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How to Cite an Essay in a Collection of Essays

Citing an essay in a collection of essays or anthology requires following a very specific format when using both MLA (Modern Language Association) and APA (American Psychological Association) style. According to the Purdue Online Writing Lab, writers should use APA style when writing about the social sciences and MLA style for the humanities and liberal arts. Check with the latest style guidelines before citing an essay in an anthology since the guidelines are often changed.

Write the author's last name followed by a comma, the first name and a period. After the period, write the name of the essay in quotations, placing the period inside the last quotation. Remember to capitalize the first letter of each word in the essay title except for articles such as "an" and "the."

Look at the title of the anthology and write it in italics after the essay title, followed by a period. If you are hand writing the citation, underline the title instead of using italics. Use the abbreviation "Ed." before writing the editor's name. Use a period after writing the editor's name.

Write the location of publication followed by a colon and the publisher's name. Then use a comma and write the year of publication. If the location is a known or common city such as London or Nashville, you do not need to write the state or country. When writing the publisher's name, use abbreviations when possible. For example, write "UP" for "University Press" and "U of Chicago" for "University of Chicago."

List the page ranges for the essay, for example, "7-10" followed by a period. Then write the medium of publication. If the anthology was online, write "web" or if it was a physical book, write "Print." End the citation with a period.

Follow this example offered by the Purdue Online Writing Lab: Harris, Muriel. "Talk to Me: Engaging Reluctant Writers." A Tutor's Guide: Helping Writers One to One. Ed. Ben Rafoth. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2000. 24-34. Print.

Write the author's last name followed by a comma and his first initial and a period. Place the year of publication in parentheses and write the period outside the parentheses.

Write the title of the essay, ending with a period. Only capitalize the first letter in the first word of the title. Starting with the word "In" write the editor's name followed by "(Ed.)," a comma and the title of the anthology. Italicize or underline the anthology's title and end with a period.

Place the page numbers of the essay in parentheses followed with a period. Write the place of publication, a colon, the publisher and a period.

Use the example offered by the Concordia University Libraries website as a model: Bjork, R. A. (1989). Retrieval inhibition as an adaptive mechanism in human memory. In H. L. Roediger III, & F. I. M. Craik (Eds.), Varieties of memory & consciousness (pp. 309-330). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Need help with a citation? Try our citation generator .

• Purdue Online Writing Lab: MLA Style Documentation; Feb. 2011
• Concordia University Libraries: APA Style Documentation; March 2011

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Anthologies in APA: Citing an anthology, compilation, or multi-authored textbook Last Updated: Aug 28, 2020 Views: 6165

Anthologies are collections of multiple works either by the same author or organized around the same theme. How you cite an anthology in the seventh edition of the American Psychological Association (APA) style depends on whether you are citing the entire anthology or a specific work within it. 

An entire anthology/edited book

Treat the editor of the anthology as its author, i.e. Editor's Last Name, First Initials. (Eds.). (Year of Publication). Title of book. Publisher.

Example Citation

Potter, P. A., Perry, A. G., Kerr, J. C., & Wood, M. J. (Eds.). (2009). Canadian fundamentals of nursing.   Mosby/Elsevier Canada.

A single work included in the anthology/edited book

Place the author of the work first, and include information about the editor of the anthology later in the citation, i.e. Author’s Last Name, First Initials. (Year of anthology’s publication). Title of work in anthology. In First Initial. Last Name of the anthology editor (Ed.), Title of anthology (page numbers).  Publisher.

Blake, W. (1990). The Tyger. In R. Scholes, N. R. Comley, C. H. Klaus, & D. Staines (Eds.), Elements of literature (pp 487-488). Oxford University Press.

Pen and the Pad has a good explanation of these citations.

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Q. How do I cite and reference a work from an anthology or an edited collection of works?

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Answered By: Jonathan Faerber (he/him/his) Last Updated: Nov 02, 2021     Views: 26034

APA Style (7th ed.)

Since each work in an anthology or an edited collection is typically written and published as a single resource, cite and reference the individual work you read rather than the entire anthology or collection. For example, instead of citing and referencing the editors of the following collection (Milkoreit, Martinez, and Eschrich), an individual work in the collection is cited and referenced as follows:

• Narrative citation :  Davenport (2016) writes that "quoted text" (p. 108).
• Parenthetical citation :  (Davenport, 2016. p. 108)
• Reference entry :  Davenport, S. (2016). Masks. In M. Milkoreit, M. Martinez, and J. Eschrich (Eds.)  Everything change: An anthology of climate fiction  (pp. 107-126). Arizona State University. https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/everything-change-an-anthology-of-climate-fiction

Include the original publication date at the end of the reference entry and within in-text citations when applicable. See the following example for the format of republished work in a printed anthology or collection: 

• In-text citation : (Author, 1989/2019)
• Reference entry : Author, A. (2019). Title of original work. In E. Editor (Ed.).  Title of anthology or collection in sentence case and italics  (pp. xx-xxx). Publisher. (Original work published 1989).

Please see How do I reference a chapter of a book in APA Style?  and How do I cite or reference non-English or translated sources in APA Style?  for similar information as well as examples of non-English works that have been republished in English. 

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How to Write an Essay in APA Format

What is apa format, apa essay format basics.

• Steps to Follow

Frequently Asked Questions

If your instructor has asked you to write an APA format essay, it might at first seem like a daunting task, especially if you are accustomed to using another style such as MLA or Chicago. But you can master the rules of APA essay format, too.

An essay is one type of paper that can be written in APA format; others include lab reports, experimental reports, and case studies. Before you begin, familiarize yourself with some of the basic guidelines for writing a paper in APA format. Of course, it will also be important to follow any other formatting instructions that are part of your assignment.

How do you write an essay in APA format? The basic elements you need to include are:

• A title page
• An abstract
• An introduction, main body, and conclusion
• A reference section
• Proper APA formatting with regard to margins, layout, spacing, titles, and indentations

This article discusses how to write an essay in APA format, including the basic steps you should follow and tips for how to get started.

Whether you’re taking an introductory or graduate-level psychology class, chances are strong that you will have to write at least one paper during the course of the semester. In almost every case, you will need to write your paper in APA format, the official publication style of the American Psychological Association . It is also used for academic journals.

Such rules are generally the same whether you are writing a high school essay, college essay, or professional essay for publication.

