Introduction > Reviewing Literature > Finding Scientific Papers > Accessing Papers

Accessing Papers Once you've identified papers that are relevant to your subject area, the next step is to track down the full articles. If your library subscribes to on-line journals you may be able to download the full paper from the database. Older papers (generally pre-2002), are often not available on line. If you can't access the paper directly on line, hard copies of journals (often going back several decades) may be available from your University library. Check your library catalogue or ask your librarian to help you locate a hard copy of the journal you're after. What if I can't get hold of the paper I need? There are several options you can try. Some authors allow unlimited access to their work and if you type the title of the paper into Google you may be lucky enough to access a downloadable copy of the paper. If that doesn't work, you can always contact the author(s) and ask them to send you a reprint of their paper. Bear in mind, however, you aren't guaranteed a reply and it may come weeks or even months later. Alternatively, you may be able to access an inter-library loan. The British Library will then either e-mail or post you a hard copy of the paper you're after. There is a charge for this and the paper you've requested will generally be sent to you within a few days.

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