The UC Merced Library offers a variety of workshops by request to support faculty, staff and graduate student researchers, in addition to our regularly scheduled workshops offered throughout the year. Workshop recordings are also available to view, on-demand.
Request a workshop for a group of interested peers or colleagues by completing the By-Request Workshop Form. If you are interested in scheduling a workshop for a class, please fill out the Instruction Request Form.
Manage Your Research with Mendeley
Length: 50 minutes
Instructor: Olivia Olivares
Mendeley is a free citation management tool offered in desktop, online and mobile versions. During this workshop we will show you how you can use Mendeley to organize citations, annotate resources, add in-text citations and generate bibliographies in Microsoft Word, and network with other researchers.
Manage Your Research with RefWorks
Length: 50 minutes
Instructor: Joe Ameen
RefWorks is a cloud-based tool for managing and citing your references. In this session discover how to add, edit and organize your references, create bibliographies from your references, and cite-while-you-write from your stored references using the RefWorks Citation Manager (RCM) add-in for Word.
Manage Your Research with Zotero
Length: 50 minutes
Instructor: Elizabeth McMunn Tetangco
Zotero is a free, open-source citation manager that you can use to organize your research, create bibliographies, and share resources with others. Zotero can be used as a standalone web tool, or offline. During this workshop, you will learn how to add citations, create bibliographies, use tags to organize references, and use the Zotero Word plugin.
Introduction to Research Data Management Plans
Length: 1 hour
Instructor: Derek Devnich
Minimum number of attendees: 3
This practical workshop will cover what funders are looking for in a data management plan, how to create a data management plan, and the institutional resources that are available to researchers. Bring your questions or draft plan for discussion.
Data Management Plans for NIH Grants
Length: 1 hour 30 minutes
Instructor: Derek Devnich
Minimum number of attendees: 3
Are you preparing an NIH grant proposal? In January 2023, the National Institutes of Health will begin enforcing its new Data Management and Sharing Policy. If you're writing a grant, you will need to include a Data Management Plan that complies with the new policy. This workshop will cover (1) NIH's new Data Management and Sharing Policy, (2) the new requirements for data management plans, (3) the review process for data management plans, and (4) practical advice and resources for writing your plan.
Introduction to Project Management
Length: 1 hour 30 minutes
Instructor: Derek Devnich
Minimum number of attendees: 3
This workshop is for the graduate student (or anyone else) managing their first research project. We will discuss project planning and organization, as well as practical strategies for managing research data, choosing software tools, and recovering from inevitable disasters. Bring your questions, complaints, and horror stories of projects gone wrong.
Benefits and Pitfalls of Google Scholar
Length: 30 minutes
Instructor: Joe Ameen
Many Library licensed databases function similarly and deliver predictable experiences. Google Scholar is not always so predictable. In this workshop, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of using this platform in your research.
Find News Sources with Library Databases
Length: 50 minutes
Instructor: Elizabeth McMunn-Tetangco
This session will highlight key newspapers and share strategies for searching these sources effectively. Find out how to access international (Tehran Times), national (Wall Street Journal) and local (e.g. Merced Sun Star) newspaper content through databases like Newsbank: Access World News and U.S. Major Dailies (ProQuest) .
Industry Research with IBIS World Online
Length: 50 minutes
Instructor: Olivia Olivares
IBISWorld is a comprehensive database of industry profiles, statistics, and data, offering information on thousands of industries and subindustries in the United States and around the world. This workshop will show you how to use IBISWorld to find competitive analysis, top companies operating in the industry, performance benchmarks, and more.
PubMed: Beyond the Basics
Length: 50 minutes
Instructor: Joe Ameen
The PubMed database contains over 30 million biomedical and health sciences citations. During this workshop, learn strategies to optimize your PubMed search experience such as using Medical Subject Headings (MeSH), citation export options, and the Clinical Queries search tool.
