Expert Searching
How Can the Library Help?
The Upstate Health Sciences Library has a number of librarians who can assist with a literature search.
A literature search consultation might include one or more of the following:
- Refining the research topic to an answerable question
- Recommending information sources or databases for the search topic
- Identifying relevant search terms
- Creating and executing search strategies
- Suggesting reference management software and strategies
A librarian can also provide you with an expert search, which may include:
- Refinement of the search question
- Search term identification
- Identification of sources and databases to be searched
- Search strategy formulation and documentation
- Execution of searches
Are you interested in performing a systematic review? These types of reviews are more complex than a general literature review. See our Systematic Review Methods guide to learn more.
Do you want to meet with a librarian? Complete our Literature Search Request Form:
Before You Meet With Us
A meeting with a librarian will be most helpful for you if you do a little bit of planning and searching ahead of time. Prior to meeting with one of us, we recommend that you:
- Have a clear and concise understanding of your research question
- Be prepared to discuss the scope of your project, including limits on the body of literature
- Brainstorm search terms associated with your topics (acronyms, synonyms, and variations on spelling)
- Note any relevant literature you have found so far
Image Attributions and Copyright
Unless otherwise noted, these guides are derived from a similar guide at Welch Medical Library, Johns Hopkins University. The original guide is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic License and are attributable to the Welch Medical Library, Johns Hopkins University . Image and Icon Attributions: Icons8, licensed under CC BY-ND 4.0; WebFont Medical Icons Project, designed by Hablamos Juntos; Font Awesome 4.7