Graduate Research Fair 2017 Thursday 2nd November

History Research Fair for Graduates

Thurs 2 Nov. 2-4pm, North School, Examination Schools

All new graduates are strongly advised to attend; current graduates are also invited.

All periods will be represented, including the archives from the John Johnson Collection of Printed Ephemera and the Conservative Party Archive. The stalls cover British & European history, US history, Latin American history, African and Commonwealth history and East Asia, South Asia and Middle East history. The librarian from the Map Department can introduce you to the historical map collections held in the Bodleian Library but also explain how you can create your own maps. We will also have experts for Legal History, Official Papers, History of Science & Medicine as well as Visual Sources and Printed Ephemera. Talk to college librarians and archivists to discover their rich collections of rare books and archives which might be on your doorstep.

We have guest appearances from the History Research Librarian, the Information Skills Librarian, Senate House Library and the librarian from the Institute of Historical Research Library. Representatives of the Bibliography of British and Irish History and Gale Cengage will be present to give you advice about online repositories. If you are interested in Oxfordshire local history, then Oxfordshire History Centre stall will be an important stop. Brookes University Archivists will be visiting, and staff from the Dictionary of National Biography and Houses of Parliament Online. ORA (Oxford Research Archive) staff can advise you on depositing your thesis in Oxford’s online institutional repository. The Top 10 Tips stall will give you an opportunity to meet a current graduate who can share with you their advice.

A wide variety of subject areas which students can explore at their leisure throughout the afternoon!

Students at the History Research Fair

2nd years – more training available in TT!

Working towards your 2nd year thesis? There are still a few more training sessions left in Trinity Term to prepare you for researching over the Long Vacation…

Referencing: Choosing and Using software

Wednesday 24 May 14.00-17.00

Location: 13 Banbury Road, Isis Room

Formatting your in text citations, footnotes and bibliography correctly for your thesis or publication is a chore. Reference management software makes it easier and saves you time. This introductory session gives an overview of how reference management works, explores the pros and cons of a wide range of software packages and gives you the opportunity to try out five different packages (RefWorks, EndNote, Zotero, Mendeley and Papers) so that you can work out which one is best for you.

Objectives:

  • Understand how reference management software works and what it does
    • Understand the pros and cons of a range of reference management packages
    • Add, edit and organise references using a number of different tools
    • Add citations to documents and create bibliographies using a number of different tools
    • Make an informed decision about which reference management package works best for you

>Book a place 

Sources for Medievalists
Tuesday 30 May 14.00-16.15

Location: IT Services, 13 Banbury Road, Windrush Room

Presenters: Isabel Holowaty, Hilla Wait, Eva Oledska, Charlotte Goodall, Helen Scott

A general introduction to the vast range of electronic resources which are available for all historical periods for British and W European history: bibliographical databases, biographical / reference research aids, ebooks and ejournals, web portals, and collections of online primary source materials.

Subjects to be covered include:

• Bibliographical databases
• Bibliographical / reference research aids
• E-books and e-journals
• Web portals
• Collections of online primary source materials

> Book a place

Newspapers and other online news sources from the 17th-20th centuries
Wednesday 7 June 09.30-12.30
Location: SSL, Information Skills Training Room
Presenters: Angela Carritt and Isabel Holowaty

Newspapers are a valuable resource for researching, not only news but also many other aspects of society. In this session we will introduce key historical and contemporary sources of news and how to make best use of them.

Subjects to be covered include:

  • The value of newspapers in research
  • The difficulties of using newspapers in research and effective search techniques
  • Using a range of sources for searching and reading historical newspapers
  • Using a range of sources for searching and using historical audio-visual news sources
  • Using a range of sources for searching and reading contemporary newspapers

    > Book a place

InfoSkills workshops in 3rd week for 2nd year Undergraduate Historians

Bodleian iSkills logoIn Week 3 of Trinity Term, the HFL and Bodleian Libraries will be running the following sessions, many of which are relevant for 2nd year UGs working towards their thesis. Please follow links to book online:

Research Skills for your Thesis [reserved for 2nd year UGs]
This 2-hour session is designed to equip students working on their dissertation with the key information skills in order to make best use of electronic information and discovery  resources. A range of databases, e-journals and web portals will be explored as well as advanced features in SOLO and tools for literature searches. Hands-on practise time will be offered.
Week 3: Wednesday 11th May, 2-4pm
Presenters: R D’Arcy-Brown, B Jenkins

> Book a Place (SSO required) [currently fully booked, but definitely worth signing up to the waiting list.]

