Bodleian iSkills workshops aim to develop your skills in information discovery and scholarly communications, covering a variety of resources across a wide range of disciplines. They are primarily aimed at University of Oxford students and staff. Some workshops take place face-to-face, whilst others are run online.

The workshops are FREE but online booking is essential. A list of the sessions taking place this term can be found on the iSkills Workshops webpage.

Thursday 10th April 2025 14:30-16:00

Open Scholarship: Fundamentals of open access

Are you baffled by open, confused by embargoes? Does the mention of the colour gold or green catapult you into a realm of perplexed irritation? Come to this session, where we’ll break down open access and all its many jargon terms, confusing publishing structures and hint at the advantages you can reap by publishing open.

• What is open access? Key terms – Gold, Green, Article Processing Charges
• Where to get more information and help
• Where to look for open access material
• Useful tools to assist you in publishing open access

If you’re not in a position to attend a workshop you could also find similar information on our e-learning course, ‘Open Scholarship: Digital Induction to Open Access (MSD)‘.

Format: Online presentation with time to get answers to your questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Bodleian iSkills workshops aim to develop your skills in information discovery and scholarly communications, covering a variety of resources across a wide range of disciplines. They are primarily aimed at University of Oxford students and staff. Some workshops take place face-to-face, whilst others are run online.

The workshops are FREE but online booking is essential. A list of the sessions taking place this term can be found on the iSkills Workshops webpage.

Week 9: Wednesday 19th March 2025 13:00-14:00

iSkills for Medicine: Introduction to RefWorks

In this online workshop you will be shown the functionality of RefWorks. RefWorks is a subscription software programme used to manage references and create bibliographies that University of Oxford members can use for free during their time at the university and as alumni. The workshop will cover:

• Understanding the main features and benefits of RefWorks
• Setting up a RefWorks account
• Organising your references in RefWorks
• Inserting citations into documents
• Creating a bibliography/reference list

Format: Online presentation and demonstration with time for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Week 10: Monday 24th March 2025 13:00-14:00

iSkills: Using Scopus for your research

A key database for those researching the social sciences, medical sciences and physical and life sciences, Scopus encompasses more than 94 million records from 5000 publishers. This interactive session will cover basic and advanced searching, highlighting features unique to Scopus and recent updates to the database. Attendees will be encouraged to practice the tips explained during the session. This will be useful for those new to databases and a good refresher for experienced users. By the end of the session you will be able to:

• construct simple and complex searches
• navigate filters
• understand effective search query techniques
• save and export results
• extract further information from your results

Format: Online presentations with live demonstrations and hand-on activities.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Week 10: Thursday 27th March 2025 10:00-11:30

Open Scholarship: Logistics of open scholarship

The second in a duo of courses (attendees should attend the Fundamentals course prior to Logistics) that will cover the logistics of researching, publishing, and locating open scholarship resources and tools at the University of Oxford. Subjects include:

• What is the Oxford University Research Archive
• Depositing work into ORA via Symplectic Elements
• Depositing data into ORA-data
• Applying for one of Oxford’s APC block grants
• Registering or connecting your ORCID
• How to be included in the rights retention pilot
• Locating and checking funder policies

Ideally the ‘Fundamentals of Open Access’ course will have been attended. If you’re not in a position to attend this course you can find similar information in our e-learning package to work through prior to attending Logistics.

Format: Online presentation with time to get answers to your questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Bodleian iSkills workshops aim to develop your skills in information discovery and scholarly communications, covering a variety of resources across a wide range of disciplines. They are primarily aimed at University of Oxford students and staff. Some workshops take place face-to-face, whilst others are run online.

The workshops are FREE but online booking is essential. A list of the sessions taking place this term can be found on the iSkills Workshops webpage.