APA format is used in a range of disciplines including psychology , education, and other social sciences. The format dictates presentation elements of your paper including spacing, margins, and how the content is structured.

Most instructors and publication editors have strict guidelines when it comes to how your format your writing. Not only does adhering to APA format allow readers to know what to expect from your paper, but it also means that your work will not lose critical points over minor formatting errors. 

While the formatting requirements for your paper might vary depending on your instructor's directions, writing APA essay format means you will most likely need to include a title page, abstract, introduction, body, conclusion, and reference sections.

Your APA format essay should have a title page . This title page should include the title of your paper, your name, and your school affiliation. In some instances, your teacher might require additional information such as the course title, instructor name, and the date.

• The title of your paper should be concise and clearly describe what your paper is about.
• Your title can extend to two lines, but it should be no longer than 12 words.

An abstract is a brief summary of your paper that immediately follows the title page. It is not required for student papers, according to APA style. However, your instructor may request one.

If you include an abstract , it should be no more than 100 to 200 words, although this may vary depending upon the instructor requirements.

Your essay should also include a reference list with all of the sources that were cited in your essay,

• The reference section is located at the end of your paper.
• References should be listed alphabetically by the last name of the author.
• References should be double-spaced.
• Any source that is cited in your paper should be included in your reference section.

When writing in APA essay format, the text will include the actual essay itself: The introduction, body, and conclusion.

• There should be uniform margins of at least one inch at the top, bottom, left, and right sides of your essay.
• The text should be in Times New Roman size 12 font or another serif typeface that is easily readable.
• Your paper should be double-spaced.
• Every page should include a page number in the top right corner.
• The first word of each paragraph in your paper should be indented one-half inch.

For professional papers (usually not student papers), every page of the essay also includes a running head at the top left. The running head is a shortened form of the title, often the first few words, and should be no more than 50 characters (including spaces).

Steps to a Successful APA Format Essay

In addition to ensuring that you cite your sources properly and present information according to the rules of APA style, there are a number of things you can do to make the writing process a little bit easier.

Choose a Topic

Start by choosing a good topic to write about. Ideally, you want to select a subject that is specific enough to let you fully research and explore the topic, but not so specific that you have a hard time finding sources of information.

If you choose something too specific, you may find yourself with not enough to write about. If you choose something too general, you might find yourself overwhelmed with information.

Research Your Topic

Start doing research as early as possible. Begin by looking at some basic books and articles on your topic to help develop it further. What is the question you are going to answer with your essay? What approach will you take to the topic?

Once you are more familiar with the subject, create a preliminary source list of potential books, articles, essays, and studies that you may end up using in your essay.

Remember, any source used in your essay must be included in your reference section. Conversely, any source listed in your references must be cited somewhere in the body of your paper.

Write Your Rough Draft

With research in hand, you are ready to begin. Some people like to create an outline to organize their argument prior to drafting. You may want to start with a very rough outline, and then add details.

Once you have a detailed outline, the next step is to translate it from notes to complete sentences and paragraphs. Remember, this is a first draft. It doesn't have to be perfect.

As you write your paper in APA essay format, be sure to keep careful track of the sources that you cite.

How do you start an APA paper? Your paper should begin with an introduction that includes a thesis statement that presents your main ideas, points, or arguments. Your introduction should start on the third page of your paper (after the title page and abstract). The title of your paper should be centered, bolded, and typed in title case at the top of the page.

Review and Revise

After you have prepared a rough draft of your essay, it's time to revise, review, and prepare your final draft. In addition to making sure that your writing is cohesive and supported by your sources, you should also check carefully for typos, grammar errors, and possible formatting mistakes.

When citing information or quotations taken from an interview, APA format requires that you cite the source, how the information was collected, and the date of the interview. They should not be included in the reference section, however, because they are not something that can be located by a reader in any published source or searchable database.

Instead, the information should be cited parenthetically in the main body of the text. For example: “There was an increase in the number of college students who screened positive for depression/anxiety” (R. Heathfield, personal communication, May 9, 2021).

If the essay is in a chapter of a book, edited collection, or anthology, APA format states that you should cite the last name, first name, title of essay, title of collection, publisher, year, and page range. For example: Smith, John, "The Light House," A Book of Poems , editing by Peter Roberts, Allworth Press, 2005, pp. 20-25.

According to APA format, a two-part essay is formatted the same as an essay, however, you'll need to create two title pages.

If you're including a short direct quote in your APA-format essay, you will need to cite the author, year of publication, and page number (p.) or page number span (pp.). Quotations longer than 40 words should omit the quotation marks and be put in the text using block quotation formatting, on its own line and indented 1/2 inch from the left margin.

The cover page or "title page" in APA essay format should always include the title of your paper, your name, and school affiliation as well as the course title, instructor name, and date, if requested by your teacher.

Nagda S.  How to write a scientific abstract.   J Indian Prosthodont Soc.  2013;13(3):382-383. doi:10.1007/s13191-013-0299-x

American Psychological Association.  Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association  (7th ed.). Washington DC: The American Psychological Association; 2019.

By Kendra Cherry, MSEd Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

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APA Style Guide – 7th Edition

Click here to download a .pdf copy of our APA Style Guide !

Last updated : October 7, 2023

Consider keeping a printed copy to have when writing and revising your resume!  If you have any additional questions, make an appointment or email us at [email protected] !

Source Attribution : Information in this handout is adapted from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, Seventh Edition (2020).

Reference Entry : Adapted from American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000

APA Style Guide - 7th Edition

Basics of formatting with apa style.

The American Psychological Association (APA) style is a system of documentation generally used in the social sciences. It is published in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, Seventh Edition (2020). Fields that use APA style regularly emphasize paraphrasing over direct quotes. Much of the research in these disciplines is supported by lengthy analysis and multiple studies: directly quoting every source can become tedious for authors and readers. Instead, it is common for writers to summarize an idea and then credit multiple sources.

Margins are 1 inch on all sides of the page.

Common fonts used in APA are 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, 12-point Times New Roman, and 11-point Georgia. Leave only one space after periods or other punctuation marks.

Paragraph and line spacing:

Indent the first line of each paragraph 0.5 in. Text is double-spaced. No blank space before or after headings or between paragraphs.

Title page:

Each paper begins with a title page. Student papers include page title, author name, affiliation, course name and number, professor’s name, and the date formatted Month Day, Year. Bold title and add empty line between title and author. Start a new page following the title page; the start of page one will repeat the title in bold, centered.

