Do-It-Yourself Library: Do I Need to Pay for an Article?

If you’re asked online to pay for an article, DON’T! NWACC Library can get you the article for free, either through our full text access or through Interlibrary Loan.

To check whether NWACC Library have access to the article, or whether you will need to request that article through Interlibrary Loan, follow these steps. 

1. First of, Search in library's Search Everything tool.

Most of our articles can be found in the library's Search Everything tool. It is usually easiest to search by title; if you know you have the exact title use quotation marks around it. It may help to add the author's name if you are doing a general keyword search.

2. Search in "Journals by Title" for the publication in which the article appeared.

If you don't find the article in Search Everything tool or Google Scholar, but you know the journal title or other publication title in which the article appeared (different from the article title), search for the publication in the library's "Journals by Title". If you locate the publication, you can then search within it for the article. Access the relevant journal issue and navigate to the article you need. If you're accessing the article electronically and don't see the full text immediately, look for a search box to search by title.  

4. If we do not have the article in our online or print collections, request it through Interlibrary Loan. Do not pay for individual articles - you are already paying for access with your NWACC tuition. 

Questions? Ask a Librarian!