Events and Programs

Check out the 2022-23 workshop recordings:  

Getting Started with Research 
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Because the nature and scope of each research project varies widely, this presentation is meant to give an overview of undergraduate research in general terms and to identify for students how they can get future librarian assistance with their specific project at their point of need. This workshop is particularly useful for students who are at the very beginning stages of research. 

How to Join the Scholarly Conversation 
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This workshop will help you feel confident in reviewing and reading scholarly articles and give you a series of questions you can ask as you enter the scholarly conversation on your topic. This workshop is particularly useful for students who have just started an undergraduate research experience and have a topic in mind, as well as students who are interested in starting an undergraduate research experience and want to make sure they have the right skills to succeed.   

How to Develop Effective Research Questions 
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Developing an effective research question is an important step when beginning a research project. This workshop is particularly useful for students who want to become more confident in writing research questions and conducting background research on your topic. 

Literature Review Foundations 
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A review of the literature, or scholarly work already published on a topic, is an important aspect of any research project. This workshop is particularly useful for students who want to understand what a literature review is, why it matters, and best practices to get started. 

Citation Management 
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Keeping track of all your sources can be daunting. Citation management tools can help you organize and cite your sources. This workshop is useful for students at any stage of the research process who want to understand the purpose and benefits of citation management tools and explore two common tools, Zotero and Mendeley. 

Information Privilege: What is it and what does it mean for our research? 
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What is information privilege? How does it affect me? What are the social, ethical and economic aspects of information access? How does information privilege (or lack thereof) affect my research? How can I continue to access quality information sources after I graduate from Penn State? If you are asking these questions, we have answers! This workshop is useful for students at any stage of the research process who want a deeper understanding of issues related to information privilege and learn about open access resources they can use after graduation. 

Designing and Creating a Research Poster 
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Making a research poster can be a daunting process. How do you decide what to include? And how? This workshop is useful for students at all stages of the poster creation process. Participants can expect to learn about best practices for creating visually appealing and effective posters. 

Presenting a Research Poster 
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Poster presentations are a great way to get started with sharing your research. But how do you share your complex research in a short amount of time? This workshop is useful for students who want to improve how they present and discuss their research with an audience. 

Library Research Consultants

Meet one-on-one with a librarian for introductory and advanced support with information and research resources and skills. Email the librarian for your subject area to make an appointment: Link coming soon.

Questions? Contact Jen Jarson, Head Librarian and Chair of the Undergraduate Research Committee: [email protected]