Find Articles in a Database - Prof. Arietta - Fall 2023 ENG 101 - Harold L. Drimmer Library Research Guides at Westchester Community College Library

Tips on Searching Databases

Limit your results to Full-Text so the database only provides you with the full text and not just the citation.
If you want to narrow your results look for suggested subject headings to limit your results to that topic
Before reading the whole text of the article browse the abstract. The abstract is a short summary of the article and will help you decided if the article addresses your topic. Some databases also supply subject terms. These can be useful keywords to search.
Email yourself a copy of the article (there should be an email button near the article) to ensure you have a copy of the article. Any email address will work (it doesn't have to be your WCC email). Emailing the article will also include a citation of the article you can use in your works cited page
Keep in mind the type of source you are look at. Databases commonly provide access to newspapers, magazines and scholarly journals.

Types of Periodicals in Databases

Types of periodicals found in databases along with their characteristics

Newspapers: Written for general readers on a wide variety of topics. Published daily.

Magazines: Also for current topics, written for general readers with no background in the subject. Not as frequently published as newspapers but offer more detail.

Academic Journals: Longer research reports by specialists, written for other specialists. Can be quite technical. (Also called Scholarly / Peer Reviewed / Professional Journals)

Recomended Databases

Use the tips under the Search Strategy tab to develop a list of keywords to search. Do not type in whole sentences.

If you are off campus, you will need to log-in using your MyWCC username and password.

To access the full list of wcc databases click our database link

Academic Search Complete
EBSCO. A general database covering many areas of academic study. Find articles from over 7,000 full-text periodicals and abstracts from more than 11,000 additional journals.
The New York Times 1980-present
Proquest. Comprehensive digital coverage from 1980 to present is available for this internationally renowned U.S. newspaper. The New York Times Book Review and Sunday Magazine are provided in PDF format.
Academic OneFile GALE. More than 14,000 titles, including more than 9,000 peer-reviewed journals and more than 6,000 in full text. Coverage of hard sciences, medicine, engineering and business. Full text for periodicals covered in major bibliographic resources such as CINAHL, BIOSIS, MLS, PsycInfo, ERIC, EconLit, RILM and others.
Newspaper Source Plus This link opens in a new window

Cover-to-cover full text for 185 national (U.S.) and international newspapers, including Christian Science Monitor, USA Today, The Washington Post, The Washington Times, The Times (London), Toronto Star, etc.
Wall Street Journal This link opens in a new window

Full-text, 1984-present.
JSTOR Archives of over one thousand leading academic journals across the humanities, social sciences, and sciences, as well as select monographs and other materials valuable for academic work.
Ethnic News Watch This link opens in a new window

Newspapers, magazines, and journals of the ethnic and minority press, providing researchers access to essential, often overlooked perspectives. With titles dating from 1990.
Lexis-Nexis Academic This link opens in a new window

U.S. and world news from newspapers and journals. Business, legal, medical news. Laws and regulations. Foreign language news sources.
Infotrac Newsstand This link opens in a new window

A collection of thousands of national, international, state and local newspapers with holdings dating from 1980 to the present.

Prof. Arietta - Fall 2023 ENG 101: Find Articles in a Database

Tips on Searching Databases

Types of Periodicals in Databases

Recomended Databases

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