Introduction

Mendeley is a citation manager. It is used to organize and cite references. It is able to interface directly with Microsoft Word and more advanced bibliography software such as BibTeX/LaTeX. There are other similar options available, including OneNote, Zotero, and Papers. Although you aren’t required to use any of these, I suggest you choose one you like. This document will discuss using Mendeley.

Installation

  1. Navigate to the Mendeley website.
  2. Click the Download link at the top of the page and follow Mendeley’s instructions for installing the software on your operating system.
  3. [Optional] Alternatively, you can click the Create a free account link to create a Mendeley account. The advantage of an account is being able to sync your papers across multiple devices and having a backup of your library.

Usage

  1. After installing Mendeley, open the application on your computer. Log in with your account if you created one.
  2. If you plan to use the MS Word plug-in, go to Tools > Install MS Word Plugin.
  3. To add a paper to Mendeley, download the PDF from online and drag and drop it into your library. You should click on the item and look in the details sidebar to make sure the information (title, authors, etc.) got imported correctly. If not, look for the DOI field, input the correct DOI number, and click the magnifying glass to search for information using the DOI number. The DOI number can usually be found on the first page of the publication. If that still doesn’t work you can input the information manually.
  4. To read a paper in Mendeley, double click the item in your library.
  5. To cite a paper using copy and paste, right click on the paper you wish to cite in Mendeley and choose Copy as > Formatted Citation.
  6. To cite a paper using the MS Word Plugin, open MS Word, click on the References tab on the ribbon, and click the Insert or Edit Citation button. Search for the document you wish to cite using the dialogue that opens. You can set the citation style using the drop-down menu in the References tab in Word.
  7. When you’re ready to create your references section, place the cursor where you want it to be and click References > Insert Bibliography.