Myra Kraft Achievers Program (MKAP): Library Research Guide

You can use a book in your research without reading the entire thing!  Here are a few ideas:

• Skim the introduction chapter, if the book has one. Sometimes an author will provide an overview of each of the subsequent chapters.
• Look at the table of contents.  Is there a chapter that seems like it could be on topic for you?
• Some books are edited collections, where each chapter is written by a different author (or authors).  Oftentimes, these chapters can be read as stand-alone works.
• Look through the index, or for an e-book, search for your keywords.  Is your topic discussed in this book?  If so, where?

Library books at Brandeis are arranged by Library of Congress call number.

The Library of Congress call number system arranges items by subject. This means that you will be able to find books on similiar topics next to one another on the shelf. One call number can serve as the starting point to browse the shelves for more material.

More information about reading Library of Congress call numbers

Goldfarb-Farber Library Map

If Brandeis does not a book on your topic, or a specific book you're looking for, you can use the option to "include items you can request from other libraries" or use the dropdown next to the search bar and select "Brandeis and more" to search for books from other libraries and then request these books through Interlibrary Loan.

When searching for a specific book, make sure to put the title inside quotation marks so that the search uses an exact title match.

For detailed instructions on requesting books from other libraries, visit our Interlibrary Loan research guide.

• If you've already done a search in OneSearch, the expand search option will look like this:

• If you're on the main Brandeis Library page, the option to search beyond Brandeis will look like this:

• Use the dropdown for "Library Catalog" to change to "Brandeis and More"

• If you're in OneSearch, and have not yet done a search, the option to search Beyond Brandeis will look like this: