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Research Help: How to Use the Library

Getting to the Library Website

Connect with HCC Library our website at: https://library.ctstate.edu/housatonic

Screenshot of the HCC Library website showing the library catalog search box

What's on the Library Website?

Quick Links

Screenshot of HCC Library website with letters on the most significant links.

Access physical and electronic library materials as well as helpful research guides with these links on the library homepage:

A: Research Help

Access the Ask-A-Librarian live chat and get your research questions answered in real-time! Following this link will also bring you to the Research Quick Start Guide to get an introduction to college-level academic research.

B: Library Resources

Get the rundown on how to use the library catalog, databases, the course specific research guides, and our textbooks on reserve.

C: Library Services

This guide explains the many services the library offers students including book borrowing policies, borrowing calculators and other equipment, free New York Times subscriptions, group study room spaces, textbook reserves, and printing, copying, and scanning rules.

D: About the Library

Here you'll find our HCC Library Mission Statement, the full library policy manual, librarian contact information, our impact statistics, and statement about the HCC Archives.

E: Search the Library Catalog

The library catalog is a searchable website where you can find all physical books and most of our electronic library resources like Ebooks, academic articles, and films.

F: Digital Textbook Reserves

HCC Library endeavors to provide access to textbooks students are assigned in their courses. Explore this link to see our digitized textbooks.

G: Course Research Guides

The LibGuides are how-to guides created by HCC librarians to help students learn how to do different kinds of research. Topics include how to use the library, how to perform research for different subject areas, and even some special research guides personalized to a specific professor’s course.


Screenshot of icon links on library homepage

New York Times Sign Up

All HCC students get free NYT accounts through the library, so don't forget to sign up for yours!

Databases

Access our A-Z list of databases via the Databases icon. Not sure what a database is used for? Check out this introductory guide to using databases for college research!

Citation Help

Click the Citation Help tab to see our citation style guides for MLA and APA and learn how to avoid plagiarism.

My Library Account

Pin books and articles from the library catalog and manage your library loans from your library account.

Searching the Catalog from the Homepage

Housatonic Search

Housatonic Search is HCC Library's catalog and discovery system for physical and electronic resources. It's a great place to start most searches as the results will all be materials that are immediately accessible to an HCC student either online or in-person.

Tip: You can also use Housatonic Search to request books from other libraries!

You can access Housatonic Search with the Quick Search bar at the top of HCC Library's homepage or by clicking the Advanced Search button to use more of the catalog's search filters:

Screenshot of the library catalog's Advanced Search button