Citation and Referencing

Citation and Referencing

Citing and referencing the sources of material used in your course or research is important because it provides credit to the owners or creators. It allows others to learn more from the sources you cite and promotes academic integrity by setting a good example for your students.

The Library Services Citation Guide provides examples, sample papers, and tutorials to three major citation styles: APA, MLA, and Chicago. If you have questions about how to properly cite materials for your course or research projects, you can use the library online chat to ask for help.

Citation and Writing Support for Students

There are other services available through Library Services to help your students with referencing, researching and information literacy such as:

Citation Guide
Group Citation Information Literacy Instruction and Workshops
One-on-one citation and research consultation with Library Services
One-on-one consultations with a Writing Specialist

Common Questions

What is a citation style?

A citation style is a set of rules for presenting citations in a standard format and includes guidelines for capitalization, order of elements and punctuation. Different academic disciplines use different styles. Some examples of common citation styles are MLA, APA, and Chicago.

How do I cite sources?

You should cite both within your paper and at the end of your paper. You should cite according to the citation style required by your discipline. For questions regarding how to specifically reference your source, please refer to the Citation Guide.

What’s the difference between in-text citations and bibliographies?

In-text citation is a shortened reference to a source in parenthesis that immediately follows a quote, paraphrase, or summary. Some citation styles use footnotes for in-text citations.

A bibliography is a list of all the sources or references you used in your paper that follow a single citation style (APA, MLA, Chicago).

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