Finding Materials with HoyaSearch
Use HoyaSearch to find articles, books, films, and more at Georgetown University Libraries and at the Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC). WRLC includes American University, Catholic University of America, Howard University, Gallaudet University, George Mason University, George Washington University, Marymount University, and the University of the District of Columbia.
The following steps will walk you through the basics of finding Georgetown books in HoyaSearch:
1. Enter the title, author, or other keywords into the search box on the library's homepage, select GU Only, and then click search.
2. From the results screen, identify the correct title.
3. To view more information about the book, including availability and links to online full text, click the title to view the complete record. See How to Find a Book on the Shelf below for more information on finding books in the library.
For more help in searching, check out the following short tutorial videos:
Requesting Materials
Resources for accessing books or other resources:
- HoyaSearch (request Georgetown and Consortium materials)
- Interlibrary Loan (request scans of chapters, journal articles, books, films, and more from other libraries)
Research Guides
To find additional resources, including scholarly articles, primary sources, news, and data, check out the Research Guides. The guides are designed to show you which are the best databases to use in your research in particular disciplines and on certain topics. Below is a selected list of guides that may be good starting places for your research.
If you need help finding the sources you need, you can Get Help at the 3rd floor reference desk or through chat or email, or you can set up a Research Consultation with one of our expert librarians!
How to Find a Book on the Shelf
The library uses the Library of Congress classification system to organize our collections.
Each book has a unique call number that works like an address that you can use to find the exact location of a book on the shelves. The letters and numbers represent subjects. This allows you to browse the shelves by topic. For more information, see the links listed below:
Citation and Organization
Organizing your work will help your writing process and help you create a successful research project.
- How much time do you have? Use this Assignment Calcuator to stay on track to complete your project on time.
- What style manual do you need to follow? Check with your instructor. Common citation styles are APA, MLA, Turabian, and Chicago. Quick explanations are on the Citations Tools page.
- How will you save your citations? Use a citation manager to make that job easier. Common ones are Zotero, and RefWorks.
- Need something quick and easy? Try ZoteroBib, a tool that helps you build a bibliography instantly from any computer or device, without creating an account or installing any software. Great for those projects where you just need a few citations in a particular style.
