Welcome! The purpose of this guide is to offer research help with a focus on resources that will be particularly useful to you as you navigate your CIS coursework and research.
Remember throughout your time at W&J, the library is here to help! Some frequent ways that we help CIS students are in helping them find resources for their research project (including datasets), refining search strategies, and figuring out the most appropriate way to cite their sources. Are you here to find datasets? Check out the "Finding Data" tab.
Are you interested in pursuing the information side of Computing and Information Studies? All of our librarians are information professionals (the graduate degree for librarians is a Masters in Library and Information Science), so feel free to ask about their experiences working in the information field!
Gaining background information on a topic is a critical first step in the research process. Background information helps you learn more about your topic, identify important facts related to your topic (keywords, dates, events, history, and names and organizations), refine your topic, and find additional sources of information through bibliographies and works cited pages.
You might do this by conducting a Google search or going to Wikipedia and reading up on a subject. Below are some reference resources from the library that can also help you familiarize yourself with your topic.
Below are the most recent InformationWeek news stories.