Skip to Main Content

Composition I Research Guide for ENGL 101: Finding Articles

Quick Note

When you find an article you like DO NOT COPY AND PASTE THE LINK AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE (IN THE WEB BROWSER). The links are not stable and you will not find the article again. 

  • Find a permalink if possible and email it to yourself. Write down the titles, author, etc. or take a picture with your phone. 

Finding the Full Text (Complete) Articles

Follow these steps to obtain the complete article, or full text, while searching:

  • Look for an Access Now (PDF) or PDF link.

  • No Access Now (PDF) or PDF link? Look for another full text link, such as Access Options. 

  • Full text link does not give you the entire article? Ask a Librarian!

Search Strategies

Boolean logic - use AND, OR, NOT (sometimes AND NOT) to connect two or more search terms:

  • AND finds all records with all of your search terms and narrows your search
  • OR finds all records with one or more of your search terms and broadens your search
  • NOT or AND NOT is used to exclude the following term and can help to focus a search where one term has different meanings or uses (e.g., Mexico NOT "New Mexico")

Truncation - the library catalog and most databases use special characters to make searching easier in certain situations. Check the help screens in the catalog or database you are using to see what the special characters are for that resource.

  • the asterisk * is often used to stand for mutliple endings on a word (singular, plural, etc.): vot*finds vote, voter, voters
  • wildcards are similar, but replace another character in a word: wom?n in the library catalog finds both woman and women

Search Term Suggestions

Suggested Database & Tutorial

**This video will need to be in Full Screen mode to be properly viewed**

High School Dual Enrollment Students: Can't Login to the USC Upstate Databases?

If you are having issues logging in to the USC Upstate Library databases, the South Carolina State Library provides access to Discus as a South Carolina resident.

Below are links to several databases that will allow you to search for articles. Use Ask a Librarian to obtain the Discus username and password.

IMPORTANT: Be sure to click "Advanced Search" when the databases open. You can then watch the video in the left-hand column of this page for tips and tricks.

MasterFILE Premier

Academic Search Premier

Newspaper Source Plus