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Documenting sources

Documentation quicktipsquicktips

Documentation resources online

Citations
A brief, interactive online workshop which provides an overview of citations from University of Minnesota Libraries.

Citing Primary Sources
This resource from the Library of Congress offers instructions on citing electronic sources in MLA and Chicago styles (and provides examples using items from the Library’s own collections).

What American Journal of Public Health Authors Should Know
This PDF file includes instructions for writing citations and articles for AJPH.

Citing Resources from Accounting Horizons, Accounting Review, and Issues in Accounting Education
A guide for citing sources in the format required by these journals.

AMA Manual of Style, 11th edition
Log in with your UMN X500 to see the full AMA Manual of Style, courtesy of UMN Libraries.

APA Style
The official American Psychological Association style website. Includes a variety of resources that supplement but do not replace the Publication Manual. See the Quick Answers lists at the bottom of the page. Also check out the APA Style Blog, a searchable resource where APA editors answer specific questions.

How to Cite Something You Found on a Website in APA Style
Includes a useful table (a PDF file) explaining what to do when information for a citation is missing. Also includes a webpage on citing a canceled conference presentation.

Citing Electronic Sources in APA style
This portion of the Purdue OWL offers the APA-specific help unavailable on the Library of Congress site, above.

Format a Word document in APA 7th edition
A captioned video guide to formatting the title, first pages, and References page of a basic Seventh Edition APA-style document by the Lone Star College CyFair Branch Library and the Harris County Public Library.

The Chicago Manual of Style Online
Courtesy of the University of Minnesota Libraries, access the complete online version of the Chicago Manual of Style for U of MN students, faculty, and staff.

IEEE Documentation Style
From the University of Wisconsin–Madison Writing Center, a guide to the official style of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, often used in the fields of engineering and computer science.

The MLA Style Center
A quick guide to writing Works Cited pages in MLA style. Also check out the what's new in the eighth edition webpage.

Format a Word Document in MLA
A captioned video guide to formatting the first page and Works Cited page of a basic MLA-style document by the Lone Star College CyFair Branch Library and the Harris County Public Library.

National Library of Medicine (NLM)/International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (NCJME) Style
This page contains sample references, as well as links to other resources on NLM/NCJME style.

Avoiding plagiarism

Tutorials on citing sources
This website from the University of Minnesota Libraries features short tutorials on academic integrity and citations. It also includes information about citation managers.

Plagiarism...and how to avoid it!
This presentation for new international students at the University of Minnesota offers an introduction to American academic expectations about plagiarism, showing examples of what is and is not plagiarism using the framework of the "What are you telling your readers?" handout below.

“What are you telling your readers?”
This handout approaches citation from a reader’s perspective. Writers can use this resource as a crib sheet to assess whether they are accurately communicating who deserves credit for the words and ideas in their texts.

Paraphrasing effectively

Quoting and Paraphrasing Sources
Writers with the best of intentions nonetheless do not always know whether to quote or to paraphrase sources, and how to do so appropriately. This comprehensive resource from the Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin–Madison helps writers address this common problem.

Phrases to Use in Academic and Disciplinary Writing
This website is a resource of phrases that one can use when writing at the university level. For example, what are some ways to write a transition sentence? How do you introduce a series of examples? Having a variety of options can help with both paraphrasing and providing context for a secondary source.