How Do I...?

How Do I Find a Peer Reviewed or Scholarly Article?

There are two main ways of searching for articles at WCU.

Searching using the search box on the homepage

  1. Enter your search terms in the search box on the library's homepage - try using short 2-3 word phrases instead of questions or sentences.
  2. Then hit Search. You'll see a results screen like the one below. 
    Search results page with the option to limit to scholarly/peer-reviewed articles highlighted. The Log In prompt is also highlighted as a way to request books or save articles to your favorites.
  3. To get to the full text of an article, click on Download PDF or Full text available or Online access

Searching using databases

  1. Choose a database from our database list. If you're not sure where to start, click on All Subjects and select your major from the list.
  2. You'll need to log in, using your WCU email address and password.
  3. In the search boxes that appear after you login, enter you keywords in one or more boxes, and hit search.
  4. Your results will appear. Click on a title to read more about it.
  5. If full text isn't available in this database, click on Find It/Check Availability to see if we have it another database.
  6. On the new page that appears, click the link next to where it says Full text available at and the full text should open.