Information & Research Literacy - A self-guided Program

Research is a craft, a skill.

If we want to be proficient craftspeople, we need to have a  good tool set (tool box) and use a variety of methods..

Selecting the right research tool for your needs will help you succeed!

Watch this video to help your learn more about selecting databases at HKUST Library.

You can research more effectively if you choose the right tool for the task.

Choosing where to start can seem overwhelming.  As an HKUST person, first place you should look after you have played around on an open search engine like Google or an AI tool like perplexity is to go to PowerSearch.

Why?  Because

• It searches the million+ ebooks and print books in the Library
• 2/3 of all of HKUST's subscribed database feed into it, so it's a good preliminary step before you go to the more specialized databases.

What was that about specialized databases?  Go to these sub-pages:

• By Discipline
  • Business
  • Engineering
  • Humanities & Social Science
    • Law
  • Science & Math
    • Medicine
• By Info Type or Special Methods
  • AI Tools
  • Data & Statistics
  • News
  • Patents & Standards

This guide will help you use and answer questions you may have on using the new platform.

Watch a quick video to get started.

Set scope

• Library Catalog, Articles+, or both

Field Search

• Author, title, date, etc.

Watch a video to learn how to use Advanced search. 

Watch the Videos

Basic Search	Advanced Search

Go to the PowerSearch Guide for more tips and details.