.

Presentation and Q&A discussion on all matters relating to image copyright. This will be an informal brown-bag session, so feel free to bring your lunch.

In this intensive clinic session, we cover the big take away points from our focused sessions on Developing your Literature Review. Work with an experienced librarian in troubleshooting your literature searching problems when trying to carry out a literature review ranging from generating your initial keywords to working out how to use specialist databases to find scientific literature for your work.

In this intensive clinic session, we cover the big take away points from our focused sessions on Developing your Literature Review. Work with an experienced librarian in troubleshooting your literature searching problems when trying to carry out a literature review ranging from generating your initial keywords to working out how to use specialist databases to find scientific literature for your work.

In this intensive clinic session, we cover the big take away points from our focused sessions on managing your research data effectively and ethically. Work with an experienced librarian to answer any questions you may have such as getting started with your Data Management Plan or what storage options you might need to consider for your work.

In this intensive clinic session, we cover the big take away points from our focused sessions on communicating and presenting your research clearly and effectively. Work with an experienced librarian to unpick topics around good accessibility practice, get advice on what to do if things go wrong, and get feedback on your work so far.

In this intensive clinic session, we cover the big take away points from our focused sessions on designing an effective and impactful conference poster. Work with an experienced librarian in getting started with key tools as well as having the opportunity to discuss design choices, options, and get some feedback on your work so far.

In this intensive clinic session, we cover the big take away points from our focused sessions on managing your online presence as a researcher. Work with an experienced librarian in getting started with key tools such as ORCID as well as discussing the pros and cons of certain platforms such as Twitter in more detail.

In this intensive clinic session, we cover the big take away points from our focused sessions on using the reference manager tool Zotero. Work with an experienced librarian in getting started with the tool as well as troubleshooting common problems.

In this intensive clinic session, we cover the big take away points from our focused sessions on navigating the broad and sometimes complex topic of copyright in the context of your research. Work with an experienced librarian to answer any questions you may have around reusing other people's work, licensing your work for reuse, and working out how to submit your thesis or even publish, all while keeping on the right side of copyright law.

Do you have what it takes to beat the UL? Assemble a team to take on the challenge!

A self-led Library induction with a difference! Solve a series of puzzles which will lead you all over the UL, while teaching yourself to navigate the building and our physical collections. Have fun, learn how to use the UL and you will receive a small prize on completion!

Teams of up to 6 players can participate - if you want to play with your friends you'll need to make sure you all sign up to the same session. All players must be registered users of the University Library.

Please note this is a self-led, treasure hunt style induction. We recommend signing up in a group of at least 3 people. Traditional orientation tours are also available here: traditional orientation tour

Do you have what it takes to beat the UL? Assemble a team to take on the challenge!

A self-led Library induction with a difference! Solve a series of puzzles which will lead you all over the UL, while teaching yourself to navigate the building and our physical collections. Have fun, learn how to use the UL and you will receive a small prize on completion!

Teams of up to 6 players can participate - if you want to play with your friends you'll need to make sure you all sign up to the same session. All players must be registered users of the University Library.

Want to make it even more interesting? Let our staff know on the day if you would like to be timed for a chance to top our Beat the UL leaderboard! You can complete the challenge as many times as you like, but only your first attempt will be timed!

An introduction to the use of the specialist Theology and Religious studies bibliographic database ATLA for undergraduates, providing information on how to make the most effective use of this resource; of particular relevance to those preparing or working on a dissertation and wanting to acquire wider bibliographic information on a specific topic.

An introduction to the many resources available through the University Library's Chinese department.

This session aims to address the following:

• How to define and refine your research question
• Building up your search skills
• Learning what databases to use and when
• Getting Google to work for you
• Evaluating your sources
• Referencing what you find

This course is based on a typical literature review lifecycle. You start by planning your search. You then carry out your search. Once you've found some results, you evaluate what you have found to see if it is relevant to your needs. You manage your results by saving them to a suitable place so you can come back to them. If you are interested in tracking changes in your field, you enact approaches to keep up to date with new research. And as your research evolves, you refine your search to reflect new concepts and new terms. And so the cycle continues.

While you may not be as focused on the longer term tracking of new research in your field, being able to plan, search, evaluate and manage effectively are additional skills which we will cover in this course. The course will be structured around the first four stages described above, with optional additional information about the last two stages for those who are interested.

This course is supplemented by live workshop opportunities throughout the academic year.

The Internet has been available since the early 1990s and has been a repository for almost all human thought. It is, however, a highly ephemeral resource with websites in regular change and frequent deletion. A web archive attempts to capture, preserve, and give access to archived websites at regular intervals. This session will introduce web archives and their potential for academic research at all levels.

An opportunity to visit the main University Library (UL) with other LLM students. The tour will include an overview of the UL's law collections, a visit to the Rare Books Room and information about searching for Official Publications and historical material.

