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About Refworks:

Please note: the library is sunsetting our subscription to RefWorks. Support will officially end on February 20th, 2025. For more information please see the announcement here.

  • Citations: can be added directly from library search, library databases, and Google Scholar. Citations can also be added from any webpage with the free Send to Refworks button and organized in your RefWorks library. You can also upload .pdf's to your RefWorks library, and generate a citation fro the uploaded file.
  • PDFs: can be saved and annotated in RefWorks 
  • Sharing: papers and folders can be shared with external users
  • Writing: RefWorks integrates with Microsoft Word and Google Docs to cite, and generate formatted bibliographies as you write

How to sign up for an account:

1) Go to: https://refworks.proquest.com

2) Click on "Create Account"

3) Use your Chicago School student or staff email (i.e. @ego.thechicagoschool.edu or @thechicagoschool.edu) when creating an account -This ensures you have free access for free through The Chicago School. You can choose any password.

4) After creating an account, login using your Chicago School email and the password you chose when you created your account. Do not use the "Login from My Institution" button.

NOTE: If you forget your password you can reset it by going to https://refworks.proquest.com and then clicking on the "Forgot your password?" link.

RefWorks Video Tutorials

How to add RefWorks Citation Manager to Word

1. Open Word and click Insert -> Add-ins -> Store

2. In the box that appears, search for RefWorks.

3. Click on RefWorks Citation Manager, then Trust It in the box that pops up.

4. The RefWorks Citation Manager will launch within Word, and a panel will slide out from the right side of your document. Log in using your RefWorks login info.

Troubleshooting issues with annotating .pdf's

If  you are not able to highlight and annotate .pdf's within RefWorks, this is an indication that it has not been properly OCRd. OCR, which stands for Optical Character Recognition, enables your text to be read by the computer. Without going through this process, your text cannot be highlighted within RefWorks.

The directions below can help you work through this issue.

1. Visit https://ocr.space/.

2. Add your document under "Upload Image or PDF File". 

3. Ensure that the box is checked beside "Auto-enlarge content". 

4. Under Create Searchable PDF, select “Create searchable PDF with invisible text layer.”

5. Under Select OCR Engine to Use, select “Use OCR Engine1.”

6. Select “Start OCR!”

7. After the process is complete, you will select the “Download Searchable PDF” link.

8. Download the PDF.

9. Upload this new OCRd PDF to your RefWorks record.

After going through this process, you will be able to annotate your PDF within RefWorks.