Remember to cite your sources, whether you are quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing, or utilizing ideas or information someone else has published. Make the text you’re quoting clear in your introduction of the quote; if you do so, you don’t need to state the name of the reference in your citation, only the numerical location.

Regardless of the style, there are two parts to any citation, an in-text citation and a bibliographic reference, though the format of the citation and the reference will differ depending on the style in use.

The three most popular academic styles are MLA, APA, and Chicago.

MLA Style

MLA style does not use footnotes or endnotes for citations (though those notes can be used for other purposes). Instead, MLA style uses parenthetical citations. As such, MLA documentation consists of two parts: (1) parenthetical citations in the text that refer readers to a Works Cited page, and (2) a Works Cited page filled with entries that include complete bibliographic information.

MLA In-Text Citation: An in-text citation in MLA style usually includes two key pieces of information: the author’s last name and usually a page number. When you quote or paraphrase, include a page number, since you’re quoting or summarizing a specific page. When you summarize, don’t include a page number, since you’re summarizing the entire source. When a source has no known author, your in-text citation should use a shortened title of the work instead of an author’s name. When a source has no known page numbers (such as a film or website), simply omit that element of your in-text citation. There are a few different ways to format an MLA in-text citation. The author’s last name and the page number can both appear in parentheses after a quote or paraphrase, as in this example: “There are different ways to format an MLA in-text citation” (Wilson 2). Whenever possible, however, you should make the author or title you’re referring to clear in your introduction of the quote or information; if you do so, you don’t need to state the author/title in your citation, only the page number. For example, according to Jeffrey Wilson, “Make the author or title you’re referring to clear in your introduction of the quote” (2). The one exception to this rule is when citing reference works: because the information is probably not controversial, keep the focus on that information and identify your source in a parenthetical citation rather than in your sentence. Note that, in the quotes in this paragraph, the end punctuation comes after the parenthetical citation. If a quotation is three lines or fewer, incorporate it in your text and enclose it in double quotation marks, as in the quotes above. If a quotation is four lines or more, it should be block-quoted, meaning that it is displayed in a freestanding block of text, indented one inch, without quotation marks. Note that, in a block quote, the end punctuation comes before the parenthetical citation.

MLA Works Cited: After the last paragraph in an MLA-style paper, force the document to begin a new page for the Works Cited page. The Works Cited page should still have the one-inch margins all the way around and have the heading of last name and page number. Center the word “Works Cited” at the top of the page (but don’t put it in quotes, make it bold, or otherwise stylize it), and keep the page double-spaced throughout, with no extra space between entries. Items in a Works Cited page will be alphabetized by the first word of each entry (author’s last name or title of work). Each entry will use a hanging indent, meaning that lines after the first should be indented half an inch. Because the URLs in a Works Cited page are not underlined, remove the hyperlinks so that URLs will be formatted correctly. MLA guidelines for citations are extremely detailed.  Each citation must follow the format specified in the most recent edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, which at the time of this writing is the seventh edition, published in 2009. Be very cautious of information about MLA style that is available on the internet, as it is often outdated, incomplete, sloppy, or just wrong.

APA Style

APA style does not use footnotes or endnotes for citations. Instead, the APA documentation system consists of two parts: (1) parenthetical citations in the text that refer readers to a list of references, and (2) entries in the list of references that include complete bibliographic information. 

APA In-Text Citation: In APA style, you must include two bits of information about a source: the author’s last name and the date of publication. There are multiple ways to do so, but remember that it is always best to include the author in your own sentence. In APA style, article titles and book titles are not commonly used in the text of a paper.  Instead, the author and year are the important elements of an in-text citation.  Articles and books are cited the same way in the text (note that they are cited differently in your References):

• … was challenged by Lewissohn in 1999.
• Freedman (2006) postulates that individuals …

• According to Rockett & McMinn (1990), traffic fines over the time period reflect “the local magistrate’s bias against minorities as well as anyone living in Osage County” (p.278).
• Peterson et al. (2009) claimed that the majority of these convictions were obtained “through the most fraudulent of courtroom practices” (para. 2).

APA References: Your references should be listed on their own page.  Center the word “References” at the top of the page. APA guidelines for references are extremely detailed.  Each reference must follow the format specified in the sixth edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. 

Chicago Style

Chicago style cites sources using footnotes or endnotes (it doesn’t matter which you use: different journals and different professors prefer different formants). As such, Chicago-style documentation consists of two parts: (1) a numerical note in the text that refers readers to a footnote or endnote, and (2) a note that includes complete bibliographic information and commentary if needed.

Chicago Style Notes: To create a footnote or endnote, use your word processing program’s note function (in Microsoft Word, this is found under Insert, and then Footnote…). If you do so, your notes will remain tied to the place in the text to which they apply (e.g., if you add a new footnote at the start of the paper, note #1 will automatically become note #2). When using a source, you should make the author or title you’re referring to clear in your introduction of the quote or information. Once you’ve cited a text with a note that gives the full bibliographic information, subsequent references to that work can be cited in-text as long as it’s clear which work you’re referring to. For example, let’s say you wanted to quote Jeff Wilson on Chicago style. The first reference would require a note: “This paper is formatted in Chicago style, which is a style often used in the Humanities.”[1] Subsequent references to Wilson could be cited in-text “as long as it’s clear,” Wilson says, “which work you’re referring to” (4). Note that, in footnoted quotes, punctuation comes inside the quote, but in subsequent in-text citations the punctuation comes after the parenthetical citation.

 [1] Jeffrey R. Wilson, “A Sample Chicago-Style Paper,” in This is How to Write (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2014), 235. As you can see in this note, Chicago-style conveys bibliographic information in footnotes and endnotes (as in the previous sentence), but it also allows for commentary in these notes (as in the current sentence). 

Bibliographic Information

MLA style uses a Works Cited page. APA style uses a References page. Chicago style uses endnotes.

Each style is very detailed in its citational formats, so you must consult the appropriate style manual, but there are some universal tips that apply to citations in all styles.

Proofreading: Perhaps the most basic and most important guideline for your page of bibliographic information is simply to pay attention and give it the necessary time and attention. Proofread to make sure you have periods, spaces, commas, parentheses, etc. in the proper places: these things matter because a properly constructed References page signals to your reader that you are a serious writer, while a page that is plagued by little errors will undercut your academic authority.

Font: Remember to stay in 12 point Times New Roman font.

Spacing: Keep the Works Cited, References, or Endnotes page double-spaced throughout: not just between references but throughout, also not triple-spaced between references but double-spaced throughout.

Order: On a Works Cited or References page, arrange entries in alphabetical order by surname of the first author.

Indentation: On a Works Cited or References page, use a hanging indent of one-half inch. 

Capitalization: On your References page in APA Style, only capitalize the first word in article and book titles, but capitalize all words in journal titles. Be sure that your titles are not in ALL CAPS (which often happens because you copied-and-pasted the title from an internet source that used all caps, and you couldn’t be bothered to correct it).

Italics: On your References page in APA Style, article titles are not italicized, but book and journal titles are.