Tuesday 11th March 2025 10:00-11:30

Open Scholarship: Preregistration and registered reports: What, why, and how

How do you ensure that your research is credible, to yourself and others? Preregistration means specifying in advance your hypotheses, methods, and/or analyses for a study, in a time-stamped file that others can access. Many fields, including behavioural and medical sciences, are increasingly using preregistration or Registered Reports (where a journal accepts your study at preregistration phase, and guarantees to publish the results if you follow the registered plan). If you’ve never preregistered a study before (or even if you have!) it can be complicated and hard to do well. In this workshop, we will go over the ‘what,’ ‘why,’ and ‘how’ of preregistration, and after some practice exercises, you will start drafting your own preregistration. We will also discuss some of the common challenges of preregistration, and its limitations. After the course, you will be able to:

• Describe what preregistration and Registered Reports are (and how they differ)
• Explain the benefits (and drawbacks) of preregistration and Registered Reports
• Identify what types of research are most suited for preregistration and Registered Reports
• Recognise the common pitfalls in writing a preregistration
• Identify the logistics of preregistering: which format and platform to use
• Demonstrate the ability to write an effective preregistration, with an appropriate balance of specificity and concision

Format: Online presentation with interactive exercises and time for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Thursday 13th March 2025 14:00-15:30

Open Scholarship: Introduction to Open Science Framework at Oxford

Despite its name, the Open Science Framework (OSF) is an online tool for managing academic projects in any discipline. Rather than trying to reinvent tools and systems that scholars already use, OSF integrates with a growing list of existing services and provides a single place where researchers can see and manage all the components that make up their project – including files, software, data and publications. This course will introduce you to the Open Science Framework at Oxford. It will explain how to get access to OSF using your Oxford SSO, give an overview of what it can and cannot do, and provide some examples of how it can be used with other research services.

Format: Online presentation with time for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Friday 14th March 2025 09:30-11:00

iSkills for Medicine: Introduction to Zotero

In this online workshop you will be shown the functionality of Zotero, which is a free-to-use software programme used to manage references and create bibliographies. Zotero will be demonstrated on a Windows PC but users of MacOS or Linux computers will be able to follow the demonstration. The workshop will cover:

• Understanding the main features and benefits of Zotero
• Setting up a Zotero account
• Importing references from different sources into Zotero
• Organising your references in Zotero
• Inserting citations into documents
• Creating a bibliography/reference list

Format: Online demonstration with time for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Bodleian iSkills workshops aim to develop your skills in information discovery and scholarly communications, covering a variety of resources across a wide range of disciplines. They are primarily aimed at University of Oxford students and staff. Some workshops take place face-to-face, whilst others are run online.

The workshops are FREE but online booking is essential. A list of the sessions taking place this term can be found on the iSkills Workshops webpage.

Monday 3 March – Thursday 13 March 2025

The Oxford Forum of Open Scholarship (OxFOS 2025)

What in the world is going on with open access and open research?

Organised by the Bodleian Libraries the Oxford Forum of Open Scholarship (OxFOS) is a programme of talks, panels, workshops and events. Every event is free to attend and open to all. Events will be a combination of online and in person in Oxford. The full programme and registration links are below.

This year we are delighted to welcome Chris Smith, Executive Chair of AHRC; Alex Freeman, of Octopus.ac scientific publishing; Sally Rumsey, formerly OA expert at Jisc; Beth Montague-Hellen, Head of Information Services, Francis Crick Institute; Brian Nosek, founder of the Open Science Framework; and John Willinsky, founder of the Public Knowledge Project, among many, many others.

Registration is now open at: https://openaccess.ox.ac.uk/oxfos25

Monday 3rd March 2025 10:00-11:00

Open Scholarship: Fundamentals of open access

Are you baffled by open, confused by embargoes? Does the mention of the colour gold or green catapult you into a realm of perplexed irritation? Come to this session, where we’ll break down open access and all its many jargon terms, confusing publishing structures and hint at the advantages you can reap by publishing open.

