soas dissertation database

What's new? The latest news and resources from SOAS subject librarians.

Statistics, databases and websites – guidance for soas students beginning dissertations.

By Victoria Bird | March 19, 2013 | Development Studies , Economics , Financial and Management Studies , Politics and International Relations | 0 comments

Beginning research for your dissertation can make you feel a little lost, especially when you are searching for statistics or other data. Statistics and other factual databases are not just for Mathematicians, or Economists- they can provide powerful evidence for any Social Science discipline. This post will introduce some of the sources for non-specialists.

Start point- Library databases

A good start point is to consider what you actually need in terms of statistics and why you need them. It is important to be realistic about what you aim to achieve with the data you can locate. Remember: reporting standards vary hugely across the world.

Have a look at the Library’s data and statistics page . This lists lots of databases which you can use in your research. However, you might be unsure as to the most relevant ones- and other sites might also be worth a visit, depending on your topic.

One of the most useful sites on the list is the Economic and Social Data Service (ESDS) provides access to over 5,000 digital data collections which you can search using their  data catalogue . The datasets include quantitative, qualitative, multimedia and non-digital material.

In addition to statistics, the ESDS data catalogue  contains information on topics such as Anti-terrorism in the UK and an anthropological study of the Abelam of Papua New Guinea and the Nso of Cameroon, 1939-1963.

Photo: Data Centre Storage. Copyright:  Waleed Alzuhair

Country data

How do you find statistical information about countries? Some of this will be available via the Library databases, such as IndiaStat and China Statistical Data Online , but not all. A previous post on this blog covered  online statistics for countries in South Asia . Comprehensive listing of statistical departments, government institutes and research groups is provided by the  University of Florida’s Department of Statistics . LSE also have a good  guide to statistical data , some of which is in their printed collection.  Nationmaster  provides comparative data for countries, but on a very superficial level.

Countries often have very good statistical services, which provide much information- an example is the  Japanese Statistics Bureau , which contains  long term statistics  for Japan, in addition to  statistics on the affected area  following the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and  Household consumption survey .

Why not also check out the latest Library database acquisition:

• EIU CountryData , which will be the subject of an upcoming  blog post .

International Bodies

Again, large amounts of data from various international bodies can be found on ESDS and other Library databases , but you might find the following useful.

Organisations such as the UN collect large amounts of data, much of which is publicly available.  UNdata  provides a single access point to 60 million data points covering a wide range of themes including Agriculture, Crime, Education, Employment, Energy, Environment, Health, HIV/AIDS, Human Development, Industry, Information and Communication Technology, National Accounts, Population, Refugees, Tourism, Trade, as well as the Millennium Development Goals indicators. There are also features like Country Profiles, Advanced Search and Glossaries to help you in your research.

Other NGO organisations such as International Monetary Fund , World Bank and the World Trade Organisation  all have data which they often make available for free via their websites. (N.B. Data from some of these organisations is also be available via ESDS ).

One of the best sites for locating official statistical data is  Offstats , produced by the University of Auckland. The  SESRIC BASEIND  (BAsic Social and Economic INDicators) Database is another source of such information, focusing on the 57 Organisation of Islamic Cooperation member countries.

Company financial statistics

Datastream  and other databases are good places to find financial data. The library subscribes to some of these- find out what  here . User guides are available. Some other sources can be accessed at  City Business Library , which I discussed in an earlier post.

Other sources of financial data include:

• Oriana , which contains company information for South East Asia
• Bankscope , which contains information on the banking sector worldwide

Some information might not be obtainable via the Library databases- you might be referred on to City Business Library , or another library, which might have what you need.

Basic considerations

Guides on how to understand and utilise statistics, both general such as Statistics: A gentle introduction , and more specialist titles such as  Statistics for linguistics with R  can be found by searching the Library catalogue .

A final word of warning: as with all information, you need to pay close attention to the source of your statistics or other data to ensure that your information is:

All data and statistics should be properly cited, as with any other material you utilise in your assignments. If you can’t find a reliable attribution on a website that you are getting information from, then you should consider carefully if it is appropriate to use it- there is probably a more reliable, properly cited source somewhere. Subject librarians or lecturers should be able to assist if you are experiencing problems with this.

