Citing Your Sources
Proper citation is an essential aspect of scholarship. Citing properly allows your reader or audience to locate the materials you have used. Most importantly, citations give credit to the authors of quoted or consulted information. Failure to acknowledge sources of information properly may constitute plagiarism. For an explicit definition of plagiarism, see the Boston University Academic Conduct Code.
For detailed instructions on how to cite within the text of your paper, please consult a style manual listed in this guide. Please also note: some of the resources listed do not cover every possibility you might encounter when trying to cite your sources. For this reason, it is suggested that you consult a style manual to create your bibliography.
BU Librarians often recommend 
RefWorks as the best tool to manage citations. Accounts are free for the BU community, and most importantly RefWorks can automatically create a bibliography in hundreds of styles. There are other such tools.
Finally, please also see our separate citation guides for Business students or for Science students.
APA (American Psychological Association) Style
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association by Location: Mugar Reference BF76.7 P83
Pickering Educationa; Research Library Reference BF76.7 P83Publication Date: 2020
An EasyGuide to APA StyleLocation: Mugar Reference X BF76.7 .S39 2014Publication Date: 2013Presents easy-to-understand explanations of how to write research papers, cite research, and do any work requiring APA format.
Chicago Style
The Chicago Manual of Style by Location: Mugar Reference Z253 U69
Education Reference Z253 U69
Pardee Reference Z253 U69
Stone Reference Z253 U69Originally written in 1906, this tome has a rich history of providing quality guidelines for citing works and creating bibliographies. The BU Libraries have a subscription to the full online version. The website also offers a citation quick guide that has many examples. The 17th edition is the most recent, published in 2017.
Chicago Style
- The Chicago Manual of Style by Location: Mugar Reference Z253 U69
Education Reference Z253 U69
Pardee Reference Z253 U69
Stone Reference Z253 U69Originally written in 1906, this tome has a rich history of providing quality guidelines for citing works and creating bibliographies. The BU Libraries have a subscription to the full online version. The website also offers a citation quick guide that has many examples. The 17th edition is the most recent, published in 2017.
Harvard Style
There is no official guide to Harvard Style. If you Google “Harvard Style Guide” you will find many websites that list examples. One of the best guides is from Monash University.
MLA (Modern Language Association) Style
MLA Handbook by Location: Mugar Reference LB2369 G5Publication Date: 2016Note: access to the companion material at http://www.mlahandbook.org/ is available to individuals who have purchased the Handbook, but not to institutions.
MLA style is widely used by universities, academic presses, and in the humanities subject areas. The association makes some information available through the style section on its site at https://style.mla.org/. Be sure to look through the list of Frequently Asked Questions on their site to get the most pertinent example citations. The 8th edition is the most recent, published in 2016.
Turabian
A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations by Location: Mugar Reference LB2369 T8
Sci/Eng Reference LB2369 T8
Education Reference LB2369 T8
Pardee Reference LB2369 T8
Music Reference LB2369 T8The famous work by Kate Turabian, the latest edition (the 6th, published in 1996) was altered to conform with the guidelines set in The Chicago Manual of Style.
General Citation Guides
- Citing Sources Within Your Paper (Duke University) Duke University is responsible for this well-organized site about citing in the body of your text.
- Sources and Citation (Dartmouth College) This great resource from Dartmouth College is clear and easy-to-use.
- Documentation Styles (Simmons College) Simmons College has produced this guide that includes MLA, APA, AMA, ASA, CSE, and Chicago styles.
- Citation Guide (Harvard Business School) This excellent guide in .PDF from the Harvard Business School covers citation within text as well as how to do a bibliography using Chicago style.
- Citation Machine A site designed to help create bibliographies easily, this was developed by David Warlick & The Landmark Project.
- EasyBib.com This company has partnered with WorldCat, and can format, alphabetize and print a bibliography based on APA, MLA, or Chicago styles.
Cite Right by Location: Mugar Reference PN171.F56 L55 2006In addition to the four styles listed on this page, this work also includes style samples for ACS (for chemistry), Bluebook and ALWD (for legal), and others.
Electronic Styles by Location: Mugar Reference PN171 F56 L5
Sci/Eng Reference PN171 F56 L5
Education Reference PN171 F56 L5
Pardee ReferencePN171 F56 L5This print source contains excellent examples of citing electronic information in both APA and MLA styles.
The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law by Location: Mugar Reference PN4783 A83This work recommended by the Associated Press is in its 43rd edition.
