Research Guides & Tips:

Refworks Quick Start Guide

Refworks

 

 

What is RefWorks?

Refworks is a web-based program that helps you to organize your research. Manually enter located references or import them directly from online databases as you work. Use references entered into your refworks account to create a bibliography or format your paper.

What can you do with Refworks?

  • Create and organize your own personal database of references from journal articles, books, book chapters or web sites.
  • Automatically generate a bibliography (works cited page) in APA, MLA, CSE, or other bibliographic style.
  • Import references from a variety of online databases.
  • Link to the full text of online articles from your RefWorks database using the Article Linker button.
  • Format your paper and insert in-text citations using the Write n Cite plug-in.

Learn to use RefWorks by:

Off-campus access to RefWorks -- You can access refworks from off campus in one of two ways:

 Using Refworks with Library Databases

Quick Start:

Begin by going to Refworks and clicking on "sign up for an individual account" to create a log-in name and password. If you already have an account, simply type in your log-in name and password and then click on the log-in button.

Create a folder to save your references in. From the Folders drop-down menu at the top of the screen, select Create New Folder. Type the new folder name in the box and click "OK." Now minimize this RefWorks window.

Begin your research by opening a second browser window and searching online databases. Once you've located references you'd like to save, you're ready to export them out of the databases and import them into RefWorks.

Adding References Manually

  1. Open RefWorks window, and from the References drop-down menu, select Add New References.
  2. For View Fields Used By box, select the citation style of your choice (e.g., APA, MLA, Turabian).
  3. From the drop-down menus available, choose a folder and a reference type.
  4. Fill in as many of the fields marked with a green check-mark as possible. Scroll down to the bottom of the page for more information on entering data into each specific text field.
  5. Click Save Reference. You can view the reference by selecting the folder you saved it in from the View drop-down menu.

Managing Folders

Create a New Folder : You can create new folders by selecting Create New Folder from the Folders drop-down menu.

View Your References : You can view your references by selecting the folder of your choice from the View drop-down menu, or by selecting All References from the View drop-down menu.

Move Your References : You can also move references into a different folder. When viewing your references, select the ones you want to move by clicking in the box to the left of them. Select a folder from the put-in folder drop-down menu, and the references will be moved into that folder.

Creating a Bibliography

  1. Click on Bibliography
  2. Choose an Output Style from the drop-down menu (e.g., APA, MLA, Turabian).
  3. Choose Format a Bibliography from a List of References.
  4. Choose a File Type to Create from the drop-down menu (e.g., Word for Windows)
  5. Choose the references you want included in the bibliography (e.g., all references, references from a single named folder).
  6. Click on Create Bibliography.
  7. Click on the Download it link to view and save your bibliography, or e-mail it.