Citing Your Sources
It's important to give credit back to the creators for their ideas. Your instructor has specified the citation style expected for each assignment. Be sure to follow the rules for the appropriate style.
Why Cite?
MLA Style
MLA Style
Style rules for formatting, writing, and citing your research for an academic project or assignment, published in the MLA Handbook.
Formatting a Paper in MLA
- Font: size between 11-13pt, clearly legible font (ex- Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri)
- Double-spaced, 1-inch margins
- Page Headers: Top right corner, Last Name and page number
- Heading: Top left corner: your name, Instructor's name, Title of the course, and due date for the assignment
Citing Sources in MLA
There are two parts to MLA citations:
- in-text citations or parenthetical citations
- Works Cited entry
In order to be correctly cited, you have to make sure to include both parts in your project.
Every citation in the Works Cited needs to be used at least once in your paper.
Every source cited within your paper needs to have an entry in your Works Cited. (You might refer to one work several times throughout your paper, but it only needs one entry in your Works Cited.)
For quick examples of the most common citations, see the tabs on this page.
For more examples of all of the different types of Works Cited entries, see MLA Citation Examples
- LSC-Online MLA Guide
Information about how to cite in MLA Style with examples for all different types of information
Article from a Reference Book in Credo Reference
"Article Title." Book Title, edited by Editor First Name Last Name, edition, Publisher, Year, page range.
Example:
In-Text
("Botanical Garden")
Works Cited
"Botanical Garden." The Columbia Encyclopedia, edited by Paul Lagasse, 8th ed., Columbia University Press, 2018. Credo Reference, search.credoreference.com/articles/Qm9va0FydGljbGU6NjE3ODI2?aid=99152.
Article from a Library Database
Author Last Name, Author First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Journal, volume, issue number, year, pages. Name of Database, doi: doi number.
Example:
In-Text
(Denworth)
Works Cited
Denworth, Lydia. "Greenery Improves Body and Mind." Scientific American, May 2024, pp. 76-7. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=1c6bf340-63d0-34db-a147-fff8f09bcae8.
Ebook (from Library Database)
Author Last Name, Author First Name. Book Title. Publisher, Year. Database name, url (without https://)
Example:
In-Text
(Groom 34)
Works Cited
Groom, Nick. The Vampire a New History. Yale UP, 2018. EBSCO eBook Collection, lscsproxy.lonestar.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,cpid&custid=s1088435&db=nlebk&AN=1907815&site=ehost-live.
Webpage without an author
"Title of webpage." Title of Website, Date, url without the https://.
Example:
In-Text
("Mercer Arboretum").
Works Cited
"Mercer Arboretum." Harris County Precinct One, www.hcp1.net/MercerArboretum.
Common Issues:
- No known creator: skip it!
- No official image title: make up a description as a stand-in. Do not add quotes or italics. Write like a sentence (mostly lower-case).
- No date: skip it! (And don't use the overall copyright date for the entire site)
Image on a Website without a title
Artist's Last Name, First Name. Description of image. Title of Website, url without the https://.
Example:
In-Text
(Mercer Society)
Works Cited
Mercer Society. Photograph of garden columns in Mercer Botanic Gardens. 365 Things to Do in Houston, 365thingsinhouston.com/2018/07/04/park-spotlight-mercer-botanic-gardens-humble-texas/.
APA Style
APA Style
Style rules for formatting, writing, and citing your research for an academic project or assignment, published in the MLA Handbook.
Formatting a Paper in APA
- Font: clearly legible, regular-sized font (ex- 12pt Times New Roman, 11pt Arial, 11pt Calibri, etc)
- Double-spaced, 1-inch margins
- Title Page
- Page number in top right
- Include headings within paper
Citing Sources in APA
There are two parts to APA citations:
- in-text citations or parenthetical citations
- References page citations
In order to be correctly citing your sources, you have to make sure to include both parts in your project.
For quick examples of the most common citations, see the tabs on this page.
For more examples of all of the different types of Works Cited entries, see APA Citation Examples
- LSC-Online Library APA Guide
Information about how to cite in APA Style with examples for all different types of information
Journal Article with a DOI
Author Last Name, F. (Date). Title of article. Title of Journal vol(no), pages. https://doi.org/xxx
Example:
In-Text
(Klopov et al., 2023)
References
Klopov, I., Shapurov, O., Voronkova, V., Nikitenko, V., Oleksenko, R., Khavina, I., & Chebakova, Y. (2023, November). Digital transformation of education based on artificial intelligence. TEM Journal 12(4), 2635-2644. https://doi.org/10.18421/TEM124-74
Journal Article without DOI (print or online)
NOTE: Cite online journals articles without a DOI as you would a print journal. You do not need to name the database.
If the article is open access online (not in a database), you can choose to add a link to the article.
Ebook with no DOI (from Library Database)
(Cite exactly like a print book. Don't include the database name.)
Author Last Name, F. (Date). Book Title. Publisher.
Example:
In-Text
(Groom, 2018)
References
Groom, N. (2018). The vampire: A new history. Yale University Press.
Webpage without an author
Title of webpage. (Date). Source. URL
Example:
In-Text
("Mercer Arboretum").
References
Mercer Arboretum. (N.D.). Harris County Precinct One. https://www.hcp1.net/MercerArboretum
Common Issues:
- No known creator: skip it!
- No official image title: make up a description as a stand-in. Do not add quotes or italics. Write like a sentence (mostly lower-case).
- No date: skip it! (And don't use the overall copyright date for the entire site)
Online Image without a Title
Artist's Last Name, F. (Date). Description of image [Medium]. Source. URL
Example:
In-Text
(Mercer Society, n.d.)
References
Mercer Society (n.d.). Garden columns in Mercer Botanic Gardens [Photograph]. 365 Things to Do in Houston. https://365thingsinhouston.com/2018/07/04/park-spotlight-mercer-botanic-gardens-humble-texas/
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