Headers and footers:

List the page number in the top right corner of every page. Student papers no longer require a running head. Running heads for professional papers include a short version of the paper’s title.

In-text citations are used to credit any external sources back to your References page. Parenthetical citations include author name, date of publication, and page numbers for direct quotes. Enclose citations in parentheses and follow by a period.

References:

Begin a new page. “References” header center aligned and bolded. List all sources used alphabetically.

Sample APA Student Title Page

APA has two types of title pages: student title pages and professional title pages. Student title pages are more commonly requested by instructors than professional title pages. The example above depicts a common APA title page and a description of the elements within.

• Header: The header lists the page number beginning on the title page. Align to the right.
• Title: Title is placed three to four lines down from the top of the page. Major words are capitalized. Title length may be one or two lines. Avoid abbreviations or non-essential words. A focused title is key!
• Author : Author name(s) includes the first name, middle initial(s), and last name. Two authors are joined with an “and.” Three or more authors are formatted as a list, placing commas between author names, and an “and” before the final author’s name.
• Affiliation: Author’s affiliation lists where the student studies and what school their discipline is within.
• Class: List the course number as abbreviated on course materials, followed by a colon, and spell out the course’s name.
• Instructor: Instructor name(s) include the first name, middle initial(s), and last name. Professional titles such as Dr. or degrees such as Ph.D. are appropriate here.
• Date: Format the date as Month Day, Year. List the assignment due date, not when it was originally created.

APA Level Headings

Headings visually delineate organizational structure and help highlight key ideas within sections. Topics of equal importance share the same level heading throughout the document. The heading style recommended by APA consists of five possible formatting arrangements, which are listed below in Table 1.

More information:

• Ordering : Begin with the first level of headings, using only the heading levels necessary to differentiate.
• Subsections : APA suggests avoiding having only one subsection within a larger section. For instance, Section 1 can be divided into subsections A and B, but not A alone.
• Numbering : Numbering or lettering is not appropriate for headings.
• Spacing : Do not add an extra space before or after headings.

APA In-text Citations

Citing in the text.

In APA, every time you use the work or thoughts of another, you must cite the original author. Use of others’ ideas include summarizing, paraphrasing, and directly quoting. To cite the source, you will need an in-text citation to supplement your references page, typically consisting of the author’s last name and the date when the material was published. Page numbers are added for direct quotes. All of this information is enclosed in parentheses, separated by commas, and followed by a period.

Single Author:

List author’s last name followed by date, adding page numbers for direct quotes. For example, this quotation from Jim Dougan is found on page twenty-nine of his 2017 article:

Single Author Example

After the release of their first album, The Cows were “roundly derided as a talentless, tasteless joke” (Dougan, 2017, p. 29).

Two Authors

Two authors last names are joined by an ampersand as in:

Two Authors Examples

Hansel said goodbye to the white cat, but it was only the morning sun shining upon the chimney (Grimm & Grimm, 1812).

Three or More Authors

List the first author’s last name followed by the abbreviation “et al.” (and others). In this example by John Ramage, John Bean, and June Johnson in their 2012 article, John Ramage is listed as the first author:

Three or More Authors Example

A key component of Aristotle’s classical argument was the rhetorical triangle: the message, writer or speaker, and audience (Ramage et al., 2012).

Organization or Group Author

If no author is listed and or the source is published by an organization or group, list the group’s full name in the text or citation, followed by the abbreviation if well known. Use the acronym for every subsequent citation.

Organization or Group Author Example

According to the American Psychological Association (APA), abbreviations are ok if the abbreviation is well known (2019). After introducing the abbreviation, they recommend using it for every other in-text citation (APA, 2019).

Narrative Citation

If the author’s name, publication date, and or page numbers are given in the sentence, omit them from the following in-text citation. For example: if you introduce the author and date before quoting, summarizing, or paraphrasing, then only the page numbers are included at the end of the sentence.

Narrative Citation Example

According to music critic Mark Prindle (2017), Minneapolis rock combo The Cows are an acquired taste (p. 29).

Unknown Author

If the author’s name is unknown, include a shortened version of the publication title in quotations:

Unknown Author Example

Minneapolis rock combo The Cows are widely considered to be an acquired taste (“All Music Guide,” 2017).

Block Quotations

A direct quotation of 40 or more words is introduced by a colon, started on a new line, and indented a half-inch from the left margin. Do not indent the first line, add quotation marks, or adjust line spacing. Include the parenthetical citation after the final period or punctuation mark of the block quote.

Block Quotations Example

Peterson and Poulsen’s (1998) study found the following:

Mitochondria are known as the powerhouses of the cell. They are organelles that act like a digestive system which takes in nutrients, breaks them down, and creates energy rich molecules for the cell. The biochemical processes of the cell are known as cellular respiration. (p. 199)

Omissions or Alterations to Quotations

Place an ellipsis (…) where parts of a quote were omitted in the middle of the sentence (e.g. “Grammar… is the study of writing techniques”). Ellipses are not necessary to indicate the first part of a phrase was omitted. Put brackets [text] around necessary alterations made to quotations for clarity, as in “[They] said…”

Common Knowledge

Facts or information that you already know, is widely available, and undisputed is considered common knowledge, which does not require an in-text citation. Common knowledge includes biographical information, dates of historical events, and other information that reasonable readers would accept as fact.

Common Knowledge Example

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th president of the United States.

More Information for In-Text Citations

Primary and secondary sources:.

To cite a primary source referenced in a secondary source, cite the primary source as cited in the secondary source (e.g. Gilman, 1898, as cited in Eddles & Appelrouth, 2015). Reference the primary source (e.g. Gilman, 1898) directly when possible.

Timed media:

For timed media such as videos or songs, cite the time in parentheses (e.g. Knowles, 2016, 56:37).

Multiple sources:

In-text citations with multiple sources are separated by a semicolon and listed alphabetically (e.g. Smith, 2012; Williams, 2003). However, if delineating the specific attribution is needed, avoid combining the citations and instead separate each source into its own sentence.

Multiple works by one author:

Multiple works by one author are listed chronologically, following the author’s name, separated by commas. Works without dates are placed first (e.g. Smith, n.d., 2007, 2012). If the citations are identical, delineate them by year-letter combination (e.g. Foster, 2011a or Foster, 2011b) in-text and in the References list.

