General Research
- Explora Public Libraries
Get access to full-text articles from academic journals, magazines, and books. Explora has high-quality materials on everything from art, history, science, business, and health that you won’t find anywhere else on the internet. You will need your library card number and password to use Explora.
- JSTOR
JSTOR is a collection of academic articles and primary sources. If you register for a free account, you may read three articles every two weeks.
Business
- Better Business Bureau
Find and recommend trustworthy brands, businesses, and charities.
- USA.gov for Small Businesses
A one-stop platform from the government for small businesses. Learn about financing, regulations, and other ways the government impacts your business. You’ll also find advice to help you grow your business.
- Bureau of Labor Statistics
Government statistics on the consumer price index, employee wages, and (vastly) more.
- EconBiz
Offers access to business- and economics-related literature.
- Department of State Country Commercial Guides
Market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business customs for over 125 countries.
- Legalzoom Startup Kit
Get three free eBooks on starting your own business and more than twenty coupon codes for business-related expenses.
- NJ Business Portal
Resources for starting and growing a business in New Jersey.
- NJ Chamber of Commerce Directory
Contact information for local chambers of commerce.
- NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development
Resources for New Jersey businesses on state regulations and recruiting the best workers.
- Reference USA
Provides highly detailed directory information for American and Canadian businesses and healthcare providers as well as consumer information that can be used in direct-mailer campaigns. You need your library card number and password to access Reference USA
- Regional Business News
This database is updated daily and provides full-text coverage of regional business publications, including 75 business journals, newspapers, and newswires from all metropolitan and rural areas within the United States. You’ll need your library card number and password to search this database.
- Service Corp of Retired Executives (SCORE)
Free mentoring and workshops for small business owners.
- Small Business and Self-Employed Tax Center
Help from the IRS for small businesses and those who file 1040 Schedules C, E, F, or form 2106
- Small Business Reference Center
Sample business plans, business basics, industry information, and full-text articles from NOLO guides such as The Employer’s Legal Handbook and Incorporate Your Business. You’ll need your library card number and password to access this resource.
- US Small Business Administration
Tons of information from the government on starting a small business – how to start and run a business; getting loans, grants, and contracts; and a learning center with short video courses on small business matters.
Career & Job
- Boomer Job Tips
A site designed for those in the Baby Boom generation looking to change, improve, or start a brand new career.
- Career Builder
Upload your résumé, search job listings, and explore career options.
- CareerOneStop Toolkit
Tools for finding the right career for you, assessing the skills and training you have and finding opportunities to improve them, a job finder, and résumé advice.
- Glass Door
Search for jobs and find company reviews and average salary information based on location and job title.
- Hackensack Job Center
Get career counseling, find training opportunities, use free resources, and more.
- LinkedIn
The modern résumé. Create an account, describe your experience and ambitions, and make connections.
- Monster
Post your résumé, search for jobs, and get career advice.
- NJ Career Connections
Plan, prepare, and succeed – everything you need to choose a career and land a job, plus a job board with New Jersey job listings.
- NJ Civil Service Commission
Civil service job openings in New Jersey.
- NJ.com Job Search and Employment Opportunities
Search for jobs in New Jersey, plus job news and career advice.
- Occupational Outlook Handbook
Career profiles based on government-collected statistics including median pay, projected growth rate and outlook, and necessary training.
- Reference USA
Search over 2 million jobs and internships. You need your library card number and password to access Reference USA.
- Simply Hired
Job search aggregator plus a salary estimator. Your LinkedIn account will show if you have connections to job listings.
- USA Jobs
Every federal job opening in the country.
- ZipRecruiter
Search, browse, and apply for jobs based on location or title.
Cars
- Autolist.com
This site aggregates millions of car listings in the United States to facilitate well-informed purchases.
- The Center for Auto Safety
Find the latest news on auto safety legal action; submit a complaint; or look up recalls, crash tests, and complaints for your car based on make, model, and year.
- Search the Consumer Reports database to help make an informed decision on your next car. You’ll need to enter your Demarest library card number.
- Distraction.gov
Videos and statistics about staying safe on the road.
- Edmunds.com
Search for a car to buy, find specs, and read consumer and editor’s reviews.
- Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
The IIHS is an independent, nonprofit institution dedicated to auto safety. Search any car’s safety rating or check out their current and past award winners.
