Power Your Projects with Data from Pardee Library
Get ready to level up your research game! Pardee Library gives you access to a world of data – financial, economic, government, and marketing – so you can turn insights into impact.
Whether you’re tracking economic trends, researching markets, or exploring policy data, our databases and datasets give you the edge you need for your coursework and research.
Start Exploring:
Want even more? Browse all available options on our Business Databases: A-Z page.
Need Help Finding the Right Data?
Our team is here to help you locate and access the best sources for your topic – just email pardstf@bu.edu.
Open Access Week: Explore OpenBU
The BU Libraries are celebrating International Open Access Week (October 20-26) by highlighting library services that support the global reach of scholarship produced at BU and the variety of works available in BU’s digital institutional repository.
To support the university’s commitment to “disseminating the fruits of its research and scholarship as widely as possible” as outlined in its open access policy, the BU Libraries manages a digital institutional repository OpenBU (open.bu.edu), available to all members of the university community. As BU’s digital institutional repository, OpenBU houses thousands of articles, chapters, theses and dissertations, presentations, datasets, media, and more—all authored or co-authored by BU faculty, students, and staff. This repository enables BU researchers to share, disseminate, and preserve their scholarship, and makes their research more accessible.
Learn how to contribute your own work to OpenBU and share it with the world.
OpenBU currently holds 49,485 items, and since its launch, there have been 6,654,437 downloads and 8,047,005 visits. Its collections cover a wide array of topics, and materials from numerous BU colleges, schools, and departments can be found in the repository. The scope of the repository’s materials is captured in OpenBU’s most-viewed items of the past year:
- Abraham Lincoln and Christianity.
- The concept of the soul in Plato and in early Judeo-Christian thought
- The supernatural in the poetry of Samuel Taylor Coleridge
- Spinoza's concept of God's infinity.
- The effects of quicklime on the decomposition process in a tropical climate
- Evaluating the vitamin D content in sardines and mackerel
- Robert Frost: His treatment of nature and humanity
- Sexual Violence in Muslim Communities: Towards Awareness and Accountability
- Macroscopic observations of the effects of corrosive substances on bone and soft tissue when subjected to heating
- Tying the knot: a Feminist/Womanist guide to Muslim marriage in America
This list offers a small snapshot of the wealth of materials researchers can share and discover through OpenBU. This repository is a key program in the BU Libraries’ broad support of research, teaching, and learning at Boston University and it is part of BU Libraries’ deep commitment to facilitating greater access to research and knowledge.
Explore the benefits of this open access initiative by browsing OpenBU’s collections and contributing your own work. If you have questions about contributing to or exploring OpenBU, email open-help@bu.edu.
Top Business Publications You Can Access for Free
Ready to boost your grades and gain a better understanding of what’s happening in business? Stop fighting paywalls and sketchy sources. BU Libraries gives you free online access to the same trusted publications CEOs and investors read every day.
Find What You Need Fast:
Type the publication name in BU Libraries Search to access it instantly.
The Essential 5:
- The Wall Street Journal: The gold standard for finance and economics. If you only read one business source, make it this.
- Harvard Business Review: Practical management insights that professors love to cite, and you will too.
- The Economist: See how politics, tech, and economics connect globally. Great for case studies and interviews.
- Bloomberg Businessweek: Spot trends before they hit mainstream news. Perfect for class discussions.
- Financial Times: Deep international business coverage. Essential for anyone thinking globally.
Bonus Reads:
- The New York Times – Business Section: Accessible, award-winning coverage of the companies, policies, and people shaping today’s economy.
- MIT Sloan Management Review: Research-driven insights on leadership, innovation, and organizational change from top scholars and practitioners.
Why It Matters:
These publications help you:
- Find credible sources for your papers.
- Speak confidently about current business topics.
- Prep for interviews with real insights.
- Understand what’s happening beyond your textbooks.
- Go beyond surface-level summaries from Google or AI tools.
Start Now:
These benefits come with your tuition, so be sure to use them! Visit BU Libraries Search or email pardstf@bu.edu for help getting started. Your GPA will thank you.
Smart Strategies for Business Research
Starting a project or paper in business? These curated resources will help you find reliable information quickly and efficiently.
Research Guides
Dive into our comprehensive Business Research Guides, Course Guides, and Research Tutorials for expert strategies. Don’t miss our latest guide on Global Business Intelligence, showcasing key resources and tools for analyzing international markets.
