Citing sources is easy with the help of the internet, especially with a citation assistant. Academic Services Librarian, Conrad Woxland, gave insight into why the library is changing citation managers and what students and faculty can expect in the future.

“The libraries will be providing the same level of support for this citation manager as they did for RefWorks,” Woxland said.

St. Thomas Libraries are preparing to change their citation manager from RefWorks to Zotero in June this year. The programs are similar, so students and faculty can quickly learn how to navigate to sources.

Woxland says librarians will be performing the same level of service so students won’t have trouble switching programs.

Citation managers are programs that assist students, faculty or anyone with citing sources while keeping them in an online database.

“They’re basically just software programs, or apps or websites, that researchers and students can use to collect sources, and then organize those sources, and then cite them and share those sources,” Woxland said.

RefWorks debuted in 2002, making it older than other citation managers. Back then, it was the top manager used, but it’s not common in 2023.

Sheila Yeh, Associate Vice Provost for Libraries and Online Education wrote to TommieMediaon the citation switch within the university.

“Around 10 years ago, the most popular citation managers used by academics were RefWorks, Zotero, and EndNote. That list has changed and RefWorks isn’t in the top three anymore,” Yeh wrote.

Though RefWorks’ price has gone up 20% within the past few years and is expected to continue rising. Price is one main reason the libraries at St. Thomas decided to switch.

“RefWorks is a great tool, but the cost has deterred many other colleges from renewing it,” Yeh wrote.

Zotero is most common in other universities, so St. Thomas is trying to aid students from other institutions and make it easier.

“Zotero is so prevalent in the academic community that it seems like when faculty and students come to St. Thomas from another institution, they’re going to expect that we have Zotero,” Woxland said.

Students can learn how to transfer their citations from RefWorks to Zotero quickly before the switch. The St. Thomas Libraries website shows step-by-step instructions on navigating the new system and attending spring workshops this April.

“I’m hopeful that we will start with Zotero and then maybe we’ll be able to start offering more in the next couple of years,” Woxland said.

Abby Madsen can be reached at mads3817@stthomas.edu.