- Kelly Blue Book
The most trusted resource for vehicle valuation. Research, price, list, or buy cars through KBB.
- NADA Guides
Research cars and compare prices; you can also find what NADA Guides considers to be the best daily deal on a car in your area. NADA Guides also cover motorcycles, RVs, boats, and classic cars.
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Find safety ratings and recalls, plus information on road, driving, and equipment safety.
- VIN Decoder
This free service uses data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to decode a car’s Vehicle Identification Number to provide detailed information on the car as well as any recalls on its parts.
Education
Primary & Secondary School
- National Center for Education Statistics
Demographic and enrollment statistics on public and private schools from primary through university level.
- NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards
Describes the State’s Board of Education’s standards for students by content area.
- NJ School Performance Report
Detailed performance reports on standardized tests for public schools in New Jersey broken down by grade level, demographic, etc.
- PARCC Resources for Parents
Information about the PARCC standardized tests, now administered to elementary, middle school, and high school students in New Jersey. Includes guides to how the tests are administered; interpreting scores; and discussing score reports with teachers.
Colleges & Universities
Finding a College
- College Affordability Guide
Find your dream school’s affordability score – how does the cost of tuition compare with the quality of the education and job prospects posts-grad?
- College and University Rankings
This site is maintained by the University of Illinois and brings together a wide variety of university ranking services, giving insight on the methodology used and allowing you to make better-informed decisions as you seek out the right school for you.
- College Navigator
Search for colleges using official statistics collected by the government to find the best match.
- Peterson’s Guide to Colleges and Universities
Peterson’s is a trusted source for facts on Colleges and Universities. While they are a paid service, they offer lots of good information for free.
- US News & World Report: Best Colleges
The classic guide to University rankings. Use their sidebar to narrow your results by tuition, enrollment, acceptance rate, and majors; further refining requires a paid account
- US News & World Report: Best Grad Schools
Like its undergrad counterpart, not all of the information collected by US News & World Report is available for free, but you can find information about school rankings, tuition, and class size for free.
Financial Aid
- Federal Student Aid
Information about preparing for college, types of financial aid, and instructions for filling out your FAFSA.
- Free Application for Federal Student Aid
Apply here to find out if and what kind of federal student aid you qualify for.
- FinAid
Search for scholarships, learn about loans, and find out about other types of aid for school tuition.
- LendEDU
LendEDU is a marketplace for comparing private student loans and student loan refinancing options.
Tests & Test Prep
- CollegeBoard
Learn about, register, and see your results for the variety of tests administered by the College Board – the PSATs, AP tests, CLEP exams, SATs and more.
- GMAT (Graduate Management Admissions Test)
Find information on preparing for and taking the GMATs as well as information about planning for and choosing a business school.
- GRE (Graduate Record Exam)
Register and prepare for the test.
- Khan Academy
Create a free account and make a practice schedule to prep for the SATs, MCATs, GMATs, or NCLEX-RNs (National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses).
- LSAT (Law School Admissions Test)
Register for the LSATs, review law school guides, learn about applying for law school, and find some free test-prep materials.
- TOEFL
Learn about, register, and prepare for the Test of English as a Foreign Language if your school requires you to submit a score as part of your application.
Resources for Teachers
- Edsitement
A library of lesson plans on humanities topics for grades K to 12, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
- ERIC
Stay up-to-date on the latest research and developments in education.
- Explora Educator’s Edition
Lesson plans, curriculum standards, and full-text education research articles. You’ll need your library card number and password to use this resource.
- Learning Network: Teaching and Learning with the New York Times
Lesson plans and activities for grades 8 and up based around The New York Times.
- Lesson Plans from NEA
Lesson plans from the National Education Association, along with tips on classroom management, teaching strategies, and general advice and support.
- Library of Congress: Teachers
Classroom materials and professional development to encourage teachers to use the primary source materials available through the Library of Congress. Library of Congress lesson plans are specifically designed to meet Common Core, state, and national standards.
- TeacherServe
Resources to help teachers guide lessons and discussions on religion in American history, American environmental history, and African-American literature and history.
- Watch Know Learn
A well-organized wiki of educational videos for primary and secondary school students.
Massively Open Online Courses
- Coursera
A mix of free and fee-based online courses on a range of topics.
- edX
Free, not-for-credit online courses from top universities.
- Khan Academy
Free instructional videos on a variety of topics, with a focus on math for grades K-12, science, and computer programming.
