Get the Full Text of an Article
There are several strategies to search for the full text of a specific article. For articles behind paywalls or that require a subscription, you have to go through the library and login with your network username and password to take advantage of library access.
Within a Library Databases
Many databases can provide not only the citation information but also the full text of articles.
- Look for the PDF Full Text, Linked Full Text, or a similar icon for downloading the PDF.
- When a PDF or link is not provided, use Check for Full Text to search for the article within all of the library's subscriptions.
Check for Full Text
When the library can provide online access to an article, Check for Full Text links you to the article page in Find It @ USC.
Be patient while it loads, and then look for the link(s) under View Online > Availability Options which will take you to the full text article.
Search in Find It @ USC Libraries
From the library's homepage, doing a search for the article title is often enough to find it unless the title is very short or common.
Tips for effective searches:
- Try searching ONLY the title of the specific article first
- If the title is not specific enough to get an easy match, add an author name or part of the journal title
- Entering the entire citation including volume numbers, years, pages, etc. usually ends in No Results.
You can also use the Journal Search in Find It @ USC to see if the publication is available through the library online or in print. See the next page on Finding Online Journals for screenshots and details.
Use Interlibrary Loan
Some articles are not included in our library subscriptions and cannot be immediately accessed online. In these cases, make a free interlibrary loan request for a PDF scan of the article.