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ENG 152 : Keywords and Database Searching for Dual Credit

Identifying Keywords to Start Your Search

You have a thesis statement and you've chosen a database to start your research. What keywords should you start with? Database keywords, called subject terms, should be as specific as possible. Start by using the main ideas of your thesis statement.

Student loan debt causes great financial burden and should be reformed to provide long-term relief.

One way to quickly identify the main ideas of a thesis statement is to cross out the unimportant words:

Student loan debt causes great financial burden and should be reformed to provide long-term relief.

We’re left with our main ideas: student loan debtfinancial burden, and reform.

Words that are verbs or adjectives like causes and great won’t add anything precise to our search. Causes gets at the relationship between student loan debt and financial burden. Great is just a descriptor. The phrase to provide long-term relief is just the result of student loan reform.

More About Keywords

Using the right keywords can affect how relevant your results are. Keywords fall into three main categories: Broad, Narrow, and Related. Think about the keywords we found when we did pre-research for the broad topic college tuition and student loans

Broad: More general categories

  • Debt
  • Loans
  • Education

Narrow: A specific category

  • Higher education
  • Private student loans
  • Federal student loans
  • Student loan debt relief

Related: Synonyms or similar terms, or terms that are connected to your topic

  • College enrollment
  • Cost of living
  • Tuition costs
  • Financial aid
  • Scholarships