Tips for Using:
BUSM Portal
A Note on Google Scholar
As you complete your questions you may find yourself using the popular Internet search engine Google Scholar. However, search with caution and remember:
- Google Scholar's results are numerous and not necessarily displayed in a helpful order. For example, an article from 1992 may be at the top of your results, but a 2006 article may not appear until 10 pages later. Additionally, Google Scholar doesn't allow you to reorder your results by date, author, etc. unlike other subscription databases.
- The sources searched by Google Scholar are not disclosed. So you will never know exactly what information you are or are not searching.
- Google Scholar currently does not link you directly into our full-text journals.
- Google Scholar does return results from PubMed. However, recent research has shown that PubMed results found by Google Scholar are "approximately one year out-of-date."1
- Currently it is unknown how often Google Scholar is updated. Be advised that this means you may be missing critical recent literature.
For tips and hints for best searching Google Scholar check out: Advanced Scholar Search Tips.
1. Giustini, D.,& Barsky, E. (2005). A look at Google Scholar, PubMed and Scirus: Comparisons and recommendations. Journal of the Canadian Health Library Association: 26,85-89.