English Language
Welcome to your English Language subject support page.
This page will help you find and use the best information resources for English Language and find sources to help you with your academic study skills and digital skills.
If you can’t find the information you need here, please contact your Academic Support Team at Library-SAM@salford.ac.uk
Key resources for English Language students
Databases
Whilst Library Search is your starting point when researching a topic, sometimes it’s helpful to restrict your search to one of our specialist sources.
- Linguistics Collection (ProQuest) - Index and full-text databases covering all aspects of the study of language including phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics.
- Literature & Language Database (ProQuest) - A collection of literature and language databases.
- MLA International Bibliography - Offers a detailed bibliography of journal articles, books and dissertations. Subjects consist of literature, language and linguistics, folklore, literary theory and criticism, and dramatic arts, as well as the historical aspects of printing and publishing.
- Oxford Reference Online - A reference database which includes English and bilingual dictionaries, as well as subject dictionaries and reference books published by Oxford University Press.
- JSTOR - a great range of books and articles on all kind of topics including English Language.
- Corpus - A series of corpora available to interrogate online.
- Dictionary of Old English - Defines the vocabulary of the first six centuries (C.E. 600-1150) of the English language, using twenty-first century technology. The dictionary covers the first eight letters of the Old English alphabet.
- Dictionary of Old English Corpus - The Dictionary of Old English Corpus contains at least one copy of each text surviving in Old English.
Books and Journals
The first place you should look is your reading list – you will find a link to this in your Blackboard modules. It lists all the core texts for your subject as recommended by your lecturers. All our other books and journals can be found in Library Search
LinkedIn Learning
LinkedIn Learning offers over 9,000 professionally produced online courses covering a wide range of technical, creative and professional skills.
Always use our institutional link to log in – you will need your University email address and password. The first time that you log in, you will be taken through a setup process to discover courses tailored to your interests.
Discover more in our video: Using LinkedIn Learning at Salford.
Browse your Reading Lists

Your tutors select books, articles, videos and other resources for your reading lists and the Library buys them so you don't have to.
Find the lists for your modules in Blackboard, or in Library Search.
Referencing

APA 7th (Harvard) style is the main referencing style in use at the University. We've compiled an easy to follow list of guidebooks and examples to help you get to grips with complexities of referencing.
Newspapers

Newspapers are a valuable source of information. They provide insight into what interests and concerns people both now and in the past.
The Library provides some excellent newspaper sources that allow you to search simply and easily across many newspapers at once.
Dissertations and Theses

During the course of your studies, you may find that you need to search for dissertations or theses.
You can use Library Search to help you find them and there are a number of different ways to search, depending on what you want to find.
New English Language Students
Book a one to one
If you’ve tried our eLearning and classroom sessions and need more help, you can request a one to one appointment for information finding, academic and writing or digital skills. Select your chosen time slot and book on through Advantage.
Book on a workshop
We offer a wide range of face-to-face skills training. If you need to improve your IT skills, learn how to find information for your assignments or improve your study skills this is a great place to start.
All workshops are bookable through Advantage by clicking on the workshop title. Where a session has no remaining spaces you can add yourself to the waiting list.
Constructing an Argument 2. The Modes of Persuasion [Online]
Starts: 25 May 2022, 12:00 pmFinishes: 25 May 2022, 1:15 pmRemaining places: 25This session will explore the elements that make up an academic argument. Session 2 explores ethos, pathos, logos and utopias/dystopias as methods used to persuade an audience. Being aware of these tools can hep develop your critical reading and writing.A short introduction to critical and analytical skills [online]
Starts: 6 Jun 2022, 1:00 pmFinishes: 6 Jun 2022, 2:30 pmRemaining places: 37This session is aimed at undergraduate and master's level students who wish to improve their critical thinking, reading and writing skills. This workshop will be delivered online.Constructing an Argument
Starts: 7 Jun 2022, 12:00 pmFinishes: 7 Jun 2022, 1:00 pmVenue: Frederick Road Campus, Allerton, L219Remaining places: 30This session explores the elements that make up an academic argument, how to write your own and to challenge ones you disagree with. This is an on campus event.
Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Exam session [Online]
Starts: 26 May 2022, 4:00 pmFinishes: 26 May 2022, 5:00 pmVenue: MOS Exam - Certiport exam providerRemaining places: 6This is an online EXAM SESSION for Microsoft Office Specialist certification. When booking you MUST have registered on the MOS programme AND scored 70% plus in GMetrix's 'Testing' mode in your chosen application. Bookings not meeting this criteria will be cancelled. Bookings open 3 May.Word: Formatting your dissertation or thesis
Starts: 31 May 2022, 10:00 amFinishes: 31 May 2022, 1:00 pmVenue: Frederick Road Campus, Allerton, C811Remaining places: 7Ready to start writing up? Learn about heading styles & captions to create automatic Table of Contents, Table of Figures, etc. Apply different page number formats & change page orientation via Section breaks. This workshop requires a basic knowledge of Word. This workshop is on campus.Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Exam session [Online]
Starts: 16 Jun 2022, 4:00 pmFinishes: 16 Jun 2022, 5:00 pmVenue: MOS Exam - Certiport exam providerRemaining places: 10This is an online EXAM SESSION for Microsoft Office Specialist certification. When booking you MUST have registered on the MOS programme AND scored 70% plus in GMetrix's 'Testing' mode in your chosen application. Bookings not meeting this criteria will be cancelled. Bookings open 26 May.
Making the most of eBooks [online]
Starts: 14 Jun 2022, 2:30 pmFinishes: 14 Jun 2022, 3:30 pmRemaining places: 40This workshop will show you how to find and use electronic books (eBooks) in Library Search. This workshop will showcase eBooks and what they can do, and will include tips on using built-in tools to help save you time and advice on targeting your reading. This workshop is online.Finding information using Library Search [online]
Starts: 21 Jun 2022, 5:00 pmFinishes: 21 Jun 2022, 6:00 pmRemaining places: 38This workshop is a live demo of how Library Search works and showcases what it can do to help you find information. This workshop will show you how to find and use Library Search, and will include tips on making the most of all of its features, saving you time! This workshop is online.Finding information using Library Search
Starts: 12 Jul 2022, 12:00 pmFinishes: 12 Jul 2022, 1:00 pmVenue: Peel Park Campus, Clifford Whitworth University Library, Clifford Whitworth Library, Learning Suite 1Remaining places: 18This workshop is a live demo of how Library Search works and showcases what it can do to help you find information. This workshop will show you how to find and use Library Search, and will include tips on making the most of all of its features, saving you time! This workshop is on campus.