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Citation Management

Using RefWorks

Getting Started with RefWorks
Setting Up an Account

Johns Hopkins has an institution-wide subscription to RefWorks, which means that everyone has an account to use if they wish. If you are new to RefWorks, you will need to activate your account.  Activating your RefWorks account is simple and easy. 

  1. Go to: https://refworks.proquest.com/  
  2. Click on the “use log in from my institution” tab at the entry screen.
  3. Enter your Hopkins JHED login and password.

No additional login name nor password is needed. Once the account is active, you will see your name at the top, on the right.

Help and Documentation

See RefWorks LibGuide for technical questions and documentation.

Importing from PubMed in Five Easy Steps
Step 1: Working with PubMed Results

From the PubMed results page, select "Send to" and choose the "Citation manager" option from the drop-down list.

PubMed results page with the "Send to" feature and "Citation manager" option highlighted


Step 2: Creating a File to Upload into RefWorks

Select the specific results that you want to import into RefWorks* and then click the "Create file" button to download a .nbib file that can be imported into RefWorks. 

*Note: The default, "All results on this page," is selected in the following screenshot. The other options in the drop-down list are "All results" (i.e., the complete result set) and "Selection" (i.e., results that you have hand-selected by clicking in the boxes next to individual articles). 

PubMed results page with the "Selection" drop-down and "Create file" button highlighted


Step 3: Importing the PubMed Results File into a RefWorks Project

From a RefWorks project, select "Add" from the top menu bar and click on the "Import references" option.

On the next page, drop the PubMed results file or select it from your computer.

RefWorks project page with the "Add" feature and the "Import references" option highlighted

RefWorks project page with the "Drop file here or select a file from your computer" feature highlighted


Step 4: Selecting the File Format and the Import Details

Select or verify the proper format for your PubMed results file. In this case the file was automatically detected by RefWorks as an "NLM PubMed" file.

On the next page, select to have the PubMed results import into a particular folder and select whether or not you want to import database tags.

Note: If no folder is created for the PubMed results, they will go into a "Last Imported" folder. Selecting to import tags from PubMed will enable you to more easily find references when searching your RefWorks project.

RefWorks project page with the file format and "Import" button highlighted

RefWorks project page with the "Create Folder" option, the "Import tags from database" option, and the "Import" button highlighted


Step 5: Viewing Your PubMed Results in RefWorks

The results from your PubMed search are now in your RefWorks project, where they can be accessed, annotated, organized in folders, associated with full text, shared, etc.

RefWorks result page after import from PubMed

How Do I Import References from Embase to RefWorks?

Exporting a file from Embase to RefWorks:

  1. Once you have completed your search in Embase and selected the items that you want to import, click on Export.
  2. Make sure RIS format (Mendeley, EndNote) is selected.
  3. Click on Export.
  4. Click on Download
  5. Make sure your file is saved somewhere that you’ll be able to access.

Importing into RefWorks:

  1. Click on the + sign
  2. Select Import references from the dropdown menu
  3. Drag and drop your file in the Drop file here box or click on the link within the box to select a file from your computer
  4. Find the file and open it or drag and drop it.
  5. Make sure the RIS Format is selected.
  6. Click on Import
Removing Duplicates in Five Easy Steps
Step 1: Initiating Duplicate Removal

Go to the left side navigation panel of RefWorks and click on the down arrow next to "Duplicates." Then click on the "Find duplicates" link.

Screenshot of RefWorks showing how to navigate to the "find duplicates" feature


Step 2: Selecting Criteria for Detecting Duplicates 

A pop-up box appears that prompts you to select criteria for selecting duplicates. Use the drop downs and check boxes to select how duplicates should be assigned and how exactly they should match.

Clicking on the "Find Duplicates" button will launch a search for duplicates within all of the documents in a particular project.

Screenshot of RefWorks showing options for choosing duplicate selection criteria


Step 3: Processing Duplicate Removal

A pop-up box appears signalling that the deduplication process has a started.

When this process is finished, a green "Process completed" button will appear. Click on this button to see the results of the deduplication process.

Screenshot of RefWorks showing a pop-up box signalling the start of the deduplication process

Screenshot of RefWorks showing the button indicating the completion of the deduplication process


Step 4: Verifying and Deleting Duplicates

The duplicate records report shows the number of duplicates found. These duplicates are automatically selected and highlighted in pink in the result list.

You should check this duplicate list carefully and deselect any references that are not duplicates. Once you have done this, you can click on the "Delete" icon in the menu to send the duplicate records to the trash.

Screenshot of RefWorks showing the number of duplicates found, selected duplicates, and the "Trash" function


Step 5: Completely Removing Duplicates

To completely remove duplicate references from your project, go to the "Trash" folder by clicking on the link in the side navigation pane.

Select all references in this folder and then click on the "Delete" icon in the top menu bar.

Screenshot of RefWorks showing the "Trash" folder, selected references, and the "Delete" function

Will Alumni be Able to Access RefWorks After Graduation?

Yes, alumni are able to have continued access to RefWorks after graduation.

Alumni should update their RefWorks account prior to graduation by selecting the Alumni option from the Profile / Role section of the Settings page. They should also update their alumni email address and then click SAVE.

Getting Help

If you need help using RefWorks,

Contact the Hopkins RefWorks Support Group:

You can also contact RefWorks Customer Support directly:

          OR

Or you can access the RefWorks Help Guide, which covers all aspects of using RefWorks.