Welcome to the Squire Law Library! This introductory tour is led by the Librarian, David Wills, and Enquiry Desk staff member, Lizz Edwards-Waller. The tour will include information about borrowing, copying and scanning material, a visit to the dedicated PhD work areas within the library, an overview of the library catalogue and an introduction to the extensive law collections available to you.

A thirty minute introduction to the UL, aimed at those using our facilities and collections over the summer vacation period. An experienced member of staff will meet you in the Entrance Hall then lead you on a twenty minute tour of the UL,taking in the Locker Room, Open Bookstacks, Reading Room and West Room. Ten minutes are reserved after the tour for a question and answer session.

Do you have what it takes to beat the UL? Assemble a team to take on the challenge!

A self-led Library induction with a difference! Solve a series of puzzles which will lead you all over the UL, while teaching yourself to navigate the building and our physical collections. It's the most fun you'll ever have on a library induction!

Teams of up to 6 players can participate - if you want to play with your colleagues you'll need to make sure you all sign up to the same session.

Let's make it interesting! Let our staff know on the day if you would like to be timed for a chance to top our Beat the UL staff leaderboard! A little friendly competition can't hurt...

This course is based on a typical literature review lifecycle. You start by planning your search. You then carrying out your search. Once you've found some results, you evaluate what you have found to see if it is relevant to your needs. You manage your results by saving them to a suitable place so you can come back to them. If you are interested in tracking changes in your field, you enact approaches to keep up to date with new research. And as your research evolves, you refine your search to reflect new concepts and new terms. And so the cycle continues.

While you may not be as focused on the longer term tracking of new research in your field, being able to plan, search, evaluate and manage effectively are key skills which we will cover in this course. The course will be structured around these first four stages, with optional additional information about the last two stages for those who are interested.

This session equips participants with all the fundamental skills that they need to build and execute effective search strategies to locate and critically evaluate relevant materials for literature reviews, projects and other related research activities. The structure of the session will move through the processes of basic keyword generation, constructing search strings, understanding which resources to search, developing critical evaluation skills to assess quality and relevance of found items, as well as some tips on how to keep up-to-date with new research developments.

This session is tailored to those researching and studying within the Department of Psychology and will demonstrate specific resources such as PsycInfo.

This session will be delivered using Zoom so please ensure you have it installed ahead of the session. A joining link will be sent out as part of the booking confirmation process.

If you require any help before the session, such as accessibility support, please email the Deputy Librarian for Biological Sciences, George Cronin (gmp36@cam.ac.uk), for further assistance.

This session focuses on finding literature in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. The session will help you build a list of literature for your research topic (sometimes referred to as secondary literature) by introducing key resources for finding materials, illustrating a range of techniques for searching, and discussing how to stay up to date with research in your field.

By the end of this session, you should be able to: • Plan a strategy for finding literature on your research topic. • Discover a range of resources available for your literature search. • Make the most of the resources available using a range of techniques and tools. • Stay up to date with research in your field. • Build a list of relevant literature related to your research topic.

If you are a STEMM researcher, you may find our Literature Searching for Researchers (STEMM) course useful https://www.training.cam.ac.uk/cul/course/cul-rs-search-stemm

Other related courses in our Research Skills programme include Managing your References with Zotero and Managing your Research with Endnote. The Engaging with your literature: critical reading and managing literature-based research (Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences) course from the Researcher Development team may also be useful.

This session equips participants with foundational skills that they need to build and execute effective search strategies to locate relevant materials for literature reviews, projects, and other related research activities. The session will explore key searching techniques, where to search, and how to troubleshoot common searching problems, as well as keeping up to date with the latest research.

This session discusses the benefits and challenges of maintaining an online presence as a researcher. Starting with exploring what comes up through a quick Google search all the way through to maintaining profiles on academic sites, this session will look at the pros and cons of online engagement. Popular platforms such as Twitter and YouTube will be discussed, as will tools such as ORCID, and networking sites such as academia.edu and ResearchGate.

Participants should expect to have the opportunity to critically evaluate the various options presented in this session with the overall aim of being better informed when deciding where to invest their time and efforts when building an academic presence online.

This session will introduce you to Zotero (https://www.zotero.org/), a free tool to manage bibliographies and bibliographic databases.

Using a reference manager is one of the best ways to look after crucial research literature, whether planning for a literature review or simply keeping track of developments in a particular discipline. This session will introduce Zotero.

Using live demonstrations, discussions, and troubleshooting common referencing issues, the session will give an in-depth look at how Zotero (and tools like it) can help maximise a research project workflow while also ensuring that critical resources and information are not lost at any point in the research process.

Please note: This session will be offered, either online or in person, in Michaelmas, Lent and Easter terms.

Managing your data well is a key responsibility as a researcher and it prevents disasters. You will encounter research data in many forms, ranging from measurements, numbers and images to documents and publications.

Whether you create, receive or collect this information, you will need to look after it properly.

Managing digital information properly is a complex issue. Doing it correctly from the start could save you a lot of time and hassle when preparing a publication or writing up your thesis.