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Citing Sources (APA, MLA, ...): Home

Need help with citation? Start here!

Welcome

Welcome!

You will find here essential guidance for several common citation styles, and links to additional resources. Use the tabbed menus above to find information relevant to your citation needs.

If you have specific citation questions, feel free to contact any of the librarians listed on this page!

Why cite?

Citation is a basic and essential part of academic writing at university.

Understanding the rules of citation in academic writing will also help you to avoid plagiarizing unintentionally. Plagiarism means taking someone else's words or ideas and passing them off as your own.

Plagiarism of any sort is not tolerated at HKBU.

The penalties for plagiarism at the University are severe. Learn how to cite properly so that you avoid this serious offence!

What is a citation?

What is a citation?

What exactly is a citation? The video below explains in less than a minute!

Citation Styles

Citation Styles

Academics in different disciplines use different citation styles.

In this guide, we will cover three different citation styles in detail.

For those studying Social Sciences or Psychology

you will commonly use APA style.

For those studying Humanities 

you will commonly use MLA style.

For those studying Visual Arts or History

you will commonly use Chicago style.

For those studying Science

there are many different styles - ask your professor which one you should be using.

For a detailed comparison of APA, MLA and Chicago citation styles, a citation style chart is available at the PurdueOWL.

There are many dozens of different citation styles out there. If the one you need help with isn't covered in this guide, come and ask a librarian!

Automatic citation generation

Automatic citation generation

There are many online tools that make citations easier to manage. However, remember that automatic citation tools are never perfect. You still need to understand the rules for your citation style in order to spot mistakes.

Here are some good ones:

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

YouTube videos embedded in accordance with clause 4A of the YouTube Terms of Service

Some of the examples in this Guide were taken from Excelsior OWL, Miami University Library, and Red Deer College Library