1-1 with History Librarian
Thurs. 12 May, 11.30-12.30pm – Sign me up
If you would like a one-to-one session to get help any aspect of library resources and tools (SOLO, databases, ejournals, etc.) and generally get advice and tips for locating sources for British and Western European history, then sign up for a 1-1 session with Isabel Holowaty.

Bodleian iSkills: Online resources for Historians (Tuesday 10th May 09:30-10:45) – Book a place
A general introduction to the vast range of electronic resources which are available for all historical periods of British and W European history: bibliographical databases, biographical / reference research aids, ebooks and ejournals, web portals, and collections of online primary source materials.
Who is this session for? Students, researchers and anyone interested in this topic.
Presenter: Isabel Holowaty
Venue: Radcliffe Science Library, Parks Road

Bodleian iSkills: Sources for US History (Tuesday 10th May 11:00-12:30) – Book a place
Introduction to key information sources for the study of colonial America and US history. The session will provide an overview of the primary sources available in Oxford and online (such as early printed books, US newspapers and US government papers), as well as guidance on locating material for your research.
Who is this session for? Students, researchers and anyone interested in this topic.
Presenter: Jane Rawson
Venue: Radcliffe Science Library, Parks Road

Bodleian iSkills: Newspapers and other online news sources from the 17th to 21st century (Wednesday 11th May 10:30-12:00) – Book a place
Newspapers are a valuable resource for researching not only news, but also many other aspects of society. In this session we will introduce key historical and contemporary sources of news and how to make best use of them.
Who is the session for? Students, researchers and anyone else who is interested.
Presenters: Isabel Holowaty, Angela Carritt
Venue: Radcliffe Science Library, Parks Road

Bodleian iSkills: Getting started in Oxford Libraries (Thursday 12th May 09:30-12:30; repeated 2nd June) (also repeated Week 6) – Book a place
An introduction to Oxford Libraries including guidance on which libraries to use; accessing e-journals and other online resources; SOLO and other finding aids and making the most of Library services.
Who is this session for? Anyone who would like an introduction to Oxford Libraries.
Presenters: Angela Carritt & Cathy Scutt.
Venue: Social Science Library, IT Room Ground Floor

Referencing: Zotero (Friday 13th May 9:15-12:15) – Book a place
Zotero is a reference management package that enables you to build libraries of references and add citations and bibliographies to word processed documents. This introduction covers the main features of Zotero.
Presenter: Erika Delbecque
Venue: IT Services, 13 Banbury Road

Keep up with Bodleian Libraries training opportunities: Why not follow them on Twitter or visit the Bodleian iSkills blog

Places still available for 2nd year Historians’ Research Skills Course

Places are still available for 2nd year Historians on the Research Skills for your Thesis course!

Are you preparing for researching your thesis over the summer months? Get a head start on the skills you need to make the best use of your time!

This 2-hour session is designed to equip students working on their dissertation with the key information skills in order to make best use of electronic information and discovery resources. A range of databases, e-journals and web portals will be explored as well as advanced features in SOLO and tools for literature searches. Hands-on practise time will be offered.
Week 1: Wednesday 27th April, 2-4pm
Week 3: Wednesday 11th May, 2-4pm [REPEAT]
Venue: RSL Training Room
Presenters: R D’Arcy-Brown, B Jenkins
> Book a Place (SSO required)

Primary Sources Online with Adam Matthew Digital – Monday 7th March

Eighteenth-Century Journals OnlineJoin us on Monday 7th March (8th week) at the Colin Matthews Room of the History Faculty on George Street for two sessions from Tom Derrick of primary source publisher Adam Matthew Digital exploring the wide range of resources available to Oxford University staff and students.

