Bachelor of Building Surveying : Databases & journals

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Key building surveying databases

Full-text databases provide a set of more specific resources than the general Library Search. The term 'full-text' indicates that the full article is located in the database. There are also research citation databases that have the details of the articles but no full-text. There are many full-text databases available through VU library specific to particular Engineering disciplines. There are a couple listed below.

Key building surveying journals

O'Reilly

Victoria University Library subscribes to the O'Reilly Online, a digital library that provides access to many books on technology, IT, web development, mobile apps, entrepreneurship, UX/IA, project management, business strategy, digital media, graphic design, engineering, maths, statistics, and many other topics. The platform also contains access to more than 30 000 hours of video, as well as interactive tutorials, case studies, learning paths and audiobooks.

Library journals and databases

Victoria University library subscribes to a number of online databases, which collectively cover a huge range of disciplines and subjects.

Journal articles found through the VU library can be viewed, downloaded and printed to assist you with your assessments. The databases can be searched collectively through Library Search (external link) or you can search them individually on Library's Databases A to Z page. See a list of relevant Key building surveying databases on this page.

Use library databases to find peer-reviewed, high-quality articles and research papers.

Once you have decided on which database(s) to use

  • enter key terms to search
  • use advanced search options where possible
  • separate each key term or concept into a new search box (if available)
  • limit and refine your results using the tools available (refinement tools will differ for each database). 

Follow this link to access online videos on accessing the Library Search and Library Databases. 

Finding journal articles

There are two ways to find online journal articles:

Library Search

  • Select the "Journal articles" button on the Find Library Resources box and enter your search terms. From the results list, you can limit your search results to "Full Text", and further refine your search by publication date or limit to peer-reviewed articles.

There is a video on this page to lead you through the process.

Specific Database Search

  • Select your database from the alphabetical listing, or browse by subject: Engineering & built environment to find a relevant database. Enter your keywords and refine your search as required. If you are accessing online resources off-campus, you will need to enter your MyVU login and password when prompted.

There is a video on this page to lead you through the process:.

And specific database videos available via the VU Library Vimeo channel:

Google Scholar

Google Scholar provides a simple way to broadly search for scholarly literature. It can be a good starting point to gain an understanding of the breadth of research published on your topic.

Many VU library databases can also be searched through Google Scholar. Fulltext journal articles and research papers can be retrieved by clicking on the "Find Fulltext@VU Library" link when it appears to the right of your search results.  This will happen automatically while on-campus but may need to be set up as "Library Links" under Scholar Settings to work from off-site.

Introduction to Google Scholar from Victoria University Library on Vimeo.

What is Peer Review?

When an article is published in a peer-reviewed or refereed journal, it indicates that that article has been through a formal review process. It has been read by experts in the subject field before being accepted for publication. This ensures the information in the article is well-researched and contributes to the knowledge of the subject area.

Scholarly or Academic Journal and Databases from Victoria University Library on Vimeo.