• What is open access? Key terms – Gold, Green, Article Processing Charges
• Where to get more information and help
• Where to look for open access material
• Useful tools to assist you in publishing open access

Format: Online presentation with time to get answers to your questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Monday 3rd March 2025 10:00-11:30

iSkills for Medicine: Searching systematically

This 90-minute session will cover some more advanced techniques for finding medical literature to answer a research question. We will recap some basics, then demonstrate searching in several medical databases, including using subject headings (MeSH) and the differences between different platforms. By the end of this session, you will be able to:

• Explain what subject headings are, and how to use them
• Search for words that appear near to other words
• Take a search from one database into another
• Save a search and document it

Format: Online teacher-led presentation with opportunities for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Monday 3rd March 2025 14:00-16:30

iSkills: Using AI to find, analyse, and share information sources

Curious about using AI to find research papers? Not sure how to properly reference GenAI and avoid plagiarism? This beginner-friendly workshop introduces three GenAI tools (ChatGPT, Elicit, and Perplexity), showing how they can support information discovery and analysis. Designed for those new to AI, this practical session will allow you to independently experiment with these tools and participate in group discussions to explore their strengths, limitations, and suitability for different tasks. By the end of this session, you will be able to:

• Explain what AI means and some key terms
• Differentiate between several categories of AI tools
• Describe how some GenAI tools can be used to discover information, including their strengths, limitations, and best practices
• Critique GenAI tools and their outputs at an introductory level using evaluative criteria
• State the University’s policies on AI, and avoid plagiarism by creating citations for AI-generated content

Format: Classroom-based. Presentation with practical exercises, group discussions, and an opportunity for questions and answers at the end of the session.

Location: IT Services, 7-19 Banbury Road, Oxon, OX2 6NN

Monday 3rd March 2025 14:00-15:00

iSkills for Medicine: An introduction to science communication: Translating your research for a non-specialist audience

Are you looking to learn about the ways in which to transmit scientific ideas and make your research accessible to a non-specialist audience through a variety of mediums? This session will serve as an introduction to science communication and how it can be successfully incorporated into our roles. By the end of this session you will be able to:

• define science communication and provide a list of examples;
• explain why science communication is important for both our CPD and the public;
• list ways in which we can all get involved in science communication.

Format: Online teacher-led presentation with opportunities for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Tuesday 4th March 2025 10:00-11:30

Open Scholarship: Foundations of copyright for researchers

This workshop will cover the basics of copyright as they apply to researchers at the University of Oxford. It will explain the different types of copyright work that are used or generated in research and the rights and responsibilities for researchers and academic authors in an age of increasingly open scholarship.

We will discuss the practical implications of copyright law on the publication process, as well as the production and sharing of research data. This will include the licensing of research outputs and data and the use of open licences such as Creative Commons. We will also cover ownership of copyright, author agreements with publishers and the benefits of signing up to the University of Oxford rights retention pilot.

Finally, the session will cover the use of copyright content owned by others as part of the research process. This will involve looking at the role of rights clearance, copyright exceptions, due diligence and risk management in common research scenarios.

Format: Online presentation with opportunities to share experiences and for questions and answers

Location: Microsoft Teams

Tuesday 4th March 2025 10:00-11:00

iSkills for Medicine: Systematic reviews, scoping reviews and other evidence reviews – getting started

In this 60-minute online workshop you will be introduced to the methodologies and principles underpinning the conduct of literature searches for systematic reviews, scoping reviews and other evidence reviews. The session will cover:

• Formulating a focused research question
• Preparing a protocol
• Developing a search strategy to address that research question
• Choosing appropriate databases and search engines
• Searching for grey literature and ongoing studies
• Storing and managing references
• Documenting and reporting your search

Please note, there won’t be an opportunity to search different databases during this session. For practical help on searching databases, please have a look at the search skills tutorials or check the iSkills course listing for the Searching Systematically workshop.

