Summer research tips
Whether you are on campus or away from Chicago, the University of Chicago Library provides many resources and services available to help support your research during the summer.
Access to Online Resources
The Library’s electronic resources (including ebooks and ejournals) may be accessed no matter where you are located this summer. Learn how to connect to our online resources from off-campus.
Finding the Best Research Tools
Library Guides, many created by subject librarians, provide guidance on how to locate the best resources for a particular field or major. The Library also provides help guides on finding specific types of sources, such as newspapers or data.
Scan and Deliver
Do you need to read an article or essay in a book that is not available online? Use our Scan and Deliver service to request a copy be sent to you via e-mail.
Reciprocal Borrowing Agreements
The Library has reciprocal borrowing agreements with several academic libraries which allow UChicago students and faculty to borrow books directly from their collections. These include libraries in Borrow Direct Plus, as well as several Chicago-area institutions, including Northwestern.
Visiting Other Libraries
If you need to visit libraries and archives outside our reciprocal agreements, view our guide to doing research at other libraries before your visit. You’ll find tips on how to access different institutions, and strategies for identifying relevant collections.
Learn About Citation Managers
Summer is an ideal time to learn how citation managers can ease your research process. Use citation managers such as Zotero or EndNote to organize your research and create footnotes and bibliographies automatically for your paper. View our online tutorial for Zotero or guides to learn more about these tools.
Ask a Librarian/Reference Services
Librarians are on hand throughout the summer to help you with your research. Contact them directly via our Ask a Librarian service. Or, if you are staying in Chicago, this may be a good time to schedule a consultation with a librarian who can suggest sources and research strategies for your project.
Graduating? Services and Tools to Support Your Research
Alumni can continue to visit and use our campus libraries if they live in the Chicago area. The Library and Alumni Association provide off-campus access to select research databases for alumni. For additional resources, the Library has a guide listing free online research tools that are available to anyone.
