New Skills at Library workshops on finding and using sources

Skills at Library is dropping a new workshop series in March on finding and using sources. These sessions will take you through the basics of using Library resources and on to more advanced information literacy skills. You can explore what's on offer and book onto workshops through the Library website or CareerHub, but keep reading on to learn how to get the most out of these sessions.

Who are Skills at Library workshops for?

Skills at Library sessions are for everyone. Whether you are a first year undergraduate or working on your PhD, information skills can make or break your academic experience. The information skills and habits you use today have a direct impact on your future degree and employability outcomes, so it's good to regularly assess your capabilities and identify the areas you need to develop. We have rated our workshops as beginner, intermediate, and advanced to help you decide which ones will benefit you the most, but these levels are not tied to year of study and each session is open to first year as well as PGT students.

What will you learn?

The main thing we want you to learn from Skills at Library training is how to be a good information consumer that knows how share and engage with sources ethically. Our sessions are focused on how to find and use information in an academic context, but a lot of what you will learn applies to personal life as well.

The finding and using sources workshop series covers:

• Where to find course-specific resources and how to access your reading lists and Subject Guide.
• How to organise your research by creating a search strategy
• Using advanced search techniques to make your searches more efficient and lead you to the most relevant information.
• Advanced search tips for Google and Google Scholar
• The ethics behind how you use information
• How to avoid academic offenses
• Checking source quality using techniques like the TRAAP test and SIFT method
• How to reference sources

Programme overview:

How to attend:

Skills at Library workshops are offered online and in person (usually in the Albert Sloman Library, Colchester Campus). Click on a session link for more information on how to join. We don't require booking in advance to attend, but encourage students to book onto our workshops via CareerHub to keep a record of their learning.

If you want the latest information about our workshops delivered straight to your inbox, you can sign up to our monthly Workshops At Library Newsletter here.

Tips for developing advanced information literacy skills:

We hope you will be able to use Skills at Library resources however works best for you. The below suggestions and framework have been provided to help guide your learning as you build on existing skills and identify knowledge gaps.

Tips for undergraduates

We recommend completing each Skills at Library lesson and corresponding workshops in order (starting with '1. Intro to the Library'). This will help you develop foundational information skills for university study, and build more advanced competencies. It's never too early to complete this training. Ideally you should be working at advanced level information skills before starting any major assignments or your dissertation.

Tips for postgraduates

If you are a returning or post graduate student, you can quickly refresh your knowledge by referring to the 'Quick takeaways' sections of each lesson. Feel free to skip sections that you feel confident in and focus on the areas you need to develop. You should be confident in advanced level information literacy skills at the start of your course.