Databases
Access our Business Databases by Subject to find company financials, market research, and industry reports. For broader coverage, explore the complete Business Databases A-Z list.
Journals and Newspapers
Stay informed with trusted publications like Harvard Business Review and The Wall Street Journal. Explore thousands of scholarly and professional journals and newspapers - search journals and newspapers here.
Need Help?
Have questions or need assistance with company data, citations, or research strategies? Contact us anytime at pardstf@bu.edu - we’re here to support you!
Archival Instruction Services
The Gotlieb Center archivists collaborate with faculty, teachers, and instructors to incorporate archival collections, University Archives and rare books into the classroom. We offer instruction sessions tailored to the needs of the particular class. Staff are available to assist instructors in designing assignments best suited to their individual topics and goals.
Students in Paula Austin's HI 297: African American Women’s History class pour over archival materials in the Gotlieb Center Reading Room. Photography by Sami Wright.
Teaching with Archives
Are you interested in learning about the archives, but not sure where to start? We would be happy to set up a time to help you develop a class session and introduce you to archival research.
For Individuals
- Archival Research 101: Explore Special Collections through this introduction to archival research. This session breaks down how to find collections, understand what’s in them, and request materials you’d like to explore.
- Research Consultation: Schedule a one-on-one consultation with a Research and Instruction Archivist to brainstorm ideas, locate collections, and design a research strategy for your project.
For Classes and Groups
- Behind the Scenes Archives 101: Dive into the history of how and who created Archives and Libraries. Learn how to harness this knowledge to empower your research in archives, libraries, and beyond.
- Archival Research 101: Explore our vast archival collections with ease through this introduction to archival research.
- Tailored Class Visits: Engage with archival materials that support your course curriculum.
Learning Outcomes
Archival instruction sessions build transferable information literacy skills needed to:
- Conceptualize, find, and access primary sources
- Analyze and use archival materials
Develop confidence and familiarity with:
- Archival terminology
- Primary vs. secondary sources
Practical Considerations:
- Learn to navigate our archive website and discovery tools
- Acquire methods for finding hidden materials
Planning a Class Visit
Please reach out to us with the following information:
- Date and time of the proposed class session
- Knowledge or skills you want your students to acquire
- Subjects, events, time periods, material types, or collections of interest
We require at least two weeks’ advance notice to request necessary materials from our off-site storage.
Our staff will schedule a meeting to discuss your needs and answer any questions.
Archivists prepare the Nikki Giovanni Collection for use as her last book is published
Nikki Giovanni. Photo is part of the Bay State Banner Archive held at the BU Libraries.
The archivists of Boston University Libraries are hard at work preparing the archive of poet, writer, and activist Nikki Giovanni for use. Beginning in 1971, and over the course of her career, Nikki Giovanni donated more than 185 boxes filled with her manuscripts, correspondence, photographs, subject files, printed materials, professional records, personal memorabilia, audio and video recordings, and artwork to BU. The papers, when open for use, will offer unparalleled insight into her life and career.
The publication this week of her last volume of poetry, The New Book: Poems, Letters, Blurbs, and Things by William Morrow, an imprint of Harper Collins, is a powerful reminder of how deeply moving and insightful Giovanni’s poetry and writings are.
The Libraries will be able to welcome researchers to use the archive in 2026. Stay tuned for more details about a forthcoming event celebrating the opening of the papers and our access to an extraordinary archive that Nikki Giovanni has given us all. Until then, please direct queries and questions to archives@bu.edu.
Boston University Introduces Common Read, a New Campus Tradition
BU Today announced the launch of the Boston University Common Read, a University-wide reading program that will serve as an opportunity for students, faculty, staff, and alumni to build connection through discussion and engagement with a compelling title. The inaugural pick: Orbital by Samantha Harvey
A team from the BU Libraries guided the selection of the title, reading and reviewing several books before submitting a final recommendation to University leadership. University Librarian Mark Newton told BU Today:
“Our review considered how a book’s themes might connect with experiences of students entering college and how well it laid the foundation for discussion around the questions and aspirations that undergird so much of the research and learning we do in our time at the university,” Newton says. “Importantly, we wanted to recommend a book that would resonate with readers because of its relatability and timeliness and that could foster connection across the whole University community. Even though we don’t bring direct experience with space travel to our reading, I think Orbital meets these goals well through the range of perspectives, experiences, and concerns that Harvey packs into the telling.
Learn more at BU Today about the Common Read program and why Orbital was chosen as this year's book.