Format: Online teacher-led presentations with opportunities for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Tuesday 4th March 2025 13:00-14:00

iSkills for Medicine: Introduction to RefWorks

In this online workshop you will be shown the functionality of RefWorks. RefWorks is a subscription software programme used to manage references and create bibliographies that University of Oxford members can use for free during their time at the university and as alumni. The workshop will cover:

• Understanding the main features and benefits of RefWorks
• Setting up a RefWorks account
• Organising your references in RefWorks
• Inserting citations into documents
• Creating a bibliography/reference list

Format: Online presentation and demonstration with time for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Wednesday 5th March 2025 10:30-11:30

Open Scholarship: Open monographs

Open access publication of monographs and other longform works is an emerging movement, offering many opportunities to scholars looking to publish their research. With several major funding agencies now requiring longform open access publication, the impact of this is only set to grow. However, for those looking to publish their monograph open access, the novelty of this can present a challenge. What do funders require? What are the different publishing models? This webinar will cover the basics of this emerging field, including benefits, funder requirements, publication models and tools and resources. At the end of the session participants will be able to:

• Explore the benefits of open access publication for longform works.
• Consider the more challenging aspects of open monograph publication that that may not arise in traditional monograph publishing.
• Follow the open access requirements of major funders for longform works.
• Understand the range of open access publication models offered by publishers.

Format: A presentation with opportunities for questions and answers, as well as opportunities to share experiences.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Thursday 6th March 2025 10:00-11:30

Open Scholarship: ORCIDs from scratch

ORCID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) is a researcher-controlled persistent identifier that is being adopted by publishers, funders and other scholarly communications infrastructures. Its primary goal is to ensure that research outputs can be attributed correctly and unambiguously in the digital world. This workshop will begin with a presentation that explains what an ORCID is, how it works and how it fits in with the broader use of persistent identifiers (PIDs) in the academic sphere. This will be followed by a hands-on session where we will take you through the process of acquiring an ORCID, linking it to your Oxford Single Sign On (SSO) and updating your ORCID record with publications or other material.

Format: Online presentation and demonstration with time for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Thursday 6th March 2025 14:30-16:00

Referencing: Zotero

Are you looking for a streamlined approach to gathering, managing and citing your references? Join us for this interactive online session in which we introduce Zotero, a reference management tool that helps you to collect and manage references and insert them into your word-processor document as in-text citations or footnotes, as well as generating bibliographies. The demonstration will be on Windows although Zotero is also available for Mac and Linux. By the end of the session, you will understand:

• How Zotero can help you
• How to add references to Zotero from a range of sources
• How to manage your references
• How to add in-text citations and/or footnotes to your documents
• How to create bibliographies
• Where to get help with Zotero

Please note that, whilst this session is mostly aimed at beginners, there will be a chance at the end to ask more specific questions about how to use Zotero.

Format: Live online session with a mixture of PowerPoint presentation and practical exercises.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Friday 7th March 2025 10:00-11:30

iSkills: Managing research data and Data Management Planning (DMPs)

Good research data management is a vital component of academic practice. Part of this is the principle that the data used to develop the arguments and outcomes of your research should be effectively stored and managed during a project, preserved for the future and – where possible – shared with other academics. This session introduces the University’s research data policy and outlines the practical impact this will have on your work. The services available at Oxford to assist you will be outlined. This session is not only essential during your current studies but will be invaluable if you plan to continue in research as a career. Topics to be covered include:

• Common dangers and pitfalls of digital data
• Key principles of RDM and organising your data effectively
• Producing a data management plan
• Institutional, funder and publisher requirements
• Issues around preserving data and cybersecurity
• ORA-Data, GitHub and other preservation services
• Sharing thoughts and insights about the potential of data management in your own field
• Accessing Oxford based tools for research data management

Format: Online teacher-led presentation with opportunities for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Friday 7th March 2025 13:30-16:30

iSkills for Medicine: Advanced searching clinic for systematic reviews, scoping reviews and evidence syntheses

