Five ways to help your students get research ready

Your students need research skills, not only for their courses but for their future careers. Here are five ways you can help your students get research ready.

Invite a librarian to your class

Your subject librarian can teach research and information literacy skills in your online or in-person classes. Library instruction can help your students produce higher-quality assignments and have a better research experience. Contact your subject librarian to get started.

Assign the Libraries' Information Literacy Microcourse in Elearning

This self-paced course helps students become more confident in their research and perform better on assignments. Learn more about the microcourse.

Share library workshops with your students

We offer a variety of workshops throughout the year for undergraduate or graduate students on topics including APA/MLA/Chicago citation styles, literature reviews, data literacy, reading and using scholarly articles, data visualization, and more. View our event calendar.

Include your subject librarian's contact information in your syllabus and Elearning courses

Your students need to know that the Libraries are here to help. There's even a librarian for every major at WMU. Students can set up a consultation for one-on-one help with their research.

Add a link to Library Search in your research assignment instructions

Make it easy for students to find the research they need for their assignments. Add a link to our website in your instructions.

What WMU students had to say about their library experiences:

• "I loved how interactive my professor made this course. He made the semester so much easier and more relaxing."
• "[I] loved the enthusiasm and the involvement of us in searching and learning about each database rather than sitting through a lecture."
• "I was having a hard time finding [scholarly articles], and now I know that I go to the library search tool to help find articles that fit with my essay and use this for future classes and assignments."
• "I found the materials really interesting and definitely learned something new every class. I felt confident in the class when completing my assignments. I also apply what I learn in this class in my daily life."