Citing Sources

When researching a topic, you will be looking for various sources (such as books, articles, and websites) that support your argument. You will need to find good, reliable sources that you can incorporate into your paper. Information about these sources (such as title, author, and publication date) is what you will use to create your citations.

Why cite sources?
You want to make sure your readers can trace your research. If, for example, you found an article in the New York Times, you want to tell your readers how to find this article. You need to provide them with the title of the newspaper, when it was published, who wrote it, etc.

You also want to make sure you acknowledge the efforts of other writers and researchers. By citing your sources, you make certain that the writers of the sources you found are credited. Without citations, it might look like you have plagiarized someone else’s work or ideas.

Where do citations go in a paper?
You will place the full citation of each source in your Works Cited section (also called a Bibliography or References), which will go at the end of your paper.

When you quote or refer to one of your sources in your paper, you will use in-text citations (information in parentheses near the reference).

What are citation styles?
Various organizations and publications have differing formats for their citations. For each style, the information in each citation goes in a specific order and adheres to a specific format. For instance, the Modern Language Association (MLA) has its own citation style (MLA style). The American Psychological Association (APA) also has its own style (APA style). Click on the tabs above to learn more about these citation styles.

The Writing Centers are designed to help you improve your written communication skills.

Tutoring is available from writing consultants who can help you with the writing process, including MLA formatting and creating a Works Cited page.

For hours, handouts, useful links, and more, visit the websites below.