Using U.S. Census Data in Your Research
Length: 50 minutes
Instructor: Olivia Olivares
This workshop will give a historical overview of the census, noting significant changes over time and explaining key census terms and concepts including metropolitan statistical area (MSA) and census block, and introduce some of the tools & techniques for searching census data.
Census and Demographic Mapping
Length: 1 hour 30 minutes
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
The US Census has a wealth of mapping and demographic data that is accessible for free. Learn how to access US Census data sets using ESRI Living Atlas and US Factfinder and utilize them for analyses and maps studying demographics, employment, income and many other categories. Participants in this workshop will be given access to free hands-on training and courses to expand your learning.
Creating Story Maps
Length: 1 hour 30 minutes
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
Hands-on learning building presentations integrating maps, videos, pictures, and narrative text. Learn about how Story Maps are used and build your own elegant presentation which will be a great addition to your portfolio. Participants in this workshop will receive a free online account with ArcGIS Online to build Story Maps and access to several training modules to expand your learning.
Dashboard and Insights from ESRI
Length: 2 hours
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
This workshop will provide an overview of ArcGIS Desktops and Insights and how you can use them for your research, education and other operational uses. ArcGIS Dashboards enables users to convey information by presenting location-based analytics using intuitive and interactive data visualizations on a single screen. Every organization using the ArcGIS platform can take advantage of ArcGIS Dashboards to help make decisions, visualize trends, monitor status in real-time, and inform their communities. Tailor dashboards to your audiences, giving them the ability to slice the data to get the answers they need. Dashboards are essential information products, like maps and apps, providing a critical component to your geospatial infrastructure. These dashboards are currently used to convey the current COVID-19 Insights in ArcGIS Online, a browser-based deployment that is licensed through an ArcGIS Online organization. The Insights in ArcGIS Online deployment allows users to access data from their ArcGIS Online organization and share items with other members of their organization or with the public.
Desktop GIS (ArcGIS Pro)
Length: 2 hours
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
Take your GIS learning to the next level by gaining hands-on experience with ArcGIS Desktop applications. Participants will be given a free license to ArcGIS Professional and access to hands-on learning courses and tutorials to expand your knowledge.
GIS Essentials Workshop
Length: 1 hour 30 minutes
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
This workshop will expose participants to the essentials of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). GIS are designed to capture, store, manipulate, analyze, manage, and present all types of spatial or geographical data.
GIS Software Learning Resources (free)
Length: 1 hour
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
Find out about the software and learning resources available to students, faculty, and staff at UC Merced. This presentation will review software programs, GIS databases, and tutorials.
Introduction to Python and ArcGIS
Length: 2 hours
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
Learn how to use Juypter Notebooks and Python to integrate into the ArcGIS Platform. Students will learn how to activate Notebooks in ArcGIS online, run scripts for geoprocessing and data management.
Introduction to R and ArcGIS
Length: 2 hours
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
Learn how to integrate R with ArcGIS to analyzing geospatial data using statistical packages, data management and visualization using R.
Mobile Data Collection
Length: 1 hour 30 minutes
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
Have you ever wanted to create a survey on your phone or use your phone to map your adventures or research? This workshop will give participants hands-on experience to create a data collection application using Survey 123 and Collector (ESRI). Learn how to connect to GPS and attach photos and audio notes to your field data.
Open Source GIS
Length: 2 hours
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
We will be using QGIS software, to download the software before the workshop please go to https://qgis.org/en/site/ . I'm excited about offering this NEW workshop and we plan to expand our campus support to QGIS applications. Take your GIS learning to the next level by gaining hands-on experience with open source desktop GIS programs, including QGIS. Participants must have previous experience in GIS coursework and/or workshops.
Web Mapping
Length: 2 hours
Instructor: Erin Mutch
Minimum number of attendees: 4
This workshop will expose participants to the essentials of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). GIS are designed to capture, store, manipulate, analyze, manage, and present all types of spatial or geographical data.
