Catalogue & Database Accounts

Vassar Library Search and many of our databases platforms (Web of Science, Scopus, Ebsco, ProQuest, etc.) allow users to create free accounts where you can save searches and items from results lists. Taking the time upfront to create an account in a resource you use extensively can save you time in the long run. 

Zotero Citation Manager

Zotero is a free easy-to-use citation management tool to help you collect, store, organize, cite, and share your research sources. Zotero can format in-text citations and generate references lists using your preferred citation style. 

More information about citing and style guides on the Citing & Managing Sources. 

Trello

Trello is a free project management software. You can use it for setting deadlines, keeping track of tasks and more. See Organizing the research process using Trello to get started. There are free and paid versions; I use the free version almost daily. 

Evernote

An platform for notes and electronic notebooks. Free and paid versions, both cloud-based and desktop versions. 

Generative AI cannot replicate intellectual work and often provides great sounding fake citations, plus may have date restrictions and training sets grounded in bias. There are more reliable research tools (slide 15) that can compliment (but not replace) your research efforts. 

1. Don't try to keep it all in your head.
   1. Diagram your tentative topic/ research question (Kristin Luker's Bedraggled Daisy) 
   2. Document your research process; consider using a synthesis grid or a research log/journal to plan out your current tasks and next steps.
2. Annotate your references documents. Work this into your search process and note why the source is relevant and how you might use it, as you save them. If using Zotero, you can use its built-in annotation tools. Write as you go. 
3. When saving sources, look for permalinks or DOIs
4. Create accounts with the database platforms you are using regularly to save searches and results.
5. Use a citation manager. Zotero is a great and free option. 

Literature Synthesis Grids

Synthesis grids are organizational tools for recording the main concepts of your sources and can help with connecting your sources to one another.

• Synthesis Grid Templates & Search Log: This template provides four different organizational frameworks for keeping track of your sources. Select the grid that most closely meets your needs; add or delete columns as you wish. Download or create your own copy to begin using.

Searching, Reading & Writing with BEAM

As you search and review sources, consider the sources potential use beyond relevancy: Background, Evidence, Argument, Methods. BEAM framework is from Bizup- for more see The Craft of Research. 

Two-Minute Thesis

"Two-Minute Thesis" is a video series produced by the Haverford College Libraries. Haverford senior thesis writers discuss (briefly) their theses, the research process, and share the ups and downs of their thesis writing experience.

Haverford College Writing Center Thesis Resources

Logistical and emotional guidance, from how to create a writing schedule to managing thesis anxiety; advice from students reflecting on their thesis experience. 

Managing Moments of Uncertainty & Anxiety as a Writer

Booth, Wayne C., et al. The Craft of Research, Fifth Edition, University of Chicago Press, 2024.

As you get deeper into your project, you may experience a moment when everything seems to run together into a hopeless muddle. That usually happens when you accumulate notes faster than you can sort them. Such moments can be stressful, but they can also be a sign that you are on the verge of a new insight or discovery. You can minimize anxiety by taking every opportunity to organize and summarize what you have gathered by writing as you go and by returning to the central questions: What question am I asking? What problem am I posing? Keep rehearsing that formula, I am working on X to learn more about Y, so that my audience can better understand Z. Writing regularly about these questions does more than help you stay focused; it also helps you think (p. 94).

▪  Give yourself adequate time. When planning any project, most people underestimate how long it will take. The same is true for writing. So make your best estimate, then double it.

▪  Divide large and abstract tasks into smaller and more concrete ones. If the prospect of “writing a paper” feels daunting, break it down to more manageable tasks: make a storyboard, draft a provisional introduction, summarize and respond to a source, edit your sentences for clarity, and so on.

▪  Focus on your writing’s strengths, not its weaknesses. 

▪  Don’t go it alone. Whenever you can, share your writing with others. You will benefit from their responses, and just talking it through will stimulate your thinking.

▪  Adopt reasonable standards. Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. If you feel that you must make every sentence or paragraph perfect before you move to the next one, you risk paralysis. It helps if you write informally along the way. In any event, know that every researcher compromises on perfection to get the job done.

▪  Recognize when you are stuck, and then do something different. You can take a break (of twenty minutes, or a day or two, or months or years, depending on your project and the time you have) to let your unconscious mind work on the problem. 

▪  Accept that you are not your paper. 

▪  Finally, visit a writing center if one is available to you (p.188-191.)