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Finding law theses: IALS Library Guides

Guide last updated by Katie Radford, June 2024

About the author

This guide was created by Lisa Davies, former Access Librarian at the IALS Library.

Need assistance?

Reference Desk hours:

Monday-Friday 9:30-17:00 Tel (0)20 7862 5790 Email [email protected]

Your comments

We'd love to hear your comments about this Research Guide.

Email [email protected]

IALS and University of London PhD/MPhil law theses

IALS Library holds MPhil and PhD law theses from University of London colleges from 1945 to 2011.

From 2011 onwards the IALS Library only collects theses from its own research students and each University of London college keeps its own students' law theses with the expectation that they will also be available electronically through the British Library's EThOS database (see Online resources section on this page for more information on EThOS) . If looking for a University of London thesis since 2011 and it is not available on EThOS, check the college's library catalogue or institutional repository, or contact the relevant college library for further information.

Finding print law theses at IALS Library

To search IALS Library's collection of print law theses on the Library Catalogue :

1. Select the Classmark search option

2. Type in "thesis" as the search term and submit the search

3. Select the option "Limit/Sort Search" from the search results screen

4. Type in some appropriate search terms for your subject area into the "Words in Title" or "Words in Subject" fields

5. Submit the search.

Make a note of the numbers of any theses which you would like to look at. As theses are not stored on the open shelves, you will need to fill out a basement request form at the 2nd floor Enquiry Desk for each thesis you would like to view and a member of staff will fetch them for you.

Theses are available for consultation in the library only and there are strict rules about photocopying from theses. If in doubt about whether copying is allowed, please ask a member of library staff.

Finding electronic law theses at IALS Library

Selected PhD theses written by IALS students are available online in the IALS section of the School of Advanced Study's E-repository, SAS-Space .

IALS Masters dissertations

Selected dissertations written by IALS Masters students are available online in the "thesis" section of the School of Advanced Study's E-repository, SAS-Space .

Online resources for law theses

DART Europe is a portal to o nline theses provided by a partnership of research libraries and library consortia who are working together to improve global access to European research theses.

EThOS is t he British Library's Electronic Theses Online System. It aims to provide open access to UK theses in many disciplines including law. EThOS includes a record of approximately 90% of UK theses. Many of them are available to download for free. If the thesis is not available to download, you can make a request for it to be digitised (there may be a fee for this service).

NDLTD (Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations) is an international organisation dedicated to promoting the creation of electronic theses. The website provides a list of online repositories of theses from many countries around the world.

ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global and Index to Theses is a subscription database that provides access to theses and dissertations from the UK and overseas. Many university libraries provide access to this database; check with your own college or university librarian if you are unsure. School of Advanced Study students and those with Senate House Library membership have access to this service.

Many universities maintain their own e-repositories, which provide online access to PhD theses. Please check individual university's websites for further information. 

Historic legal research in the UK

Legal Research in the UK in the 20th Century is an IALS open access database which provides a list of legal theses and dissertations successfully completed for postgraduate degrees awarded by universities and polytechnics in the United Kingdom 1905-1984.

• Last Updated: Oct 22, 2024 4:50 PM
• URL: https://libguides.ials.sas.ac.uk/theses

SOAS Research Online

A free database of the latest research by soas academics and phd students.

• Instructions for SOAS Researchers

[ skip to content ]

• Submit an item (Staff Only)

Goyal, Sana Sanjay (2022) Awarding "Africa": the politics of literary prizes. PhD thesis. SOAS University of London. DOI: https://doi.org/10.25501/SOAS.00037841

