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Receive alerts on new publications
By using literature alerts, you can get new publications pushed to you as soon as they become available.
Literature alerts help you to stay up to date on specific topics in your field. You can run alerts free of charge on most databases offered by the Library. You can also set up alerts through journal websites and search engines.
Setting up an alert in article databases
- Use Scopus or Web of Science for search alerts on subjects and citations.
- Use the OvidSP search platform for alerts from CAB Abstracts and other databases.
- Use the EBSCOhost search platform for alerts from social science databases such as PsycINFO, SocINDEX and Econlit.
- Use PubMed for alerts from MEDLINE.
Setting up alerts in Google Scholar
Setting up alerts in search services works similar to setting up alerts for databases, as described above. Note that search services will also send alerts on non-indexed content (‘grey literature’).
- In Google Scholar, you first need to do a search. You can then create an alert in the left-hand column of the results page. If you have a Google Scholar profile with your publications, you can also be alerted to new citations of your publications, or when content similar to your publications and citations is found.
Subscribing to a journal’s Table of Contents
Most journals offer alerts to their new Table of Contents and to newly accepted manuscripts. However, some newer electronic journals alert only to newly accepted manuscripts. You can subscribe to journal alerts through the journal’s website or through ‘My Journal Alerts’.
Staying up to date via social media
Many scientists share their work through both scholarly and non-scholarly social media. Following researchers, institutes and organisations on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter can be a good way to stay up to date on new literature, developments, and job vacancies in your network. Using academic social media such as ResearchGate, Academia.edu or Mendeley also enables you to stay up to date on the work of your fellow researchers around the world.