Penn State University Libraries - Research Project Calculator Instructions

• Go the Research Calculator at: https://ac.libraries.psu.edu/rpc/index.php
• Log in with your PSU Access account (if you don’t have one, see the instructions for Friends of Penn State accounts below)
• Go to “My Settings”
• Add your Name and preferred email address.
• Choose either “Student” or “Teacher/Instructor”.

Note: Teacher/Instructor accounts will display the same steps that students see, plus additional information for instructors (lesson planning, learning outcomes, links to additional resource documents).

Click “Save settings.”

• If you do not have a FoPS account, go to https://fps.psu.edu/ to create a free Friends of Penn State account.
• When prompted at the Researcg Calculator website, type in your Friends of Penn State account and password, then log-in.
• Go to “My Settings” (in the upper right hand of the webpage).
• Add your Name and preferred email address.
  
  • You must enter a valid email if you want to receive updates from the Research Calculator.
    
  • Your Friends of Penn State account is NOT a valid email address.
• Choose either “Student” or “Teacher/Instructor.”
• Click “Save settings.”

• Type in an “Assignment Title” in the box provided. This can be anything you would like, just make sure you know which assignment it refers to in case you use the calculator for more than one assignment.
• Put in the due date of the assignment.
• Choose an assignment template from the list provided.
• Click “Create Assignment.”
    
  
• Once you add an assignment to your account, you will see tasks listed in your “assignment to-do list” and the assignment will appear in the “My Active Assignments” list.

Click on “Edit” next to the assignment in the “My Active Assignments” list.

• Then click “Send me email reminders for each step milestone.”
• Then click “ok” in the pop-up box.

To add notes to your assignment:

• Click on “Edit” next to the assignment in the “My Active Assignments” list.
• Click the “edit” button in the “My notes” box next to the step you would like to add notes to.
• Type your notes in the box that opens.
• Click “Save changes” when you are finished adding notes.
• Repeat on any section to which you would like to add notes.
   
• When you are completely finished adding notes, scroll to the very bottom of the page and click “done editing.”

To share your calculator for a specific assignment with others (helpful if you’re working on a group project):

• Click on “Edit” next to the assignment in the “My Active Assignments” list.
• Then click “Others may view this assignment except for my notes”.
• Then click “ok” in the pop-up box.
• A URL for that assignment calculator information will be provided on that page. Others can use that URL to view the calculator for that assignment.