Orientation for Science Graduate Students

1. Familiarize yourself with W&M research tools
   1. Make an appointment with your liaison librarian and
   2. Look at the research guides and databases for your subject area.
2. Get access to the literature
   1. Use the library catalog or Find it @ WM links to get to full text articles if not immediately available (especially off campus)
   2. Create and save your Google Scholar settings to get to full text articles if not immediately available (especially off campus)
   3. Register for interlibrary loan (one-time registration) and be aware of Need ASAP to get access to material W&M doesn't have for free to you
3. Set up systems for keeping on top of the literature
   1. Search and browse the literature (particularly to find classic and highly cited papers in your field, as well as new research)
   2. Create a research log; set up alerts, RSS feeds, and/or literature discovery tools; and more
4. Set up systems for keeping yourself organized in general
   1. Create an ecosystem of tools for research productivity, including tools for citation and data management
5. Track your publications and other work and start participating in open science
   1. Sign up for an ORCID iD 
   2. Bonus: Interested in open science and want to go further? Sign up for GitHub and Zenodo accounts.

Getting started in graduate school? Below you'll find some useful resources and guides.

2023 was the Year of Open Science! For more information about open science, the movement for more accessible, rigorous and transparent science, see the following links.