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Enabling Pathways Library Guide: Elements of referencing

Guide to assist Open Foundation and Newstep students find information for assignments

Elements of referencing

The sources that you use must be acknowledged:

  1. as an in-text citation within the body of your assignment (some referencing styles use footnotes as part of this)
  2. in a reference list at the end of your assignment

All of the sources you use in your assignment must be included both as in-text citations and in your reference list.

 

Quick Guide
What's an in-text citation?

An in-text citation is a short entry within your text to point the reader towards the full entry in your reference list.  There are different types of in-text citations:

  • Author/Date (e.g. APA, Harvard);
  • Author/Page (e.g. MLA);
  • Numbering that links directly to an entry in the reference list (e.g. Vancouver, JAMA);
  • Numbering that links to a footnote (e.g. Chicago, AGLC4).
What's a reference list?

A reference list provides readers with all the information necessary to locate the original source you have cited.  Depending on the referencing style, this list can be arranged:

What information do I need for my reference list entries?

This will change depending on the type of resource you want to reference and the referencing style you need to use, but usually comes down to Who / What / When / Where.

Check Referencing Styles for more information.