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Research Process

Get help with any part of the research process.

You have to complete a research project.

Now what?

A research project can generally be broken down into five steps, each of which has a number of smaller steps or components: 

  1. Develop a Topic
  2. Find Information
  3. Evaluate Information
  4. Use Information
  5. Avoid Plagiarism by Citing Sources

You'll find information about each of these steps on this guide, broken down into smaller steps or skills. You'll go through the steps more or less in this order, but the research process is not a one-way street! You may find yourself returning to previous steps at any point in the research process - and that's okay! In fact, it's often the sign of a thoughtful and thorough research project. 

Worksheets to Guide Your Research

Helena College Excellence in Library Research Award

The Helena College Excellence in Library Research Award recognizes overall student achievement in all steps of the research process for a research project created for a Helena College class in the current semester.

Helena College Research Tutorial

The Library Learning Hub offers a brief Library Research Tutorial on Canvas for all students.  The tutorial serves as an ongoing reference to provide useful tips to help on any research project within Canvas.