A practical session 180-minute workshop where participants will work on searches for their review across multiple databases. Librarians from the Bodleian Health Care Libraries will be on hand to demonstrate online tools for facilitating the process and give practical advice on refining individual search strategies. By the end of this classroom-based session you will be able to:

• Improve a search strategy that you are working on
• Adapt the search across multiple databases
• Use tools such as Yale MeSH Analyzer, Polyglot and the SR Accelerator to improve your searches
• Describe alternative methods for identifying references, including citation tracking
• De-duplicate results from multiple database searches
• Start screening results for inclusion in your review
• Report your search methods according to PRISMA-Search

Format: Classroom-based. Time for participants to work on their own searches with advice from a librarian. Explore tools that streamline the review process following a presentation with demonstrations.

Location: Beeson Room, Cairns Library, John Radcliffe Hospital, OX3 9DU

Bodleian iSkills workshops aim to develop your skills in information discovery and scholarly communications, covering a variety of resources across a wide range of disciplines. They are primarily aimed at University of Oxford students and staff. Some workshops take place face-to-face, whilst others are run online.

The workshops are FREE but online booking is essential. A list of the sessions taking place this term can be found on the iSkills Workshops webpage.

Monday 24th February 2025 10:00-11:00

iSkills for Medicine: Poster clinic

Are you preparing a poster presentation for an upcoming conference, meeting or symposium? This interactive session, or ‘poster clinic’, will include a group discussion of different examples of poster presentations, as well as an opportunity to present your own draft of your poster presentation to your fellow attendees. It is expected that the small group of peers in attendance will provide feedback and respectful comments on each other’s work. By the end of this classroom-based session you will be able to:

• evaluate the effectiveness of your poster presentation and others; and
• summarise the content of your poster concisely in preparation for a conference.

This will NOT be a taught session on how to use image processing software.

Format: Group discussion and individual poster presentations.

Location: Beeson Room, Cairns Library, John Radcliffe Hospital, OX3 9DU.

Monday 24th February 2025 15:30-17:00

iSkills for Medicine: Introduction to Zotero

In this online workshop you will be shown the functionality of Zotero, which is a free-to-use software programme used to manage references and create bibliographies. Zotero will be demonstrated on a Windows PC but users of MacOS or Linux computers will be able to follow the demonstration. The workshop will cover:

• Understanding the main features and benefits of Zotero
• Setting up a Zotero account
• Importing references from different sources into Zotero
• Organising your references in Zotero
• Inserting citations into documents
• Creating a bibliography/reference list

Format: Online demonstration with time for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Tuesday 25th February 2025 10:00-12:00

iSkills: Working with sensitive research data

A workshop outlining some of the key principles to bear in mind when working with sensitive or restricted research; whether collected yourself or obtained from a third-party source such as a data archive. Issues of confidentiality, informed consent, cybersecurity and data management will be covered. Examples of scenarios or concerns drawn from the research of participants are particularly welcome. The role of support services at Oxford will also be outlined and in particular the role of the Bodleian Data Librarian who will lead the session. Follow up consultations with the Data librarian or other subject consultants are also offered. Topics to be covered include:

• Key best practice principles when working with sensitive or restricted research data
• Issues around creating original data
• Informed consent agreements
• Maximising the usage potential of data during and after a project
• Strengths and weaknesses of anonymisation, data blurring and similar techniques
• Key strategies for protecting data including encryption, embargoes, future vetting and access restrictions
• Obligation put on researchers by legislation and research partners

Format: Teacher-led presentation with opportunity for discussion.

Location: Social Science Library, Information Skills Training Room, Manor Road, OX1 3UQ

Tuesday 25th February 2025 13:00-14:00

iSkills: Searching for patents and standards

Patents and standards are a valuable source of technical information relevant to the fields of engineering, materials sciences, and more. Together, they provide approved rules and guidelines whilst helping to protect inventions and innovative ideas. They can, however, be tricky to find. Join this session to find out more about what patents and standards are, why they might be useful for your research and how to find them in specific databases. By the end of this session, you will:

• Know what a patent is and where to find it
• Know what a standard is and where to find it
• Be able to reference patents and standards

Format: Classroom-based. Presentation with discussion.

