RefWorks: Saving Citations to RefWorks

Importing from most databases and catalogs is pretty straightforward, with the exception of the BGSU Libraries Catalog and the OhioLINK Catalog (see instructions in other boxes on this page).

Saving from EBSCO and other databases

Look for the "export" or "save" option within the database.

Saving from Summon

Add items to your temporary folder, then go to the folder and choose RefWorks from the "Export To..." dropdown.

Saving from Google Scholar

Choose "Cite" under the listing, then "RefWorks" at the bottom of the popup window that appears next.

It's easy to add a reference manually to your RefWorks database! Choose the plus sign and do one of the following:

1. If you have a pdf of an article saved to your computer, simply drag and drop it into RefWorks. In most cases, RefWorks will be able to extract the citation information from the pdf.
    
2. Choose the citation type (journal article, book, etc.) and start typing the title or author. RefWorks will try to find a match in the Summon database. If it does, just choose that and it will import the citation information.
    
3. If there is still citation information missing after you try these two things, you can add or edit any of the fields for the item you are adding.

The easiest way to save anything to RefWorks is to install the "Save To RefWorks" plugin to your favorite browser. Do this by logging in to RefWorks and going to "Tools." Then drag and drop the button into your browser toolbar.

The easiest way to save items from the BGSU or OhioLINK catalogs is to use the "Save To RefWorks" browser plugin (see the box at the top of this column) and save items one by one. To save a larger batch of items from the catalog, you can use the export process outlined below.

From the BGSU Libraries or OhioLINK catalogs

1. Perform search.
2. Mark and save records of interest ("Save Marked").
3. Click on "View Saved."
4. Choose "Full Display" and "Local Disk," then hit"Submit." If you choose End-Note/RefWorks, all data may not import correctly for some citation styles.
   
5. Popup box File Download appears – choose Save.
6. Save the document as a .txt file in a place you’ll remember.
7. Login to your RefWorks account.
8. Click on the plus sign and choose "import references."
   
9. Browse to the file you saved, or drag and drop it
10. RefWorks will ask what import filter to use. Search for the catalog name OhioLINK and then choose "Innovative Interfaces INNOPAC (OhioLINK Library Catalog (Full Display))." You will then have to search for OhioLINK a second time before you choose "Import."