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Higher Education & Student Personnel: Citation Management

Organization

A question that I get asked a lot by doctoral students is "what is the best way to organize my stuff?". I always tell students the first step to being organized is to know themselves. Before you can get organized you have to know what your type of organization is. Are you a throw everything into a box person? How about putting things into piles or folders? Do you like to use paper or electronic tools? Think about how you like to work and let that guide your organizational style.

As you go through your coursework you will want to keep materials from the classes you take and papers you write as well as articles you read. You might need these items for other classes, to prepare for your comps, or even write your dissertation. It will be very helpful if you can easily find these materials when you need them.

Citation Tools

Mendeley
This is a social networking tool that allows you to keep track and share your information with others. It is a download that works with both Mac & PC's, with most browsers. It is computer-specific (that means you can only use it on one computer). It works by adding a bookmark to your toolbar, and when you see something you like, you click on that bookmark to add it to "your library". This is still in Beta testing. For more information visit their website at mendeley.com.

Zotero
This is another freely available download for your computer. It only works with the Mozilla Firefox browser. It is computer specific, however, they are working on creating a web-based version. The program works by adding an icon to your URL box and you simply click on that to add materials to your account. You can attach the full-text of items, take notes, and generate your reference list. For more information visit their website at zotero.org.