UMass Amherst

The Research Station

The Dean's Book Course is intended to help prepare students for the demands they will face in more advanced academic work, including course as well as independent capstones at Commonwealth College and future graduate study.

Research is the heart of academic life. Therefore, every course level emphasizes the conventions of effective and ethical research, from careful source evaluation and documentation to thoughtful analysis and clear presentation.

In order to help students further their research and understanding of current research methods, the Dean's Book Course offers an extensive set of research tools, developed in collaboration with the College's Research Literacy Office.

Research Methods & Practices

How-to Guides is an index to a wealth of resources for researchers, which can also be accessed directly from our menu system. The individual guides offer information on composing abstracts and literature reviews; avoiding plagiarism; designing effective posters and making effective presentations; formulating research questions; keeping a research log; and evaluating as well as citing your research sources.

Research Source Guides

Database Guide provides customized links to the UMass Amherst library's scholarly databases as well as databases with alternative publications.

Sites of Interest features research papers by Dean's Readers as well as annotated bibliographies linked directly to sources relevant to the semester's text.

Current Articles on the Issues contains links to new sites of potential interest as they appear in news sources and other websites.

 

 Terror in the Name of God jacket

The Fall 2007 Selection
Terror in the Name of God
by Jessica Stern
(click book jacket for more)

A Primate's Memoir jacket
The Spring 2008 Selection
A Primate's Memoir
by Robert Sapolsky
(click book jacket for more)