Richard Welsh Library 2.0: APA Citation Help

Free Reference Citation Tools

Use these free tools to help you correctly format your references. Just make sure to select APA, since there are multiple formats available!

   Citation Machine

   Easybib

​   Knightcite

​   Zotero

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Example APA Annotated Bibliography

Video Tutorials

APA for research papers

A short introductory overview on APA citation.

 

In-depth tutorial on LinkedIn Learning about finding and using information ethically. You'll need to sign up for a LinkedIn Learning account with your NewSchool email.

13 - avoiding plagiarism from Joshua Vossler on Vimeo.

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APA Manual 6th ed.

Available on reserve in the library! Perfect for answering tricky APA questions.

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Need Help?

Contact your friendly librarians.

 

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Resources on APA

• Purdue OWL writing guide has answers to all your APA questions. It is a comprehensive Guide.
• Introduction to APA covers the basics in all 3 areas of APA. It's a great place to start.

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Format

You will need to format, or style your paper to fit with APA standards. This includes areas like title page, font choice, font size, margins, running title, page numbers, and more.  Here is a Sample Paper with format notations PDF from the Owl Purdue.

Here are some basic rules:

• Include a title page
• Type and print on 8.5 x 11 white paper
• Use a basic 12 pt. font (Arial, Calibri, Times New Roman, etc.)
• Double space text for entire paper
• Margins should be 1" all around
• Indent paragraphs 1/2" (default is the tab key) including the first
• In the left of the header include the title of the paper
• In the right of the header include page numbers. Number the first page after the title page as Page 2. 
• Use italics when indicating titles of works. Avoid using them for emphasis

Not sure if you got everything? Use this APA Format Checklist to make sure you've formatted your paper properly.

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In-Text Citations

Any time you use gather information from someone else (whether it be through an article, study, image, or book) you must give the author credit. If your information is not common knowledge (for instance, the sun rises in the East) then you must cite it.

Cite information you:

• paraphrase
• summarize
• directly quote

 In text citations, also called parenthetical citations, are used within the body of your paper. They point the reader to the source that you got the information, idea, or image from (listed in your bibliography). 

Your citation needs to include the following:

• Author's Last Name
• Date of Publication
• Page or paragraph number (for quotations)

See examples in Purdue Owl In-Text Citation Basics.

A common misconception about images is that if you found it online you do not have to cite it. Wrong! Any image you did not create yourself must be cited, both below the image and in your list of references.

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References

Your works cited page should be titled References and begin on a separate piece of paper at the end of your paper. This page is an list of all the sources you cited in your paper.

• Use 12 pt. font (Arial, Calibri, Times New Roman, etc.), the same as used in the body of your paper
• The header should include your last name and the page number.
• After the first line of each reference all others should be indented a half inch, this is referred to as a "hanging indentation" and you can format it in Word if you highlight the citation right click, and choose paragraph.
• List your citations in alphabetical order. List page numbers as ranges, first-last (17-23) rather than refer to all pages read. 
• For online resources include URLs or DOIs. You do not need to include the date the information was accessed.
• Capitalize each word in the titles of your sources except for articles such as the, an, with, etc. Only capitalize those articles that are at the beginning of a title such as The Wizard of OZ.
• Use italics for titles of works (e.g. books and films).
• List author names Last, First Initial. Middle Initial (should there be one), such as Campbell, L. G. If you cite more than one work by an author, list them alphabetically by title.
• Cite a work with no known author by its title.

 

 How do you create a reference for a youtubevideo? Books with more than 3 authors? View the APA Reference Examples PDF.

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Plagiarism

NewSchool defines plagiarism as:

Taking and using as one's own the ideas and writings of another without proper accreditation. 

Plagiarism is the act of copying all or part of someone else's writing, creative work, or idea and using it without accurately documenting and citing the source of the information or giving credit to its creator. Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to, insufficient credit being given to the makers of creative and practical works, such as:

• essays
• articles 
• books 
• short stories 
• poems 
• musical compositions 
• art works 
• visual media 
• graphics and computer software or code

 

A student, who does not give proper credit for information taken from other sources, including websites and electronic media, is guilty of plagiarism. See the official NewSchool Academic Integrity Policy PDF for more details.

Almost all pieces of work is protected by copyright law. You may use another's work for school under Fair Use which allows teachers and students to use copyrighted material for instruction and learning. However, you must always remember to give the original creator proper credit.

 There can be serious academic and legal ramifications for plagiarizing and copyright infringement, so it is important to understand what it is and how to avoid it.  To learn more about copyright and fair use, you can explore Stanford University Library's web pages dedicated to the explanation of the topic.