Location: Radcliffe Science Library, Seminar Room, Parks Road, OX2 3QP

Tuesday 25th February 2025 15:00-16:00

Open Scholarship: Your thesis, copyright & ORA

Oxford DPhil students are required to deposit a copy of their thesis in the Oxford University Research Archive (ORA). This online session will focus on what ORA is and how to deposit one’s thesis in ORA, and how to access help with this process. It will also cover the relevant rights and permissions required and other issues that DPhil students need to take into account when preparing their thesis for upload to ORA. Topics include:

• What ORA is and what you need to deposit
• How to deposit your thesis in ORA
• Observing relevant rights and permissions
• Accessing help with depositing your thesis in ORA

Format: Live online presentation followed by interactive discussion and Q&A.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Wednesday 26th February 2025 14:00-15:30

Open Scholarship: Introduction to Persistent Identifiers

Persistent Identifiers (PID’s) provide a consistent way of digitally referencing items that aims to be more reliable than a simple web address. This is important for scholarly communications because citation and attribution are essential elements of scholarly apparatus. This course will introduce you to the concept of Persistent Identifiers, the problems that they address, and how they can be used in the academic environment to simplify some tasks. It will examine several different types of identifier, some of which are currently widely used (DOI’s for publications/data and ORCID’s for researchers) and others which are emerging in importance.

Format: Online presentation with time for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams

Thursday 27th February 2025 09:00-12:00

Open Scholarship: Copyright the card game

Join Chris Morrison (Copyright & Licensing Specialist) and Georgina Kiddy (Digital Services Librarian) to play Copyright the Card Game. This interactive, games-based session introduces you to the key concepts of copyright law and allows you to apply them in practice. No prior knowledge is required, and the session caters for all whatever their level of experience with copyright. At the end of the session participants will be able to:

• Explore how copyright really works in practice
• Interpret the legislation and apply the relevant legal concepts to their own work
• Practice using the exceptions and licences in sector-specific examples
• Discuss the role of risk management in making decisions about the ethical creation and use of copyright material

Format: The workshop is highly interactive with multiple opportunities for discussion about copyright, underpinned by a clear framework.

Location: Radcliffe Science Library, Seminar Room, Parks Road, OX2 3QP

Thursday 27th February 2024 12:30-14:30

iSkills for Medicine: Searching systematically

This session will cover some more advanced techniques for finding medical literature to answer a research question. We will recap some basics, then demonstrate searching in several medical databases, including using subject headings (MeSH) and the differences between different platforms.

After the main 90-minute workshop, one of the Bodleian Health Care Libraries Outreach Librarians will be available for another 30 minutes to answer questions about your own searches, so feel free to bring along what you are working on.

By the end of this session, you will be able to:

• Explain what subject headings are, and how to use them
• Search for words that appear near to other words
• Take a search from one database into another
• Save a search and document it

Format: Teacher-led presentation with opportunities for questions. The last 30 minutes are an opportunity to ask any questions you have about your own searches.

Location: Beeson Room, Cairns Library, John Radcliffe Hospital, OX3 9DU

Friday 28th February 2025 10:00-11:30

iSkills for Medicine: Introduction to EndNote

Do you need help managing your references? Do you need help citing references in your documents? This online session will introduce you to EndNote, a subscription software programme which can help you to store, organise and retrieve your references and PDFs, as well as cite references in documents and create bibliographies quickly and easily. On completing the workshop you will be able to:

• Understand the main features and benefits of EndNote
• Set up an EndNote account
• Import references from different sources into EndNote
• Organise your references in EndNote
• Insert citations into documents
• Create a bibliography/reference list

Format: Online presentation and demonstration with time for questions.

Location: Microsoft Teams