Consecutive use of one or more sources:

When referencing one source multiple times consecutively, you can avoid multiple parenthetical citations by first introducing the source. Refer to the author in text using the known-new contract, adding page numbers for quotes where needed.

Personal communication:

Interviews, letters, emails, and other forms of personal communication are cited in-text only. Cite the communicator’s initials and last name and list the date (e.g. M. Keith, personal communication, August 5, 2022). Where possible, include the author’s name in a narrative citation to avoid the long parenthetical entry.

Reference Entries

Writing bibliography entries.

Disclaimer :  Our WordPress does not allow for “hanging indents,” therefore the bibliography entries below are not  formatted with hanging indents. Check out the .pdf guide for a more accurate view!

To credit sources, APA style requires a reference page that includes full citation information for each source. Begin by starting on another page titled “References,” centered and bolded. Reference list entries should be alphabetized by the last name of the first author listed. Additionally, each entry should be indented by a half inch after the first line, called a hanging indent. APA style customizes entries for each type of source, meaning that each citation will be unique.

Webpage from a Website

Website citations follow a basic format for all types of websites. For sources without authors, list the group or organization as author. If no group or organization is given, move the website name to the author position.

Webpage from a Website Example

Last Name, F. M. (Year, Month Day). Title of Page . Website Name. URL.

Boise State University Writing Center. (n.d.). Welcome to the Writing Center . Boise State University. https://www.boisestate.edu/writingcenter/

Books follow a standard format for print and electronic sources. For edited works add the editor’s name following the book title. If no author is listed, substitute for the editor instead. Include DOI for print and electronic sources (if available).

Book Example

Last Name, F. M. (Year). Book Title . Publisher. DOI (if available)

Jimenez, J. (2003). Latin culture in the United States . Harper Collins.

Work from a Collection

Chapters in a wider collection or anthology can be cited in two ways: citing the whole anthology as a book, or citing a single source in the anthology. An example of the latter is shown.

Work from a Collection Example

Last Name, F. M. (Year). Chapter Title. Editor. Book Title (pages). Publisher.

Shonagon, S. (1988). Hateful things. In P. Lopate (Ed.), The art of the personal essay (pp. 273- 278). Norton.

Journal Article

Journal articles, or periodicals, are print and electronic sources issued within larger journals.

Journal Article Example

Last Name, F. M. (Year). Article Title. Journal Title, Volume Number (Issue Number), pages. DOI (if available)

Lorca, R. & Rose, M. (1997). Best practices for scaling up a basic writing program. Teaching English in a Two-Year College, 33 (2), 33-74. doi: 10.1037/0278-6133.24.2.225

Newspaper Article

Newspaper and magazine articles are two other types of periodicals. Include volume, issue, and/or page number(s) if available. Unlike other citations, do not list the abbreviation “p.” or “pp.” before the page number(s).

Newspaper Article Example

Last Name, F. M. (Year, Month Day). Article Title. Newspaper Title , pages (if print). URL (if digital)

Brody, A. J. (2001, Dec. 18). The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell. The Washington Post , A1, A5.

Government Report

Government reports and other legal documents fall under The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation style. List the agency as author and parent agencies as publisher for reports by government agencies.

Government Report Example

Name of Government Agency. (Year). Report Title (Report No.). Publisher. URL (if available)

National Institute of Mental Health. (1990). Clinical training in serious mental illness (DHHS Publication No. ADM 90-1679). www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/asth_sch.pdf

YouTube Video

Videos from YouTube or other user-generated video websites list the person or group as author. If both the author and username are the same, list the username as author.

YouTube Video Example

Last Name, F. M. [Username]. (Year, Month Day). Video Title [Video]. Streaming Service. URL

Scientific America. (2010, Oct. 4). Powering the cell: Mitochondria [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrS2uROUjK

More Information for Reference Entries

Authors with the same last name:.

If a reference list includes authors with the same last name, arrange entries alphabetically by first initial. If both last name and initials are identical, organize chronologically.

Multiple authors:

With sources that have three or more authors, follow the first author’s name with a comma and the abbreviation ‘et al.’ (“and others”).

Organization or group author:

In instances where an organization or group authored the work, spell out the full name of the group but omit initial articles (e.g. a, an, the). If the author is the publisher, skip the author element and begin the entry with the title.

In a reference entry for a work with no author, move the title of the work to the author position.

If no date is available, insert the abbreviation “n.d.” (no date) in the date position. For undated, unarchived sources designed to change over time, add a retrieval date, e.g. Retrieved November 7, 2023, from https://www.boisestate.edu/writingcenter/

Publishers’ names are given in full; however, do not give words indicating business structure, like Ltd. or LLC. Terms like Press and Books should be included.

Sample APA References Page

APA references begin on a new page. “References” title is bold and centered. Callouts on the left-hand margin denote the type of citation cited in the corresponding reference entry. All entries are alphabetized and formatted with a hanging indent.

Download a PDF of APA Style Guide – 7th Edition

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Details on formatting the title page, margins, and section headings of your APA style paper.

• APA Style: Sample Papers
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• APA Style Journal Article Reference Checklist
• APA Style In-Text Citations Checklist

Guidance from APA

general template:

Creator or author. Item name [format if needed]. (Date). Item title. Collection name. (Collection number and location within collection),  Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada. URL if online.

• Archival Documents and Collections, APA Style website

Unique materials from a university archive are considered “works of limited circulation” for the purpose of APA style citations. Therefore, they must include details documenting their location.

When no title is provided, you may create a descriptive title and enclose it in brackets. You may also include a bracketed description of the format. Consult section 10.8 Unpublished Works and Informally Published Works in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7th ed., for a template.

Example APA citations

• Photograph in digital collection
• Letter in digital collection
• Letter in physical collection
• Oral history transcript
• Folder in physical collection

Union Pacific Railroad Company. (after 1955). Aerial photograph of guests at the Riviera Hotel swimming pool (Las Vegas). Dreaming the Skyline: Resort Architecture and New Urban Space.  Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas.  http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/d12n4zx07

Rinker, Cleveland A. Earle. (1907, Oct. 15). Letter from C. A. Earle Rinker to his mother. Southern Nevada: The Boomtown Years.  Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas.  http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/d19z90s1h

Rinker, Cleveland A. Earle. (1907, Oct. 15). Letter from C. A. Earle Rinker to his mother. C. A. Earle Rinker Papers, 1880-1960 (MS-00514, box 2, folder 4). Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.

