Finding ejournals and newspapers

Edinburgh Napier Libraries subscribes to a wide range of journals, most available online in databases. How you find them depends on your subject area and how in-depth you want the information to be.
 
 

What are journals?

  • An academic journal is a publication that appears at regular intervals throughout the year. 
  • An issue of a journal will usually contain articles by more than one author.
  • The words periodical and serials are also often used to mean journals. They include magazines which are generally produced by commercial publishers and  some are aimed at a particular trade or industry.

 

Why are journals important?

  • They can focus on very specific topics because articles are generally shorter than books. 
  • Articles are published relatively quickly.
  • Ideal for presenting new ideas or promoting new products.
  • Books tend to be written about more established, broader subjects, with a safer market. 

The best academic journals are refereed, which means they have an editorial board of experts who select the material that's accepted for publication, and so guarantee higher quality. These are also known as peer-reviewed journals. Publication in refereed journals is very important for academics seeking funding for research.