The first session (11.30-12.30) will look at resources relating to Early Modern studies, focusing particularly on three key collections: Empire Online, Eighteenth Century Journals, London Low Lifeand Defining Gender.

The afternoon session (13.20-14.20) will be on resources for Modern studies, particularly Mass Observation Online, First World War, and London Low Life.

Live demonstrations in both sessions will provide an overview of the content, key features and functionality, and show ways in which they can be integrated within instructional programs and research.

A buffet lunch will be provided; no booking is necessary though please contact isabel.holowaty@bodleian.ox.ac.uk if you intend to also join for lunch.

Please bring your laptop for hands-on time.

Refworks for Historians course Monday 2nd week

Refworks headerNext week sees the return of one of our most popular courses! Refworks for Historians is a two-hour course held at the History Faculty, George St., from 2pm on Monday of 2nd week (26 Jan).  This course will introduce you to one of the most popular reference management software packages, which can help you turn a notepad full of scribbled references into neat footnotes and bibliographies, formatted into numerous styles at the click of a mouse. There will be a particular focus on using Refworks in conjunction with the History Faculty style guide.

This will be a useful course for anyone from 2nd year undergraduates beginning to think about their Theses, to DPhil and Masters’ students trying to get a handle on an ever-growing number of footnotes. Places are limited, but there are still spaces available via the History Faculty Library Weblearn site (SSO required).

Training Opportunities in Hilary Term

The History Faculty Library and the Bodleian Libraries have a packed timetable of training sessions in Hilary Term to help Researchers and Undergraduates make the most of Library Resources in Oxford. Aside from highlighting some of the key resources available locally, these sessions will also provide opportunities for refreshing and upgrading information searching skills. There will be chances to explore databases, e-journals and web portals, along with advanced searching in SOLO and the benefits of using reference managing databases such as RefWorks to help you with your citations during dissertation research. Staff will be on hand to provide step-by-step demonstrations as well as hands-on time in most sessions.

Skills toolkit-bannerHighlights include:

  • Research Skills Toolkit
    Need to brush up on your IT and information skills for research?  Why not come to a Research Skills Toolkit? These free 2-hour workshops introduce key software and online tools for your research, hone your searching and information skills and introduce you to subject specialists. Topics on offer include:

    • Finding articles, papers, conferences and theses
    • Keeping up to date and current awareness
    • Using Endnote to manage your references
    • Manipulating images using Gimp
    • Managing your thesis with word
    • Analyzising data with Excel pivot tables
    • Podcasting with Audacity
    • Plagiarism and how to avoid it
    • Your thesis, copyright and ORA
    • Finding highly cited journals and measuring research impact
  • RefWorks Referencing Software for Historians
  • RefWorks Referencing Software for HumanitiesBodleian iSkills logo
    RefWorks is an online tool which allows you to manage your citations/references, insert them into your work as footnotes or intext citations, automatically generate bibliographies and easily switch between citation styles.
    Other referencing software courses are available – please see the iSkills workshop timetable for further details.
  • Getting started with Oxford’s Libraries
    An introduction to Oxford Libraries including guidance on which libraries to use; accessing e-journals and other online resources; SOLO and other finding aids and making the most of Library services.
  • Getting Information to come to you
    Keeping up to date with new research is important but time consuming! This session will show you how to set up automatic alerts so that you are notified about new articles and other publications and when key web sites are updated. Participants will have the opportunity to set up RSS feed readers and/or email notifications during the session.
  • Researchers will also benefit from briefings on Act on Acceptance open accessas part of moves towards Open Access – more information can be found here.
  • Expert, personalised help can be accessed in the form of bookable Isabel Holowatyone-to-one sessions with the History Librarian, Isabel Holowaty. These are running throughout Hilary Term; dates and sign-ups can be found here.

This is just a brief taster of the wide range of courses available to our readers at any stage of their studies. Further details can be found on the iSkills Libguide pages, and History-specific courses can be found on the Training pages of the History Faculty Library website.

Library staff look forward to welcoming you and introducing you to the wide range of resources on offer in Oxford.