Creative Commons
Length: 15 minutes
Instructor: Jerrold Shiroma
This presentation covers the basics of assigning Creative Commons licenses to your work, and how Creative Commons licenses support open access.
Publishing with eScholarship
Length: 15 minutes
Instructor: Jerrold Shiroma
This presentation offers an overview of the eScholarship publishing platform.
Transformative Publishing Agreements
Length: 15 minutes
Instructor: Jerrold Shiroma
This presentation offers an overview of the steps UC is taking to transform the scholarly publishing landscape through its negotiations with publishers.
UC Open Access Policy for Non-Senate Employees
Length: 15 minutes
Instructor: Jerrold Shiroma
A brief overview of the UC Open Access Policy as it applies to Non-Senate Employees, what rights are reserved, and what authors need to do to be in compliance.
UC Open Access Policy for Senate Faculty
Length: 15 minutes
Instructor: Jerrold Shiroma
A brief overview of the UC Open Access Policy as it applies to Senate Faculty, what rights are reserved, and what authors need to do to be in compliance.
The UC Publication Management System
Length: 15 minutes
Instructor: Jerrold Shiroma
Learn the ins-and-outs of the UC Publication Management System , how you can manage your profile, and how it helps you be in compliance with the UC Open Access Policy .
Publishing Guidance & Scholarly Communication Customized Presentations
Length: 15 minutes
Instructor: Jerrold Shiroma
We also offer longer presentations on these topics, or can customize presentations to suit your needs.
Cleaning Messy Data with OpenRefine
Length: 1 hour
Instructor: Joe Ameen
Want to spend less time cleaning and prepping your data? Doing the same tasks over and over in Excel? OpenRefine is a free open source tool designed specifically for cleaning and organizing your data with easy to use features for fixing errors and transforming your data. Workshop attendees will learn more about how this powerful tool can help prepare data for analysis and sharing.
Introduction to Unix Shell
Length: 3 hours
Instructor: Derek Devnich
Minimum number of attendees: 4
The Unix shell is a powerful tool that allows users to perform complex and powerful tasks, often with just a few keystrokes or lines of code. It helps users automate repetitive tasks and easily combine smaller tasks into larger, more powerful workflows. Shell commands and scripts are fundamental to a wide range of advanced computing tasks, including system administration and high-performance computing. This workshop will introduce graduate students and faculty to this powerful tool so that they can apply it to their own research workflows.
Version Control with Git
Length: 3 hours
Instructor: Derek Devnich
Minimum number of attendees: 4
Have you ever ruined your code by trying to "improve" it? Using version control, you can fearlessly edit your code without risking your hard-won progress. This workshop will teach you the fundamentals of version control with Git. You'll learn how to revisit earlier snapshots of your code, try out alternative versions of your project, and recover from disasters.
Introduction to Databases and SQL
Length: 3 hours
Instructor: Derek Devnich
Minimum number of attendees: 4
If you're working with complicated data, storing it in a database can improve your life in many ways. Databases have many advantages over simple files: (1) They're faster for importing, exporting, or searching your data, (2) they make it easy to search or filter large data sets, and (3) they have built-in tools for performing on-the-fly reporting and ensuring data quality. This workshop will teach you what relational databases are, how you can load your data into a database, and how you can query your database to find the information you need.
The Office of Information Technology - Research Computing offers support and regular trainings on high-performance computing with the UC Merced cluster. Depending on your research computing needs, we may direct your request to our OIT colleagues.
How to Find and Research Primary Resources
Length: 50 Minutes
Instructor: Carol B. Wilson
Minimum number of attendees: 3
This workshop is a general introduction to what constitutes a primary resource, where primary resources are maintained, and how archives are different from libraries in terms of materials to be found and how to access them. This workshop also teaches search strategies for finding primary sources and how to read finding aids, which are standardized descriptive guides for archival collections. The workshop concludes with how to make a research appointment at archives or special collections.
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