- Udacity
Free courses and “nanodegree” programs on computer science.
Government & International
- Bergen County
The official website of Bergen County with links to all county agencies.
- CIA World Factbook
Statistics about any and every country in the world: geography, society, form of government, and more.
- Knoema Atlas
Knoema uses a variety of international governmental resources to compile data, statistics, maps, and rankings of the world’s countries.
- New Jersey
The official website of the state of New Jersey with links to all state agencies.
- New Jersey State Legislature
Find your representative, the laws and constitution of the state, and track bills.
- US Census Bureau
All the data collected from the US censuses, presented in graphs, maps, and topic overviews, along with tools to manipulate and retreieve the data you’re interested in.
- US Government Manual
Information on the agencies of each branch of the government and international organizations in which the United States participates.
- United States House of Representatives
Information on all sitting representatives in the House, current committees and their schedules, and recent bills and votes.
- United States Senate
Information on all sitting senators, current committees and their schedules, and recent bills and votes.
- US Supreme Court
Biographies of the current justices, case documents, opinions, and transcripts of oral arguments.
- The White House
Brief overviews of the current president’s agenda.
Health
General
- Affordable Care Act Information from the NJ State Library
Helpful resources for enrolling in a healthcare plan through the ACA marketplace.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Information about diseases and conditions, healthy living, emergency preparedness, and staying healthy while traveling.
- Mayo Clinic
Trusted information on symptoms, diseases, procedures, and drugs; general advice on living a healthy lifestyle; and information on the latest medical research and clinical trials.
- Merck Manuals
Information on medical topics, symptoms, emergencies, drugs, and resources including self-assessment tools, common medical terms and abbreviations, and more.
- RxList
Descriptions, side effects, potential interactions, and more on a virtually comprehensive list of drugs, as well as a pill identifier.
- WebMD
Consumer-orientated information on symptoms, diseases, and healthy living. Also includes a symptom checker, physician directory, and information on the lowest prices available for various drugs.
Finding & Talking to a Doctor
New Jersey Resources
Government Resources
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Information about diseases and conditions, healthy living, emergency preparedness, and staying healthy while traveling.
- Disaster Lit
A collection of documents on disaster medicine and public health – guidelines, fact sheets, websites, etc. – curated by the National Institutes of Health.
- HealthCare.gov
Comprehensive information on the Affordable Care Act: how to get coverage, how to get exemptions, tools, tips, and more.
- Health.gov
Information to improve your health and health literacy.
- Medicare.gov
Sign up for Medicare, find out if what you need is covered, file a claim or complaint, and find the forms, help, and resources you need.
- Medline Plus
Consumer-orientated health information written in plain English. Includes games and quizzes, news, and a medical encyclopedia.
- National Institutes of Health
Information about the clinical trials and research done by the National Institutes of Health.
- National Library of Medicine
Search biomedical literature and research; some full-text articles are available for free.
- National Safety Council
Learn about safety and accident prevention at work, at home, and on the road.
- Physician Compare (Medicare.gov)
Search or browse for doctors that accept Medicare.
- US Department of Health & Human Services
The department of Health and Human Services oversees the various agencies devoted to keeping Americans healthy. Find information about programs and services, laws and regulations, popular health programs, and more.
Special Health Topics
Medical Journals
- BioMed Central
Access to over 290 peer-reviewed journals on biology, clinical medicine, and health.
- Free Medical Journals
Free access to over 5000 medical journals and counting.
- PubMed Central
A free full-text archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature at the U.S. National Institutes of Health’s National Library of Medicine
Language Learning
- Dictionary (Merriam-Webster)
The classic American dictionary.
- Etymology Dictionary
Get a brief background on the origins of virtually any word in the English language.
- Idiom Site
Definitions of common American-English expressions that do not directly translate into other languages.
- Learn a Language
A collection of free language-learning resources for nineteen different languages.
Law
General Guides & Finding a Lawyer
Green Cards, Citizenship, & Naturalziation
Answers to local questions:
- New Jersey’s current senators are Cory Booker and Robert (or “Bob”) Menendez.
- If you live in New Jersey’s 5th District (eg, if you live in Demarest), your Representative is Josh Gottheimer.
- The current governor of New Jersey is Phil Murphy.
- The capital of New Jersey is Trenton.