HFL Undergraduate Training

Library tours for freshers and new graduates

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERACome and meet library staff and take the chance to familiarise yourself with the library at the start of your studies.  We will be organising separate tours for new undergraduates and postgraduates during 0th week and beyond.

Undergraduate Radcliffe Camera and History Faculty Library orientation tour [booking not required, just turn up, 10 max per tour]

Mon 5 Oct, 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm, 4pm
Tues 6 Oct, 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm, 4pm
Weds 7 Oct, 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm, 4pm
Thurs 8 Oct, 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm, 4pm
Fri 9 Oct, 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm, 4pm

Library staff will take new undergraduates around the Radcliffe Camera showing you where things are located and enabling you to use the library with ease.

Treasure Hunts: complete the optional library trail at the end to be entered into our freshers’ prize draw.

Students will need to bring their university card to enter the library.

Location: Meet Reception, Radcliffe Camera.

Postgraduate Bodleian and History Faculty Library orientation tour [booking required]

Mon 5 Oct, 9.15-10.15am
Thurs 8 Oct, 9.15-10.15am
Fri 9 Oct, 9.15-10.15am
Mon 12 Oct, 9.30-10.30am
Tues 13 Oct, 2.30-3.30pm
Wed 14 Oct, 9.30-10.30am
Thurs 15 Oct, 2.30-3.30pm
Fri 16 Oct, 9.30-10.30am

Not sure how to find your way round the Bodleian Library, Gladstone Link and History Faculty Library (HFL) and which facilities are available? Join the History Librarian for a 60min orientation tour of the central Bodleian Library site, including the Radcliffe Camera where the HFL is located, and briefly enter the recently opened Weston Library which is relevant for Special Collections and African & Oriental studies.

Students will need to bring their university card to enter the Library.

Location: Meet Proscholium, Old Bodleian

Book now (via the HFL WebLearn Sign-up at https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/portal/hierarchy/humdiv/history/lib – SSO required)

Tour leader: Isabel Holowaty

Max nos of students: 10

Trinity Term training opportunities for 2nd year historians: book your places now!

Do you have right research and information skills for your undergraduate thesis? Let the libraries help you on your way!

Second year undergraduate historians currently working towards their theses are encouraged to attend the following training sessions for Trinity Term. They will provide you with valuable information and support which will stand you in good stead for your research, now and in the future.

The programme on offer aims to help you with locating and utilising a variety of source materials, whilst equipping you with knowledge on some of the key research tools available. Workshops are available run by History Faculty Library staff as well as by our other colleagues in the Bodleian iSkills strand; the schedule includes training on subjects such as:

Aside from highlighting some of the key resources available locally, these sessions will also provide opportunities for refreshing and upgrading information searching skills. There will be chances to explore databases, e-journals and web portals, along with advanced searching in SOLO and the benefits of using reference managing databases such as RefWorks to help you with your citations during dissertation research. Staff will be on hand to provide step-by-step demonstrations as well as hands-on time in most sessions.

Further details and booking information can be found via the HFL website.

HFL Undergraduate Training

Can’t come to a course?

The handouts and slides of sessions will be made available on HFL WebLearn > Guides & presentations.

Need specialist help?

Isabel Holowaty, Bodleian History Librarian is happy to discuss what sources and literature searching tools are best suited to anybody studying British and Western European history. Email her at isabel.holowaty@bodleian.ox.ac.uk to arrange a one-to-one session.

If you are studying history outside Britain and Western Europe, you can find your subject specialist here.

Do you have the right language skills for your chosen subject? 

The Language Centre has a lot to offer for historians wishing to upgrade their language skills or simply to start learning a language. More on this.

ArcGIS for Historians Training Session Wed 11th Feb

Places are still available on the following training course:

This practical session provides an introduction to the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in historical research and analysis. It will focus on making historical maps of study areas, using symbology (colour coding etc.) to encode historical statistics and other information and extracting geographical data from scans of historic maps. Book a place (SSO required)

ArcMap ScreenshotConvenor: Michael Athanson, Deputy Map Librarian, Bodleian Library
Venue: IT Training Room, Radcliffe Science Library