Kline, Geoconda Arguello. (2014, Sept. 18). Transcript of interview with Geoconda Arguello Kline by Claytee D. White. Boyer Early Las Vegas History Project. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas.  http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/d1gx47x5f

Stage productions, November 1963 [ledger and correspondence]. Copa Girls, 1952-1967, in Sands Hotel & Casino Public Relations records MS-00417 (box 19 folder 2), Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.

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APA Style Guide: 7th Edition

• How To Use This Guide
• Ethical Use of Sources & Plagiarism This link opens in a new window
• Introduction to DOI
• Formatting: Title Page, Body, References
• Formatting: Annotated Bibliographies
• Formatting: Appendices
• Formatting: Quotations
• Formatting: Business Reports
• How to Format In-text Citations
• Citing Multiple Works
• Number and Type of Author
• Publication Date
• Page, Paragraph Number, Heading, and Time Stamp
• Citing Text Content Created by AI
• Citing Image Content Created by AI
• Brightspace, with Author
• Brightspace, No Author
• Comment on Blog Post
• Book with Author(s)
• Book with Author(s) and Editor(s)
• Book with Editor(s), No Author
• Book with Organization as Author
• Book with the Same Organization as Author & Publisher
• Textbook Chapter with Book Editor(s) and Chapter Author(s)
• Translation, Print Book

Work in an Anthology

• Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
• Dictionary with Editor(s)
• Entry in Online Dictionary, No Author
• Report with Author(s)
• Report, No Author
• Report with Report Number
• Report with Multiple Levels of Government
• eBook from Website or Library Database, with DOI
• eBook from Library Database, no DOI
• eBook from Website, no DOI
• Open Textbook
• General Information & Checklist
• Figure Notes & Legend
• In-text Citation & Reference Formatting
• Journal Article, Print
• Journal Article from Website or Library Database, with DOI
• Journal Article from Library Database, no DOI
• Journal Article from Website, no DOI
• Referencing: Images
• Referencing: Indigenous Elders & Knowledge Keepers
• Magazine Article, Print
• Magazine Article from Website, with DOI
• Magazine Article from Website, no DOI
• Newspaper Article, Print
• Newspaper Article from Library Database
• Newspaper Article from Website
• Newspaper Article, No Author
• Personal Communication, General
• Traditional Knowledge or Oral Traditions of Indigenous Peoples
• Referencing: Podcasts
• Referencing: PowerPoint Presentations
• Referencing: Secondary Sources
• Twitter Profile
• X (Tweet) or Instagram Post
• Facebook Page
• Post on Facebook, Tumblr, Linkedin, etc.
• TikTok Profile
• TikTok Post
• Referencing: Statistics Canada
• Table Notes
• Film or Video
• Online Film or Streaming Video
• YouTube Video, Personal Author
• YouTube Video, Username (No Personal Author Listed)
• Webpage on a News Website
• Webpage with Group or Organization as Author
• Webpage with a Personal Author
• Webpage with a Retrieval Date
• Common Knowledge
• Additional Resources
• Annotated Bibliographies This link opens in a new window
• Take A Quiz

Anthologies have an editor or editors for the entire work and separate authors for each story, essay or poem. You must cite and reference every story, essay or poem that you use in your paper separately , unless you are referring generally to the entire work.

Formatting Examples

• Reference Format
• In-text Citation Format
• Author, A. A. = Author's surname followed by first and middle initials, when available.
• Start the reference with the author of the story, essay, or poem.
• Follow the title with the editor(s) first initial and last name and "Ed." for one editor or "Eds." for multiple.
• Always include the original publication date of the story, essay, or poem.

Examples of formatting an in-text citation for this item are outlined below:

Remember, in-text citation formatting changes depending on a number of factors .

See  Number of Authors , Publication Date , and  Page/Paragraph Number or Heading  for more information.   

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APA Sample Paper

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Note:  This page reflects the latest version of the APA Publication Manual (i.e., APA 7), which released in October 2019. The equivalent resource for the older APA 6 style  can be found here .

Media Files: APA Sample Student Paper  ,  APA Sample Professional Paper

This resource is enhanced by Acrobat PDF files. Download the free Acrobat Reader

Note: The APA Publication Manual, 7 th Edition specifies different formatting conventions for student  and  professional  papers (i.e., papers written for credit in a course and papers intended for scholarly publication). These differences mostly extend to the title page and running head. Crucially, citation practices do not differ between the two styles of paper.

However, for your convenience, we have provided two versions of our APA 7 sample paper below: one in  student style and one in  professional  style.

Note: For accessibility purposes, we have used "Track Changes" to make comments along the margins of these samples. Those authored by [AF] denote explanations of formatting and [AWC] denote directions for writing and citing in APA 7. 

APA 7 Student Paper:

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• Knowledge Base
• APA Style 7th edition
• How to write an APA methods section

How to Write an APA Methods Section | With Examples

Published on February 5, 2021 by Pritha Bhandari . Revised on June 22, 2023.

The methods section of an APA style paper is where you report in detail how you performed your study. Research papers in the social and natural sciences often follow APA style. This article focuses on reporting quantitative research methods .

In your APA methods section, you should report enough information to understand and replicate your study, including detailed information on the sample , measures, and procedures used.

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Table of contents

Structuring an apa methods section.

Participants

Example of an APA methods section

Other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about writing an apa methods section.

The main heading of “Methods” should be centered, boldfaced, and capitalized. Subheadings within this section are left-aligned, boldfaced, and in title case. You can also add lower level headings within these subsections, as long as they follow APA heading styles .

To structure your methods section, you can use the subheadings of “Participants,” “Materials,” and “Procedures.” These headings are not mandatory—aim to organize your methods section using subheadings that make sense for your specific study.

Note that not all of these topics will necessarily be relevant for your study. For example, if you didn’t need to consider outlier removal or ways of assigning participants to different conditions, you don’t have to report these steps.

The APA also provides specific reporting guidelines for different types of research design. These tell you exactly what you need to report for longitudinal designs , replication studies, experimental designs , and so on. If your study uses a combination design, consult APA guidelines for mixed methods studies.

Detailed descriptions of procedures that don’t fit into your main text can be placed in supplemental materials (for example, the exact instructions and tasks given to participants, the full analytical strategy including software code, or additional figures and tables).

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Begin the methods section by reporting sample characteristics, sampling procedures, and the sample size.

