Librarian and Academic Skills

The Library provides access to a huge range of resources to support your studies. Start searching with Discover@UGM and explore over 200,000 ebooks, a huge selection of online journals and databases, and print book collections at our library sites.

One of the key skills which students struggle with in the Library is finding books on the shelves.

You can access the majority of our online Library resources wherever and whenever you want - all you need is your University of UGM username and password. 

Resource Lists Online links you to the essential readings for each module. Look for the link in your Moodle sites or search by module name or number here. Your Resource List gives you access to the recommended e-resources such as ebooks, ejournals and databases directly from your module list.

Visit your Subject Guide to find the recommended resources for your subject - you'll find details of subject specific databases, journals, websites and more - as well as contact details for the specialist

Are you a nursing student looking to boost your confidence with essential maths skills? From drug calculations to dosage conversions, accurate mathematical knowledge is a crucial part of providing safe and effective patient care.

This tutorial shows you how to prepare and deliver a memorable and effective oral presentation.

This tutorial gives you guidance on how to structure an academic poster and suggests software that you could use to produce an effective poster. 

This tutorial shows you how to prepare and plan a storyboard presentation. Storyboards are a platform to demonstrate your fantastic knowledge and research in your own individualised and preferred learning styles and presentation.

By setting, achieving and reflecting on personal development goals, you will be able to make the most of your time at the University of Greater Manchester and realise your full potential.

Starting University is an exciting time. There are lots of new opportunities and experiences available to you. It is important to make the most of these opportunities both from and academic and social perspective. The tutorial below will outline things to consider to make your first year enjoyable and successful.

Managing your time effectively can help you to feel confident and in control of your studies. It can also increase your productivity to ensure you are a successful student. The tutorial below will outline various strategies to manage your time.

Transitioning to Post-graduate study can seem a big step. The video below contains tips by a Post-graduate student on how to make the transition smoothly and successfully. 

This tutorial aims to introduce you to academic writing with a definition and the main characteristics and steps you can take to start developing your academic writing skills.

Irrespective of your level of study, the general writing process for producing a well-structured assignment will remain the same. Therefore, this tutorial aims to support students with the process of deconstructing the question and planning a response – the foundation of your academic writing.

Once you’ve finished your plan and outline of your assignment, you can begin to write a first draft. This tutorial aims to explain what this is and provide useful tips so that you can prepare your first draft.

This tutorial aims to develop your understanding of paraphrasing and help you develop the skills needed to present your work with academic integrity. Ultimately, paraphrasing is a complex process that deserves more of your time and consideration to ensure it’s done correctly and issues concerning plagiarism, a consequence of academic misconduct, are avoided.

So far this LEAP Online section has introduced you to academic writing, planning your assignment, how to begin your first draft and paraphrasing. To support you with drafting your assignment, it is important to consider how the different sections of your assignment are connected together. This is known as cohesion.

Having considered the main components and conventions of academic writing, it is also important to cover other skills needed to produce a well-written piece of work.

You’re nearing the end of the writing process but before you click submit, it’s important that you take some time to re-draft and proofread your work.

Level 1 - Critical thinking enables you to evaluate information and develop your own academic arguments. It is a key academic skill.This section aims to introduce you to the pivotal role of critical thinking in light of various factors.

Critical thinking is not intuitive. Rather, it is a skill cultivated with effort and practice. This tutorial will help you develop your critical thinking skills.

In this tutorial, you'll explore how to read critically, a skill essential for academic success and professional growth.

In this tutorial, you'll learn ho to ask better questions that solicit useful information. 

In this tutorial, you'll learn how to identify and use reliable information sources.

In this tutorial you'll explore common cognitive biases, along with tips to detect and combat them.

In this tutorial, you’ll learn what satire is and how it differs from “fake news.”

In this tutorial, you'll explore key concepts and practical strategies for engaging with your reading materials effectively.

In this tutorial, you’ll learn the difference between fact and opinion and get clues to recognise them in context.

In this tutorial, you’ll learn what inductive and deductive reasoning are and how they differ. 

Level 1 - Good note making skills are essential and will make academic life much easier in lectures, preparing for assignments and revising for exams. You should aim to make notes which not only contain the key points but are also easy to manage and understand when you need to refer to them at a later date. 

Level 2 - There are several different techniques of note making. You may prefer to use different styles in different situations such as lecturers, assignments or brainstorming in group work. This short tutorial illustrates four main styles of note making, linear notes and pattern notes, tabular notes and the Cornell Method.

Developing proofreading techniques is another important skill for any student. We can all read through a piece of work to check for errors, but do we do this systemically? Forming an effective proofreading process that works for you will evolve as you study.

The video below explains what referencing is and why and when you need to do it.

There are several systems available for the citing and referencing. Your tutor will direct you to use a particular one.

• Art Design; Engineering; Science; and Social Science -  Harvard
• Psychology -  APA
• Law -  OSCOLA

Level 1 - This section aims to provide an overview of the process and requirements involved in publishing a dissertation project to an academic journal or publication.

Level 2 - This section aims to provide you with information on how to select a journal for publication.

Level 3 - In this section you will develop knowledge on how to prepare and edit your work as well as how to submit your final piece.