MFAc Library Orientation Session
This guide is an introduction to sources which are available to support courses and assignments in the MFAc program. It highlights some of the key research tools available but it is not intended as a comprehensive list of sources. The sources listed below are available in print at the Bronfman Business Library, S237, Schulich School of Business or electronically via York University Libraries Web site. For a comprehensive list of recommended electronic business resources see Business Online A-Z.
A link to the PowerPoint for this orientation session is available here. This material supplements what is contained in this web guide i.e. both should be consulted in tandem with each other.
This guide is divided into the following sections:
- Using the YULibrary Catalogue
- E-Books
- Journal Articles
- Accounting StandardsJust click on these links to get access to these collections
- Finding Company Financials: Financial Statements, Company Ratios etc.
- Investment Analysis and Broker Reports
- Introduction to WRDS
- Citing Resources & RefWorks
Using the YULibrary Catalogue
The YULibrary Catalogue is a tool you should come to rely on again and again when doing your library research. This is because it allows you to search for all the print and electronic materials owned by the libraries by title, author, keyword, and more. The catalogue can be used, however, to find materials other than books including journal titles (for both print and electronic journals), government information, legal materials, videos, and much more. It also includes reserve materials and reference items.
Catalogue Tips
- Start with a keyword search, e.g.forensic accounting.
- Find a title that is closest to your research topic e.g. Fraud Auditing and Forensic Accounting.
- Click on ‘the title of the book in order to view complete information available about the book and scroll down to ‘Subject’ and then click on any of the subjects to find all books on this subject
E-Books
Books 24X7: Access the BusinessPro section to find electronic books on the topics related to finance including titles such as Financial Statements a step-by-step guide to creating financial reports and Understanding IFRS fundamentals International Financial Reporting Standards. In addition, lengthy summaries of key professional and popular business books are included in ExecSummaries. Available on the network but restricted to the York University community.
Different Types of Articles
The following is a description of the different kinds of business articles in all the key areas of business including the area of Human Resources Management e.g.:
1. Business articles in scholarly or peer-reviewed journals: These articles are written by academics and researchers, typically focus on original research, use specialized language, contain in-depth articles with specialized language and extensive bibliographies. Examples: Administrative Science Quarterly; Journal of Accounting, Auditing and Finance.
When might one use a scholarly or peer-reviewed article?: Where an academic or scholarly perspective is required; where original research is sought; where interested in academic theory; where a review of the academic literature on a business topic is needed; where a professor has specifically stipulated that only scholarly articles may be used for a given research project.
Tip: Use Ulrichs International Periodical Directory to determine if a specific journal is refereed. You can search by journal name, and if it is refereed this symbol will appear beside the journal title:
2. Business articles in trade journals: Target members of a specific business, industry or organization. Written by practitioners or journalists who cover the field. Valued for currency. Typically focus on industry trends, new products or techniques, and organizational news. Editorial review quite common, may contain short bibliographies. Examples: CA Magazine, Directors & Boards, Internal Auditor.When should you use an article from a trade journal?: Where a practitioner perspective needed; where industry, company, or market research being conducted with emphasis on currency; where seeking information on best practices, recent developments or other information relating to a particular profession or trade.
3. Business articles in popular business magazines: Target audience is general public and/or business professionals. Focus on general business information especially current trends and news. Examples: Canadian Business; Forbes.When should you use an article from a popular business magazine?: Where general background information is required on a business topic and information source need not be academic, specialized, or in-depth in focus; where currency is important as many popular publications are published weekly and cover business news events and recent developments.
4. Business articles in newspapers or newswires: Short articles written by business columnists/journalists. Focus on current news in business. Examples: Wall Street Journal, BusinessWire.When should you use a newspaper or newswire business article?: Typically the best (and often only) source for very recent business developments or events; useful source of political, social, economic and public commentary; useful in order to determine how an event was reported on at a particular point in time; where regional research being conducted local newspapers may be the only, or one of few, sources of information available.
Finding an Article When You Have a Citation or Reference
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Click the camera to watch a video on finding articles at York when you have a journal citation. |
When you have a reference or citation to a specific article, you can use the main search box available on the library home page to determine whether the journal/magazine is available online from the Libraries. This can be found on the libraries’ home page.
Here is an example of a citation:
Firoz, C. A. M., & Ansari, A. A. (2010). Environmental accounting and international financial reporting standards (IFRS). International Journal of Business and Management, 5(10), 105-105-112.
Make sure to enter the title of the journal or magazine in which the article appears i.e. International Journal of Business and Management and not the title of the article. Select “Periodical Title” from the drop-down menu which appears beside the search box. Then check to see if the libraries’ have the volume and issue you need, which in this case they do.
Finding Journal/Magazine/News Articles
to find articles on a specific topic you need to use an articles database. Articles databases contain article citations (e.g title of journal article, author(s) of journal article, title of journal, volume no., issue no., pagination etc.) and often the article’s full-text, as well. Many databases provide abstracts or summaries of articles as well. These electronic databases can be searched in a variety of ways, including by keyword.