Participant or subject characteristics

When discussing people who participate in research, descriptive terms like “participants,” “subjects” and “respondents” can be used. For non-human animal research, “subjects” is more appropriate.

Specify all relevant demographic characteristics of your participants. This may include their age, sex, ethnic or racial group, gender identity, education level, and socioeconomic status. Depending on your study topic, other characteristics like educational or immigration status or language preference may also be relevant.

Be sure to report these characteristics as precisely as possible. This helps the reader understand how far your results may be generalized to other people.

The APA guidelines emphasize writing about participants using bias-free language , so it’s necessary to use inclusive and appropriate terms.

Sampling procedures

Outline how the participants were selected and all inclusion and exclusion criteria applied. Appropriately identify the sampling procedure used. For example, you should only label a sample as random  if you had access to every member of the relevant population.

Of all the people invited to participate in your study, note the percentage that actually did (if you have this data). Additionally, report whether participants were self-selected, either by themselves or by their institutions (e.g., schools may submit student data for research purposes).

Identify any compensation (e.g., course credits or money) that was provided to participants, and mention any institutional review board approvals and ethical standards followed.

Sample size and power

Detail the sample size (per condition) and statistical power that you hoped to achieve, as well as any analyses you performed to determine these numbers.

It’s important to show that your study had enough statistical power to find effects if there were any to be found.

Additionally, state whether your final sample differed from the intended sample. Your interpretations of the study outcomes should be based only on your final sample rather than your intended sample.

Write up the tools and techniques that you used to measure relevant variables. Be as thorough as possible for a complete picture of your techniques.

Primary and secondary measures

Define the primary and secondary outcome measures that will help you answer your primary and secondary research questions.

Specify all instruments used in gathering these measurements and the construct that they measure. These instruments may include hardware, software, or tests, scales, and inventories.

• To cite hardware, indicate the model number and manufacturer.
• To cite common software (e.g., Qualtrics), state the full name along with the version number or the website URL .
• To cite tests, scales or inventories, reference its manual or the article it was published in. It’s also helpful to state the number of items and provide one or two example items.

Make sure to report the settings of (e.g., screen resolution) any specialized apparatus used.

For each instrument used, report measures of the following:

• Reliability : how consistently the method measures something, in terms of internal consistency or test-retest reliability.
• Validity : how precisely the method measures something, in terms of construct validity  or criterion validity .

Giving an example item or two for tests, questionnaires , and interviews is also helpful.

Describe any covariates—these are any additional variables that may explain or predict the outcomes.

Quality of measurements

Review all methods you used to assure the quality of your measurements.

These may include:

• training researchers to collect data reliably,
• using multiple people to assess (e.g., observe or code) the data,
• translation and back-translation of research materials,
• using pilot studies to test your materials on unrelated samples.

For data that’s subjectively coded (for example, classifying open-ended responses), report interrater reliability scores. This tells the reader how similarly each response was rated by multiple raters.

Report all of the procedures applied for administering the study, processing the data, and for planned data analyses.

Data collection methods and research design

Data collection methods refers to the general mode of the instruments: surveys, interviews, observations, focus groups, neuroimaging, cognitive tests, and so on. Summarize exactly how you collected the necessary data.

Describe all procedures you applied in administering surveys, tests, physical recordings, or imaging devices, with enough detail so that someone else can replicate your techniques. If your procedures are very complicated and require long descriptions (e.g., in neuroimaging studies), place these details in supplementary materials.

To report research design, note your overall framework for data collection and analysis. State whether you used an experimental, quasi-experimental, descriptive (observational), correlational, and/or longitudinal design. Also note whether a between-subjects or a within-subjects design was used.

For multi-group studies, report the following design and procedural details as well:

• how participants were assigned to different conditions (e.g., randomization),
• instructions given to the participants in each group,
• interventions for each group,
• the setting and length of each session(s).

Describe whether any masking was used to hide the condition assignment (e.g., placebo or medication condition) from participants or research administrators. Using masking in a multi-group study ensures internal validity by reducing research bias . Explain how this masking was applied and whether its effectiveness was assessed.

Participants were randomly assigned to a control or experimental condition. The survey was administered using Qualtrics (https://www.qualtrics.com). To begin, all participants were given the AAI and a demographics questionnaire to complete, followed by an unrelated filler task. In the control condition , participants completed a short general knowledge test immediately after the filler task. In the experimental condition, participants were asked to visualize themselves taking the test for 3 minutes before they actually did. For more details on the exact instructions and tasks given, see supplementary materials.

Data diagnostics

Outline all steps taken to scrutinize or process the data after collection.

This includes the following:

• Procedures for identifying and removing outliers
• Data transformations to normalize distributions
• Compensation strategies for overcoming missing values

To ensure high validity, you should provide enough detail for your reader to understand how and why you processed or transformed your raw data in these specific ways.

Analytic strategies

The methods section is also where you describe your statistical analysis procedures, but not their outcomes. Their outcomes are reported in the results section.

These procedures should be stated for all primary, secondary, and exploratory hypotheses. While primary and secondary hypotheses are based on a theoretical framework or past studies, exploratory hypotheses are guided by the data you’ve just collected.

This annotated example reports methods for a descriptive correlational survey on the relationship between religiosity and trust in science in the US. Hover over each part for explanation of what is included.

The sample included 879 adults aged between 18 and 28. More than half of the participants were women (56%), and all participants had completed at least 12 years of education. Ethics approval was obtained from the university board before recruitment began. Participants were recruited online through Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk; www.mturk.com). We selected for a geographically diverse sample within the Midwest of the US through an initial screening survey. Participants were paid USD $5 upon completion of the study.

A sample size of at least 783 was deemed necessary for detecting a correlation coefficient of ±.1, with a power level of 80% and a significance level of .05, using a sample size calculator (www.sample-size.net/correlation-sample-size/).

The primary outcome measures were the levels of religiosity and trust in science. Religiosity refers to involvement and belief in religious traditions, while trust in science represents confidence in scientists and scientific research outcomes. The secondary outcome measures were gender and parental education levels of participants and whether these characteristics predicted religiosity levels.

Religiosity

Religiosity was measured using the Centrality of Religiosity scale (Huber, 2003). The Likert scale is made up of 15 questions with five subscales of ideology, experience, intellect, public practice, and private practice. An example item is “How often do you experience situations in which you have the feeling that God or something divine intervenes in your life?” Participants were asked to indicate frequency of occurrence by selecting a response ranging from 1 (very often) to 5 (never). The internal consistency of the instrument is .83 (Huber & Huber, 2012).

