Using this guide
Imagine you have to write a school paper or a project, and your teacher wants you to follow a certain set of rules to make it look neat and organized. This guide can help with that. It's all about a set of rules called the APA style. APA stands for the American Psychological Association, and they made a manual that tells you how to format, cite (give credit for information you use), and make a reference list of all the works you used.
The guide can help you with this. It's the 7th edition, which means it's the latest set of rules they've come up with.
When you use works like books, articles, or YouTube videos to support your ideas in your paper, this guide tells you exactly how to write down information about them – things like the author's name, the title, and where you found it.
If you're stuck and need an example or a template (a pre-made format), you can look in the Help database. Search with the type of work you're using, like a book or a YouTube video, and you will find a webpage to show you exactly how to write it down the right way.
In short, this guide is for making sure your school papers look professional and that you give credit to all the works you used!
Writing help
Book an appointment with a writing specialist.
Drop-in support at the library (second floor North Campus) between 10 and 2 on Monday - Friday and Saturday at 10 - 12 and 1-3.
APA Help
Visit our Help page for answers to all of your APA questions. Type your question into the search bar to find an answer.
Self-paced APA Tutorial
Take a self-paced Introduction to APA tutorial on the library's Workshops page to learn the basics of APA Style 7th Edition.
What is APA Style?
American Psychological Association (APA) Style is a set of rules for how to:
• format your assignments
• write in an academic setting
• credit the works you use
Why give credit?
Imagine you're building a treehouse, and you want to make it sturdy and reliable. In your college assignments, it's a bit like building that treehouse. Your ideas are the structure of the treehouse, and the evidence you use is like the strong wood you gather.
When you're gathering materials for your treehouse, you want to make sure they're good and reliable. In your college assignments, these materials are like the information you use to support your ideas. This information can be from books, articles, websites, and other sources.
However, just like you wouldn't take someone else's wood without asking or giving them credit, in your assignments, you need to give credit to the people who came up with the ideas or information you're using. This is important for a few reasons:
1. Avoiding Plagiarism: Plagiarism is taking someone else's work and pretending it's yours. It's not good, and your teachers want to see your own ideas. Giving credit is like saying, "I got this wood from that tree over there," and it shows that you respect the original creators.
2. Backing Up Your Ideas: Just as you need strong branches to support your treehouse, your ideas need support too. When you use evidence from reliable sources, it makes your arguments stronger and more convincing.
3. Connecting with Your Readers: Imagine if someone admires your treehouse and asks where you got the materials. You'd happily share, right? In your assignments, when you give credit, it's showing your readers where they can find more information. It helps them understand your ideas better and explore further if they want.
Just like building a great treehouse requires good materials and giving credit to those who helped, making a strong college assignment involves using evidence from reliable works and acknowledging the original creators.
Where do I give credit?
When you use information from a work, you need to give credit in two places:
All of the works you use to support your assignment must have both a citation and a reference.