Federal Law
- Congress.gov
Searchable access to bill status and summary, bill text, the Congressional Record, Congressional Record Index and committee reports, and executive actions such as nominations, treaties and communications, with historic access reaching back as far as 1973.
- Goverment Printing Office
Provides free online access to all official publications of the federal government.
- NJ State Library: Federal Legal Resources
An extensive compilation of legal documents, regulations, and information assembled by the state library.
- United States Code
Search the US Code by citation or browse by title.
- US Supreme Court
Read what’s on the upcoming docket, case documents, opinions, and transcripts of oral arguments.
New Jersey Law
Local Transportation
- MTA Subway Map
The official map of the NYC subway system.
- NJ Transit
The official website of NJTransit, which runs buses, trains, and light rail throughout the state.
- NJ Transit: Trip Planner
Plan a trip in New Jersey and/or into New York City using public transportation.
- PATH
Use the PATH to travel by train from Newark, Jersey City, or Hoboken into Manhattan. The PATH accepts MetroCards.
- The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
The official website of the Port Authority, which runs all airports, bridges and tunnels, and bus terminals in the NYC area as well as the PATH.
Travel
- CDC Traveler’s Health
Travel advice and alerts from the Centers for Disease Control.
- Expedia
Popular trip planner that can be used to book flights, hotels, cars, cruises, and more.
- Fodor’s Travel Guides
Detailed travel guides, trip ideas, and advice.
- Frommer’s Travel Guides
Destination guides and travel deals.
- Kayak.com
Kayak allows you to search and compare multiple options for flights, hotels, rentals, cruises, and package deals to find the most affordable option. They even allow you to compare Kayak results with those of various other travel search engines.
- Lonely Planet Travel Guides
Travel planner with inspiration, tips, and more.
- Moon Travel Guides
Find your next trip by region with advice for road trippers, campers, hikers, and more.
- National Park Service
The perfect place to start if you’re planning a trip to one of the many beautiful national parks in the United States.
- Rick Steves’ Europe
Offers extensive information about European destinations and tips for planning a European vacation. They also offer European tour packages.
- Rough Guides
Rough Guides seeks to encourage unusual, unforgettable travel experiences. Find destination guides, travel articles, and travel offers.
- Travelocity
Another popular trip planner that lets you search for deals on flights, hotels, rentals, and more.
- Trip Advisor
TripAdvisor crowd-sources reviews on hotels, rentals, restaurants, resorts, and more, as well as allowing you to book travel accommodations through their site.
- Wanderu
Wanderu helps users find and book trips by bus, train, or airplane, includes information on hotels and car rentals, and has an Explore tool to inspire affordable trips based on a starting location.
Voting & Elections
- Bergen County Freeholders Voting PSA
The Bergen County Freeholders have created a PSA for local residents to help them navigate voting in these unprecedented times.
- Bergen County Superintendent of Elections
The Superintendent of Elections works with the Board of Elections to run elections in Bergen County. Here you can find forms for registering to vote or changing/declaring your party affiliation; dates of elections; and guides on how to vote in English, Spanish, and Korean.
- Can I Vote?
Created and maintained by the National Association of Secretaries of State, Can I Vote helps people find information about US elections in all 50 states, such as registration deadlines and guidelines for absentee voting. Visitors can easily find their designated polling location and advice on what to bring with them when they vote.
- The League of Women Voters of New Jersey
The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan organization that work to serves voters by advocating for and enforcing voter protection, analyzing and interpreting ballot questions into plain language, interviewing local candidates, and publishing and distributing the New Jersey Citizen’s Guide to Government. Find helpful voting information and forms here.
- NJ Division of Elections
The New Jersey Division of Elections allows you to check if you are registered to vote and if so, where your polling place is. You may also download candidate petitions to run for statewide office. The NJ Division of Elections provides an archive of election results going back to 1925.
- US Election Assistance Commission
With helpful products for voters such as election calendars and voter registration forms, the Election Assistance Commission also features access to surveys and studies about US elections along with the National Voter Registration Act.
- Vote411
A website funded by the nonpartisan League of Women Voters that allows you to register to vote, find your polling place, and that provides interviews from the candidates on important local issues.
- Voter Registration Form – English
Download, fill out, and print out this form to register to vote. You can fold it up and tape it sealed; no postage necessary.
- 유권자 등록 신청서 – 한국어
Download, fill out, and print out this form to register to vote. You can fold it up and tape it sealed; no postage necessary.
