Welcome to the Capella University Library’s Tour the Library.
The Capella University Library is entirely online, but that doesn’t mean it’s the same as the world wide web. The Capella Librarians have specifically chosen the resources in the library based on the degree programs at Capella.
That means you have access to 31.8 million articles, including over 8 million articles from scholarly journals, 65,000 ebooks and over 1.6 million dissertations. If you learn how to optimize your library research skills, you’ll save time and produce better papers in your courses.
The library is listed in the left navigation menu in iGuide.
In this tutorial we’ll show you the six most important links within the Capella Library. Once you know about these important links, you’ll be able to start finding the resources you need.
The library organizes its resources in several different Databases. Go to Articles, Books and More to choose the databases that are most appropriate for your research. If you are unsure which databases are best for your research, you can choose to see a specialized list of databases based on your specific school. You’ll see specific database suggestions for the different specializations and types of research you need to do. All available databases are listed on Articles, Books and More. Look at the Audience and Description section to determine if the database is right for your topic. Don’t forget to scroll down the list. It’s organized alphabetically, so great databases for your topic could be near the bottom. You’ll use the databases to search for articles, books, and dissertations by using keywords that describe your topic.
If you already know there’s a specific journal article or book you want to read, such as an optional reading in a course, you can use Journal and Book Locator to find the full text. If you are looking for an article, you must search for the title of the Journal, not the title of the article. Once you’ve found the journal, you can drill down to the original article. Find books by searching for the book title.
Because there are so many great articles, books, and dissertations available in the library databases, you may have difficulty keeping them organized. RefWorks can help you solve that problem. RefWorks lets you store and organize your citations, and will link back to the full text in the library databases. It also creates APA formatted bibliographies. You’ll find information about creating and using an account on the RefWorks page.
The library also has a variety of research help available to you at all hours. Choose the Guides and Tutorials link to find a list of all of our research aides, including this one. There are basic research tutorials to help first time users, specialized guides for specific library questions, such as What are peer-reviewed articles and how do you find them, as well as advanced research guides devoted to the specialized skills doctoral learners need. For a one-stop-shop on how to do library research, see the Library Research Handbook. It covers every step of the process, from finding background information, to searching, to incorporating your research into your paper.
When you are researching a topic, you may find that there are materials you need that aren’t in the Capella Library. You can use the Interlibrary Loan form to request those items, and we’ll try to get them from another library.
Last but not least, there’s a team of librarians that can help you with your research needs. You can Ask A Librarian by phone or email if you need help using the Capella library or are having trouble finding the information you need.
Thank you for taking this tour of the Capella Library.
For more help using the Capella Library, you can see one of our specific research guides listed below, or Ask A Librarian. We’re here to help.