Trust in Science

Trust in science was assessed using the General Trust in Science index (McCright, Dentzman, Charters & Dietz, 2013). Four Likert scale items were assessed on a scale from 1 (completely distrust) to 5 (completely trust). An example question asks “How much do you distrust or trust scientists to create knowledge that is unbiased and accurate?” Internal consistency was .8.

Potential participants were invited to participate in the survey online using Qualtrics (www.qualtrics.com). The survey consisted of multiple choice questions regarding demographic characteristics, the Centrality of Religiosity scale, an unrelated filler anagram task, and finally the General Trust in Science index. The filler task was included to avoid priming or demand characteristics, and an attention check was embedded within the religiosity scale. For full instructions and details of tasks, see supplementary materials.

For this correlational study , we assessed our primary hypothesis of a relationship between religiosity and trust in science using Pearson moment correlation coefficient. The statistical significance of the correlation coefficient was assessed using a t test. To test our secondary hypothesis of parental education levels and gender as predictors of religiosity, multiple linear regression analysis was used.

If you want to know more about statistics , methodology , or research bias , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• Normal distribution
• Measures of central tendency
• Chi square tests
• Confidence interval
• Quartiles & Quantiles

Methodology

• Cluster sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Thematic analysis
• Cohort study
• Peer review
• Ethnography

Research bias

• Implicit bias
• Cognitive bias
• Conformity bias
• Hawthorne effect
• Availability heuristic
• Attrition bias
• Social desirability bias

In your APA methods section , you should report detailed information on the participants, materials, and procedures used.

• Describe all relevant participant or subject characteristics, the sampling procedures used and the sample size and power .
• Define all primary and secondary measures and discuss the quality of measurements.
• Specify the data collection methods, the research design and data analysis strategy, including any steps taken to transform the data and statistical analyses.

You should report methods using the past tense , even if you haven’t completed your study at the time of writing. That’s because the methods section is intended to describe completed actions or research.

In a scientific paper, the methodology always comes after the introduction and before the results , discussion and conclusion . The same basic structure also applies to a thesis, dissertation , or research proposal .

Depending on the length and type of document, you might also include a literature review or theoretical framework before the methodology.

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CORE 1000: Introduction to Future Studies

• APA Citation Style Information
• ATC & Study Space Information

University Writing Services

• University Writing Services "Whether you are brainstorming your first assignment at Saint Louis University or putting the final touches on your dissertation, SLU's University Writing Services can offer individualized feedback on your writing and composition process."

Plagiarism Prevention

Learn more at the slu academic integrity pages, slu academic integrity policy, helpful apa citation style sources.

In addition to the sources below, check out SLU Librarian Jamie Emery's guide  Style Guides & Manuals , including resources for APA, MLA, Chicago & more.

Includes information on APA style citations, as well as information on other citation styles and formatting. This site also includes a variety of other useful writing related information.

APA (American Psychological Association) style is most commonly used to cite sources within the social sciences. This resource, revised according to the 7th edition of the APA manual, offers examples for the general format of APA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the reference page. For more information, please consult the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, (7th ed.).

This poster created by Purdue Owl summarizes APA style in a visual format.

The style and grammar guidelines pages present information about APA Style as described in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, Seventh Edition and the Concise Guide to APA Style, Seventh Edition.

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What is the correct APA formatting for a chapter in an anthology?

For information on how to cite a chapter in an anthology, go to the APA Help  guide and click on APA Citation Examples - References & In-Text .

Clic k on the drop-down menu under BOOKS and select chapter or essay in a collection near the bottom of the list.

Thank you for using ASK US.  For further assistance, please contact your Baker librarians .

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APA In-Text Citations and Sample Essay 7th Edition

This handout focuses on how to format in-text citations in APA.

Proper citation of sources is a two-part process . You must first cite each source in the body of your essay; these citations within the essay are called in-text citations . You MUST cite all quoted, paraphrased, or summarized words, ideas, and facts from sources. Without in-text citations, you are technically in danger of plagiarism, even if you have listed your sources at the end of the essay.

In-text citations point the reader to the sources’ information on the references page. The in-text citation typically includes the author's last name and the year of publication. If you use a direct quote, the page number is also provided.

More information can be found on p. 253 of the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.

Citation Rules

Direct quotation with the author named in the text.

Heinze and Lu (2017) stated, “The NFL shifted its responses to institutional change around concussions significantly as the field itself evolved” (p. 509).

Note: The year of publication is listed in parenthesis after the names of the authors, and the page number is listed in parenthesis at the end of the quote.

Direct Quotation without the Author Named in the Text

As the NFL developed as an organization, it “shifted its responses to institutional change around concussions significantly” (Heinze & Lu, 2017, p. 509).

Note: At the end of the quote, the names of the authors, year of publication, and page number are listed in parenthesis.

Paraphrase with 1-2 Authors

As the NFL developed as an organization, its reactions toward concussions also transformed (Heinze & Lu, 2017).

Note: For paraphrases, page numbers are encouraged but not required.

Paraphrase with 3 or More Authors

To work toward solving the issue of violence in prisons begins with determining aspects that might connect with prisoners' violent conduct (Thomson et al., 2019).

Direct Quotation without an Author

The findings were astonishing "in a recent study of parent and adult child relationships" ("Parents and Their Children," 2007, p. 2).

Note: Since the author of the text is not stated, a shortened version of the title is used instead.

Secondary Sources

When using secondary sources, use the phrase "as cited in" and cite the secondary source on the References page.

In 1936, Keynes said, “governments should run deficits when the economy is slow to avoid unemployment” (as cited in Richardson, 2008, p. 257).

Long (Block) Quotations

When using direct quotations of 40 or more words, indent five spaces from the left margin without using quotation marks. The final period should come before the parenthetical citation.

At Meramec, an English department policy states:

To honor and protect their own work and that of others, all students must give credit to proprietary sources that are used for course work. It is assumed that any information that is not documented is either common knowledge in that field or the original work of that student. (St. Louis Community College, 2001, p. 1)

Website Citations

If citing a specific web document without a page number, include the name of the author, date, title of the section, and paragraph number in parentheses:

In America, “Two out of five deaths among U.S. teens are the result of a motor vehicle crash” (National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, 2004, Overview section, para. 1).

Here is a print-friendly version of this content.

