Using RefWorks

Adding Citations to RefWorks

Exporting from Ebsco, ProQuest, and other Library Databases

The Export tool is located different places in different databases. Examples for EBSCO and ProQuest are below, but in general look for:

Export
Save
A link on the database provided citation tool

In EBSCO

Locate the article you need.
Click the article title to view the full record.
Click Citeon the Toolsmenu.
Choose Export Citationand then the citation manager you are using: RefWorks, or EndNote or others.
For RefWorks you will be prompted to login.

In ProQuest:

Locate the article you need.
Click on the title.
Click on All Options.
Choose RefWorks under Citation Export.
Click Continue on the pop up menu.
For RefWorks you will be prompted to login.

Exporting from Google Scholar

In Google Scholar:

Locate the article you want to export.
Click the "cite" below the article
Below the various citation styles, click on RefWorks.

Manually Adding a Citation

To add an item to RefWorks, click the Addat the top of the page. If you plan on adding the item to an existing folder, click on the folder first, then click the Add.

You'll have three options:

Upload document
Import references
Create new reference

Using Create new referenceyou can manually enter your bibliographic data.
You can change the reference type, manually edit the reference fields and additional fields can be added using the Add more fieldsdrop down box at the bottom of the page.
Once you have manually added your item using one of these options, click Saveand your item will be added to your RefWorks library.

Creating a Bibliography

Navigate to the folder you want to use(or All References area or run a search and select items), select the bibliography icon from the top menu, and then Create bibliography.
RefWorks will remember the last citation style you used.You can change styles by clicking on the style name and either searching for a new style or selecting from the displayed list.
You can choose to create a bibliography for selected references(make sure you select the reference in the folder BEFORE you go to create your bibliography) or for all of the references in the collection(or in All References if that's the view you are in).
Don't forget to save your paper when you're done!

Adding & Annotating Full Text

Adding a Full Text Document

To store the full text of your articles in RefWorks:

Import the citation information from a Database or Google Scholar, or input it manually.
Save the full text as DOC or PDF to your computer.
Click on the matching citation information in RefWorks so the edit side bar is visible.
Drag the file from your computer's documents or downloads folder onto the citation and drop it.
The file will upload to that citation.

Annotating Documents in RefWorks

Note: You will need to first Add the full text document into RefWorks to use the read or annotate features.

RefWorks has a built-in reader – no need for a .pdf reader or special app to read your documents. You can read and access supported documents anywhere, with just a web browser. Select the reference with the document and click the "Read" button in the viewing pane. The full document or article will open for you to read and annotate.

You have several options, all of which can be found on the tool bar on the top of the page:

Return to your references.
Zoom in or zoom out on the document for enhanced viewing.
Print a copy of the document.
Download a PDF version of the document to your computer.
Highlight certain portions of the text.
Comment on the selected text.
Add notes to the document that you are viewing.
Edit the document reference data.

You can annotate any of your own documents saved in RefWorks. You may be able to annotate documents shared with you if you have been given permission to annotate and/or modify the document.

To annotate a document, select the reference with the document and click the "Read" button in the viewing pane. The document will display in the reader. Click the Document Notes icon from the reader menu and enter your notes.

If you wish to make highlight areas of text, select the text area you wish to make a note for using the Highlight Selected Text icon and select words of text by clicking and dragging through the lines of text.

To remove highlighting, click the highlighted area until the delete option displays. Click "Delete Conversation".

You may also click and drag using the Comment iconto highlight the text and associate a comment with it.

You can change the color of your comment and the associated highlighted text, edit your comment or you can delete your comment completely by clicking on the three dots at the far right in the note.

An indicator will also appear to the far right of the selected area and you may access the comment here as well.

Once you type a comment, it is automatically saved.

RefWorks Tools for In Text Citations

RefWorks has several tools to help with writing a paper, including an add-on to Microsoft Word or Google Docs. These tools depend on your type of computer, browser and word processing software, so please view the link below to determine which options apply to your situation.

Writing Tools Overview This link opens in a new window
Detailed install instructions for the different writing tools.

UPDATE (5/20/26 @ 7:30am AZ time):

RefWorks & EndNote: Using RefWorks