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DATA Library Guide

Data Analytics

Find Your Data

  1. Select a topic

    • Scroll through DU's list of Public Data Sources or Harvard Dataverse ("Browse by subject") for ideas.
    • Form your topic into a question to answer. Example: What contributes to childhood obesity?

  2. Choose keywords

    • Focus on main concepts.
    • Think of synonyms and other forms of the main concepts. Examples: obesity, child, kids

  3. Find your data in

    • Harvard Dataverse - an easily searchable and downloadable repository for research data on many subjects
    • Google Dataset Search - a new search service to find data from sciences, government, some news organizations
    • Statista - DU database covering many topics. To find raw data, look up the source information and go directly there.
    • Public Data Sources
    • Government Stats on Google
    • Google.com
      • Search your keywords and add the word stats or dataset. Example search: child obesity dataset
      • Look for the source of the stats to see if the raw data is accessible
      • Use Google's Settings and Tools refinements to further refine your search

Video: Find Raw Data (in 30 Sec)

DATA Databases

Government Stats on Google

Search Google for Government Stats
Looking for: Search Tip: Example:
California Driving Statistics

To limit results to only California government websites:

At the end of your search, type: site:.ca.gov

 Google
driving statistics site:.ca.gov
National Employment Statistics

To limit results to U.S. Government websites:

At the end of your search, type: site:.gov

 Google
employment statistics site:.gov
Graduation Statistics

To limit results to Educational Institutions:

At the end of your search, type: site:.edu

 Google
graduation statistics site:.edu

This chart is from Statistical Sources: How to Find Internet Statistics, National University Library System, 2018.

DATA Tools

Subjects: DATA