The retrospectively realised prompt for this thesis is the 50th anniversary of the Booker Prize in 2018 and the 20th anniversary of the Caine Prize for African Writing, also known as the “African Booker”, in 2019. Raising questions about 21st century reading and prizing cultures and canon formation in the context of the commercial category and continental impulse, “African literature”—and synthesising existing academic scholarship (James F. English; Doseline Kiguru) with conversations taking place in digital and journalistic spaces—it offers new pathways for tracking and tracing, discussing and debating, exploring and exposing the mechanics of major literary prizes. In setting the scene for the politics of major prizes, and specifically the place of African literatures within the literary landscape, it argues that anniversaries and missed opportunities, scandals and rule changes in these prizes’ recent histories can offer room for reflection, reconsideration, remodelling and recovery—with the foreknowledge that these major moments in prizes’ histories will inevitability bear consequence on their personality, trajectory, sustainability, and longevity for years to come. It asks: will the Booker Prize last to make it to a century? Will the Caine Prize for African Writing make it to a half century? How can prestigious prizes continue to remain relevant—and imagine new manifestos, new futures, and, indeed, new ways of prizing literatures?

Altmetric Data

Repository staff only

Please enable JavaScript in your web browser to get the best experience.

Main navigation

• Jump to: Welcome
• Jump to: Opening hours
• Jump to: Library collections
• Jump to: Our resources
• Jump to: Subject guides
• Jump to: Discover SOAS Library
• Jump to: Events
• Jump to: Contact

Welcome to SOAS Library

As a leading UK research library (RLUK), we have over 1.3 million volumes, periodicals and audio-visual materials in 400 languages, and special collections of manuscripts, rare books, and archives  – all focusing on the study of Asia, Africa and the Middle East. 

Opening hours

Existing members.

External members with valid SOAS Library card do not need to book to visit SOAS Library.

If you don't yet have an up-to-date membership, please apply for membership . We will contact you to arrange an appointment for you to collect your new ID card when it is ready.

Search the library collections

Find out about the various SOAS Library collections and explore our curated catalogue.

Our resources

• Electronic resources

The Library provides access to many resources in electronic format.

• Special Collections

Archives, manuscripts, photographs, maps, audio-visual material, rare books and SOAS PhD theses relating to Africa, Asia, the Middle East.

Subject guides

Discover our SOAS subject guides, and find out more about the Library collection, other useful libraries, recommended web-sites and electronic journals for that subject.

Discover SOAS Library

• About SOAS Library

One of the world's most important academic libraries for the study of Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

• Scholarly Communications

Scholarly communications is the process of legally disseminating publications, datasets and research findings to maximise re-use, visibility and impact within the academic community and wider society.

• Decolonisation Operational Group

An ongoing effort to de-centre the European or Western canon of knowledge within SOAS.

Statement on potentially offensive materials and descriptions at SOAS Library

Content warning for library users regarding materials held by SOAS Library and Special Collections, and the language that describes them.

SOAS Library Bulletin

If you would like to be added to the SOAS Library distribution list please send an email to  [email protected]  stating the you wish to join the SOAS Library mailing list, your email address and your First Name and Surname. 

Once you have joined the list you will receive emails informing you of seminars and events organised by the SOAS Library and our latest news.

In this section

Korean Studies

• Searching the Library catalogue
• Other Useful Catalogues
• Databases on Korea
• Finding journal articles in Korean
• Multi-media materials on Korea
• News and Newspapers
• Arts & Cinema
• Language & Literature
• Statistical sources
• Reference Works
• What's New?

Korean Studies E-resources

Soas library would like to extend gratitude to the korea foundation for on-going support., the korea foundation support for the korean studies e-resources programme has allowed soas library to maintain and develop korea language e-resources., the soas library received the korean foundation grant to support the korean studies e-resources in 2022. this grant directly supported the subscription of dbpia and kiss in 2022. the library will receive the kf grant for the korean studies e-resources in 2023., national library of korea digitized materials.

The  National   Library   of   Korea  provides digitization services for some  of  the  materials  held in their  library . SOAS  Library  has a partnership agreement. Over 8 million NLK  Digitized   materials  are now accessible via 4 designated PCs within SOAS  Library . The  materials  include old and rare documents,  of ficial gazettes (1894-1945), journals, newspapers, music scores, textbooks and academic books. If you want to access them, please come to the  Library  Enquiry Desk or contact me directly ( [email protected] ).

• << Previous: Other Useful Catalogues
• Next: Ebooks >>
• Last Updated: Oct 24, 2024 9:50 PM
• URL: https://soas.libguides.com/Koreanstudies