All of the eResources below support keyword searching to identify journal, magazine, and/or newspaper articles relating to courses taught in the Master of Financial Accountability (MFAc) program:
Journal and Magazine Articles
Proquest Business Simultaneously search all business & industry periodicals available through Proquest Central, including the ABI/Inform databases, concentrated publications on the pharmaceutical, banking, computing and telecommunications industries and Canadian, Asian and European business news. Includes wide coverage of corporate governance topics. Specific databases included in the Proquest suite of business databases at York University are: ABI Inform Global, ABI/Inform Trade & Industry, CBCA Business, CBCA Current Events, Proquest Asian Business, and Proquest European.
Business Source Premier Contains full text for over 7,000 business periodicals and other sources, including scholarly journals, trade and general business magazines, monographs, country economic and industry reports, industry yearbooks, and market research reports.
CBCA Complete (Proquest): Provides interdisciplinary coverage of Canadian topics including the areas of business and current affairs. Offers references, and many full text articles, from Canadian journals, magazines, newspapers, and newswires. Dates of coverage vary by title but many full-text titles available from early or mid-1990s, while citations for many publications available from early 1980s onward. Consult CBCA Business, a sub-component of the CBCA Complete database, in order to limit search specifically to Canadian business journals and magazines, but note that newspaper and newswire coverage are not offered by this product, and coverage of business topics in non-business publications is also not available.
Recommended Newspaper Databases
Factiva Features over 25,000 news and business publications from 118 countries in 22 languages, including full-text articles from international newspapers such as The Globe and Mail and continuously updated newswires and general business and industry publications like The Economist, Forbes, Fortune, Time, Newsweek, Finanz & Wirtschaft, Satellite News, BusinessWeek.
LexisNexis Academic LexisNexis Academic provides searchable access to a comprehensive spectrum of full-text information from over 6,000 news, business, legal, medical, and reference publications. Included are current international newspapers, as well as comprehensive company and industry reports. Information available includes trade and marketing reports, patent details, merger and acquisition analysis, country reports and industry and legal publications.
Canadian Newsstand – Major Dailies (Proquest): A searchable full-text database of major Canadian daily newspapers. Major titles include: the Calgary Herald (1988-), the Edmonton Journal (1989-), the Globe and Mail (1977-), the Halifax Daily News (1990-), the Montreal Gazette (1985-), the National Post (1998-), the Ottawa Citizen (1985-)the Toronto Star (1985-), and the Vancouver Sun (1987-). Select the Publications tab for a full listing. There may be a 2 – 7 day delay for the most recent issues.
Finding Company Financials: Financial Statements, Company Ratios etc.
Financial information is not available for private companies.
Financial Post Advisor: A suite of databases from Financial Post Datagroup. Includes a wealth of information on Canadian publicly traded companies organized by key product category including Company Snapshots; Companies by Industry; Corporate Surveys; Predecessor & Defunct; Analyzer Search; Investor Reports; Historical Reports; Dividends; and New Issues.
The Industry Reports section provides comparative data on the key Canadian public companies in each industry and provides general industry statistics and financial ratios. Also look at Companies by Industry for a list of companies within selected industries.
The Additional Databases link will lead you to Profile Canada for information on private companies.
Mergent Online Provides information for over 10,000 U.S. public companies and almost 20,000 non-U.S. public companies. Company records include detailed business descriptions, corporate histories and financial statements. Industry reports include information on both the U.S. and Canadian sectors.
NetAdvantage Standard & Poor’s database provides comprehensive information on business and investment information, offering on-line access to popular Standard & Poor’s research products such as Industry Surveys, Stock Reports, Corporation Records, The Register of Corporations, Directors and Executives, The Outlook, Mutual Fund Reports, etc.
Investext Plus Thomson Reuters database contains full-text financial reports and forecasts prepared by the world’s leading investment banks and consulting and research firms.
SEDAR: This website provides access to documents filed by public companies and mutual fund groups with Canadian securities regulatory authorities . Filings from 1997 to present are available.
EDGAR: The US Security and Exchange Commission’s database of public company information including 10k reports for public traded companies. Filings from 1994 to the present are available.
Introduction to WRDS
WRDS Wharton Research Data Service. The following databases are currently available via WRDS: Compustat Global, CRSP, Global Insight, Thomson 13f (historical), Thomson Mutual Funds (historical), Dow Jones Averages, ExecuComp (historical data only), Philadelphia Stock Exchange, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. WRDS is available to York University Faculty and PhDs. Contact Elizabeth Watson or Xuemei Li for more information
Citing Resources & RefWorks
The McGill library has compiled a very good guide to citing business sources using APA and the Bronfman Business Library has created a guide for citing business sources in MLA. For guides to citing resources in other citation styles see the list of style guides
RefWorks bibliographic management software is also available for free to any registered York students. RefWorks is a user-friendly program that allows users to generate and manage bibliographies for use in their written work. Use of RefWorks requires an initial online registration and requires that you download Write-N-Cite software. More information here.
Created by Sophie Bury & Elizabeth Watson
Business Librarians
Created September 2011
