Odum Library Blog

According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, businesses in the Southeast expect to hire 8.3% more graduates from the 2011 than they hired from the 2010 class.  For more information, see their press release here.

Until then, let the library help you stay on track for graduation.  Ask us how to find peer-reviewed journal articles for your capstone paper.  If you can’t make it by the reference desk or chat with us before 10PM (we know how you love to pull all-nighters), you can email the Reference Librarians for help any time of day, or night!

You hear it from your professors, and you hear it from your librarians. We keep asking you to find “scholarly” articles using the library’s databases, but you’d rather just use Google. Am I right?

There is a reason that we keep steering you toward Academic Search Complete, JSTOR, SocINDEX, and ERIC. These databases help you find reliable information written by experts in their fields. What will Google find? Lots of information: some that’s realiable and some that, well, isn’t.

Most of the websites you’ll find using Google are not scholarly, peer-reviewed resources.  If your assignment requires them, you will want to search one of the library’s databases instead.  If you need help determining if a resource is peer-reviewed or not, just ask!  We are happy to help you.

Did you know that in our online catalog, as well as many of our databases, you can start with a simple, Google-like search and refine your results?  We think if you give them a try, you will find that the databases and the catalog are not as difficult to use as you might think.

The semester is well under way by now, and that means it’s time to start writing your papers.  If you need help figuring out how to format citations in any of these formats, stop by the reference desk for help.  We have copies of current style manuals behind the reference desk and will help you find just the format you need.  We’re also happy to help you by chat, so don’t forget to try out our Live Chat page!

Did you know Blaze loves to hang out at Odum Library?  Here’s photographic evidence: Blaze posing for a photo with Jeff and Ginger, two of our Reference Librarians.  Seeing is believing!

Attention distance students! Do you need a book we have in Odum Library, but you don’t live in Lowndes County? Maybe you live in Alpharetta or Macon.. it doesn’t matter where. If you’re a distance student taking all of your classes online and you live outside of Lowndes County, we will ship our books to you. We don’t offer self-addressed stamped envelopes- you do have to pay for the return postage yourself. The good news is that you’ll save a lot of gas money and avoid a trip to Valdosta. Of course, we always love it when our distance students come for a visit, too!

 

For information about our Odum Express delivery service as well as the many other great services we offer our distance students, see our helpful Services for Distance Education website here: http://www.valdosta.edu/library/services/distanceeducation.shtml

You can find more on Interlibrary Loan and Odum Express here:
http://www.valdosta.edu/library/services/illwelcome.shtml

Dr. Iva Bitten, a visiting Anthropology professor at VSU, is behaving in a very suspicious manner.  Dr. Bitten is working on an article about vampire culture and is only seen on campus after sunset…

Search the library for clues and use your deductive powers to decide if you think Dr. Bitten has indeed become a vampire.

Join in the mystery.  It’s happening this Friday, August 20th, at 4pm.  Meet in room 1480 on the first floor of the library if you dare.

If you finish the mystery you’ll get free pizza and drinks!  There will also be prizes.  Bring your friends for an afternoon of fun in the library.

The semester is approaching, and fast. Whether you took classes this summer or you’re coming back from a break, we hope you’re as excited as we are that Fall 2010 is about to begin.

While you may not be on campus to witness move-in day and the many different orientations that take place, we want you to know you’re a part of this campus. You have the same concerns about ordering textbooks, making sure you’ve enrolled in the right classes, finding time to study, and graduating. You should have the same access to the great resources Odum Library provides its on-campus users. Here’s the good news: you do!

How does it work?

First of all, you can access journal articles (even those “peer reviewed” articles your professors keep asking for!) through Anywhere Access. Just log in with your BlazeVIEW username and password and you’ll have full access to the GALILEO databases.

Need books? You can check them out from any library in the University System of Georgia. Need one we have at VSU, but not at the USG library close to you? You can have it sent to that library for you to pick up. Read all about it at http://gilexpress.usg.edu/. If you need a book that the USG libraries don’t have you can submit an ILLiad request to have it mailed directly to you.

Maybe you need help from a librarian. You know you need information, but you don’t know where to find it. Just ask! We’re here to help, so contact us by chat, phone, or email at http://www.valdosta.edu/library/ask.php For questions about distance access to library services contact Ginger Williams, the Reference/Outreach Services Librarian via e-mail or call  229-245-3745.

For more detailed information about all the opportunities distance users have to connect with Odum Library, check out the library’s webpage on Services for Distance Education.

Have a great semester!