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WR 327: Technical Writing

This is a course page for Oregon State University's WR327, Technical Writing course.

Finding More Information at the Library

The library has several different tools - like the catalog and databases - that help you find articles, books and journals.  Figuring out which tool to use can take a little practice.  The tools you will need to use are listed below, along with what they can help you find, and a link to short visual tutorials that walk you through how to use the right tool for your particular task.

How to Find Books
How to find articles
Choosing a database

Using Google Scholar

This tutorial shows you how to set your preferences in Google Scholar, so you can use OSU LIbraries subscriptions to get access to content that is not free on the web.

How to use Google Scholar (without Paying for the Articles)

Standard Styles: APA

APA Style Manual 7th editionThe Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th edition) outlines the rules for APA style. APA is widely used across the social and behavioral sciences, including education and business.

APA style prioritizes the publication date and the author's surname. This reflects the importance placed on recent information in the fields that use this system. In fact, this system requires you to include a publication date in in-text citations, right in the body of the paper.

APA style endorses the singular pronoun "they" because it is inclusive of all people and helps writers avoid making assumptions about gender. If you do not know the pronouns of a person being described, reword the sentence to avoid a pronoun or use "they".

The Publication Manual is available in the Valley Library at BF76.7.P83 2020 .

APA: More Info

Google patents

You might notice that Google Scholar gives you the option to search for articles, or articles AND patents.  While patents are not peer-reviewed journal articles, they might be a useful resource as you figure out how to organize your lit review.

Google patent searching

Google patents searching help pages.