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Different Library Resources Identifiers

Question icon What is a DOI

Digital Object Identifier (DOI) is a unique string of numbers and letters that permanently identifies an article, or other work, and links to it on the web. In short, a DOI is a permanent or persistent identifier. Read more at DOI.org.

 

Find icon How to find DOIs

In most recently published articles, the DOI will be printed with the article itself, usually on the first page somewhere, or in the header or footer. Generally, DOIs will be available for scholarly articles published after 2011. Some articles before 2011 have them but many don't. You can see how to get the DOI from Web of Science, EBSCO or ProQuest below. 

Hint icon Tips

  • You can turn any DOI into a URL by adding https://doi.org/ before the DOI. 
  • If the database didn't provide the DOI, you can check Crossref to look up the DOI. (Hint: When using Crossref, use the second option to "Search on article title", then enter the last name of the primary author, and enter the title of the article but do not enter the subtitle.)