Learn more about the APA References page by reviewing this handout .

For information on STLCC's academic integrity policy, check out this webpage .

For additional information on APA, check out STLCC's LibGuide on APA .

Sample Essay

A sample APA essay is available at this link .

• Free Tools for Students
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Free APA Citation Generator

Generate citations in APA format quickly and automatically, with MyBib!

🤔 What is an APA Citation Generator?

An APA citation generator is a software tool that will automatically format academic citations in the American Psychological Association (APA) style.

It will usually request vital details about a source -- like the authors, title, and publish date -- and will output these details with the correct punctuation and layout required by the official APA style guide.

Formatted citations created by a generator can be copied into the bibliography of an academic paper as a way to give credit to the sources referenced in the main body of the paper.

👩‍🎓 Who uses an APA Citation Generator?

College-level and post-graduate students are most likely to use an APA citation generator, because APA style is the most favored style at these learning levels. Before college, in middle and high school, MLA style is more likely to be used. In other parts of the world styles such as Harvard (UK and Australia) and DIN 1505 (Europe) are used more often.

🙌 Why should I use a Citation Generator?

Like almost every other citation style, APA style can be cryptic and hard to understand when formatting citations. Citations can take an unreasonable amount of time to format manually, and it is easy to accidentally include errors. By using a citation generator to do this work you will:

• Save a considerable amount of time
• Ensure that your citations are consistent and formatted correctly
• Be rewarded with a higher grade

In academia, bibliographies are graded on their accuracy against the official APA rulebook, so it is important for students to ensure their citations are formatted correctly. Special attention should also be given to ensure the entire document (including main body) is structured according to the APA guidelines. Our complete APA format guide has everything you need know to make sure you get it right (including examples and diagrams).

⚙️ How do I use MyBib's APA Citation Generator?

Our APA generator was built with a focus on simplicity and speed. To generate a formatted reference list or bibliography just follow these steps:

• Start by searching for the source you want to cite in the search box at the top of the page.
• MyBib will automatically locate all the required information. If any is missing you can add it yourself.
• Your citation will be generated correctly with the information provided and added to your bibliography.
• Repeat for each citation, then download the formatted list and append it to the end of your paper.

MyBib supports the following for APA style:

Daniel is a qualified librarian, former teacher, and citation expert. He has been contributing to MyBib since 2018.

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Citing with asa, why must i cite, citation style and formatting, help with apa, mla, and chicago/ turabian styles, what is a citation manager which one should i use, citation management software, citing data.

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*** Check out the American Sociological Association's Quick Tips guide for using ASA Style. ***

For authors, citing

• Provides the information to go back and find the sources during the writing process.
• Keeps a record of all of the information used or considered.
• Helps provide context to an argument in a larger discussion.

For researchers, citing

• Provides inform ation to the researcher to better understand the author’s argument and the research.
• Provides information for the researcher to find other relevant sources by going to the bibliography or references page.

As defined by the Brown University Writing Center :

Since it is one of the most dreaded faux pas—in many circumstances it is even considered a crime—in the world of academia and other intellectual circles, plagiarism is a topic that must be addressed by every aspiring writer. Appropriating another person's ideas or words (spoken or written) without attributing those word or ideas to their true source is highly frowned upon in literary and academic circles. Fortunately, with some forethought and common sense, a writer can easily avoid plagiarism. The following resources can help you discern what does—and what does not—constitute plagiarism. Take a look; it is preferable to be safe than sorry when it comes to issues of intellectual property and original thought.

The consequences of plagiarism can be very serious. For more information about plagiarism, see Brown Academic Code & Non-Academic Conduct

Each academic discipline has a preferred style for citing information. The required information in a citation is usually very similar across styles-- for example, it's nearly always important to include author, date of publication and publisher, and title of the work (which may also include title of the journal). Additional information may be required based on appropriate citation style or the format of the resource you're citing.

Citation styles differ in several ways, including order of information, punctuation, and acceptable abbreviations.

If you're unsure about which style to use, it is best to ask the person you are writing for, such as a professor or journal editor.

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA style guide)

Chicago Manual of Style Online Book

MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers

For examples of APA, MLA and Chicago styles, and for quick reference, visit  Purdue's OWL  (Online Writing Lab) site.

Citation Managers such as RefWorks, EndNote, Zotero, and Mendeley are software tools for managing your citations. Citation managers will help you

• Create and organize a personal research database
• Download ciations from online databases
• Format bibliographies and citations in papers, and
• Share your references with others

Brown University Libraries support and provide training  for RefWorks, EndNote, Zotero, and Mendeley, but there are many more available.

Which citation manager should I use?

• EndNote (Mac)
• EndNote (PC) EndNote is a software tool that helps you organize their references, images and PDFs in any language, and create bibliographies and figure lists instantly. Download and install the software from the Brown application server.
• Zotero Zotero [zoh-TAIR-oh] is a free tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share your research sources. Zotero 3.0 is available as a standalone program, which is compatible with Chrome, Safari, or Firefox, or can be downloaded as a plug-in for your Firefox browser.
• Mendeley Mendeley is a free reference manager and academic social network that can help you organize your research, collaborate with others online, and discover the latest research. Mobile App available.
• RefWorks RefWorks is a Web-based bibliography and citation manager that allows you to create your own personal database by importing references from text files or online databases.

Guide to citing data

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• Last Updated: Sep 3, 2024 9:13 PM
• URL: https://libguides.brown.edu/sda

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Title Page Setup

A title page is required for all APA Style papers. There are both student and professional versions of the title page. Students should use the student version of the title page unless their instructor or institution has requested they use the professional version. APA provides a student title page guide (PDF, 199KB) to assist students in creating their title pages.

Student title page

The student title page includes the paper title, author names (the byline), author affiliation, course number and name for which the paper is being submitted, instructor name, assignment due date, and page number, as shown in this example.

Title page setup is covered in the seventh edition APA Style manuals in the Publication Manual Section 2.3 and the Concise Guide Section 1.6

Related handouts

• Student Title Page Guide (PDF, 263KB)
• Student Paper Setup Guide (PDF, 3MB)

Student papers do not include a running head unless requested by the instructor or institution.

Follow the guidelines described next to format each element of the student title page.

Professional title page

The professional title page includes the paper title, author names (the byline), author affiliation(s), author note, running head, and page number, as shown in the following example.

Follow the guidelines described next to format each element of the professional title page.