Module 5 Requirements for a university essay Part 2 Transition Module 5 developed by Elisabeth Wielander

Finding literature At the library, get an overview of what is relevant for your topic. Make a list of titles which could be useful. This will later form the basis for your own bibliography. Use these titles to widen your search by browsing the references and bibliographies you will find in them. As you read through the sources and find useful information, make thorough notes.

Finding literature Always include where you found the information so you can cite it properly later. When you write your essay and want to use a quotation you have noted, you have to know where it came from. Using a quote without attributing it is plagiarism. For more information on plagiarism, see Transition Module 4: Referencing.

Finding literature Important: The internet may give you some useful pointers, and some of the material is sound and reliable. You should, however, distinguish reliable from unreliable information in a critical way. Information on the internet can often be biased incomplete unchecked out of date It is important to critically evaluate the internet sources you find to ensure that poor quality information does not adversely affect your essay

Finding literature Wikipedia will not normally be treated as an acceptable source for critical reflection on academic matters. Never copy and paste from a website as this constitutes plagiarism which is a serious academic offence. For more information on acceptable primary sources and research skills, see Transition Module 2: Research and library skills.

Finding literature If your essay is in a foreign language, try to minimise the use of literature in English because… it is much more difficult to write about a topic in the foreign language if everything you read was in English  it will interfere with the linguistic quality of your essay. there is a danger of simply paraphrasing in the foreign language what you read in English without properly citing the source  it will interfere with the academic quality of your essay. Between eighty and hundred percent of the materials you use should be in the target language.