VCSU Library Citation Guide

General Formatting:

To properly format your paper, use the following guidelines: 

• The paper should be typed and double-spaced.
• The paper's margins should be set to 1 inch on all sides. Most word processors have 1-inch margins as the default setting.  
• The paper should have a "running head" or page header on each page. Student papers only require a page number unless otherwise specified.
• Your paper should be written in a legible (i.e., accessible) font, for example 11 point Arial, 11 point Calibri, or 12 point Times New Roman. 

Title Page Format:

A student paper's title page should have the following information: 

• Title of the paper
• Author's name
• Department and University the paper was written for
• Course number, section (if applicable), and name
• Professor's name 
• Due date

And should follow the following Formatting Rules: 

• The title page should be double-spaced, with all information centered.
•  The paper's title should start 3-4 lines from the top of the page, should be bolded, and should have all important words capitalized.
• Each piece of information goes on a new line, with an extra blank line between the title and author name. 
• Names should be written First Name, Middle Initial, Last Name. 

Reference Page Format:

The reference page for an APA paper should follow these guidelines: 

• The reference page should have References written at the top, centered and bolded.
• References should be alphabetized by author's last name, or the first word of the title if there is no author for a source.
• The reference page should be double-spaced.
• Each source should have a hanging indent.
• Each source should be cited in APA style. 

Example formatting for each type of source can be found in the tabs on this page. Also see the sample papers below for helpful examples! 

Basic Format

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Publisher Name. DOI (if available)

Edited Book (no author)                                                                                            

Editor, E. E. (Ed.). (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Publisher. DOI (if available)

Chapter in an Edited Book                                                                                             

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In E. E. Editor & F. F. Editor (Eds.), Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle (pp. pages of chapter). Publisher. DOI (if available)

Multi Volume Work                                                                                                      

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle(Vol. #). Publisher. DOI (if available)

Translated Book                                                                                                          

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle (T. Translator, Trans.). Publisher. (Original work published YEAR) DOI (if available)

Dictionary, Encyclopedia, etc. 

Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of entry. In F. M. Lastname (ed.), Title of reference work (edition, page numbers). Publisher.

Basic Format                                                                                                               

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number), pages. https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy

Baniya, S., & Weech, S. (2019). Data and experience design: Negotiating community-oriented digital research with service-learning. Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement, 6(1), 11–16. https://doi.org/10.5703/1288284316979

Federal or State Statute 

Name of Act, Public Law No. (Year). URL

Report by Government Agency or Other Organization

Organization Name. (Year). Title of report. URL

Report by Individual Authors at Government Agency or Other Organization

Lastname, F. M., & Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of report. Organization Name. URL

Film or Video

Director, D. D. (Director). (Date of publication). Title of motion picture [Film]. Production company.

TV Series

Executive Producer, P. P. (Executive Producer). (Date range of release). Title of series [TV series]. Production company(s).

TV Series Episode

Writer, W. W. (Writer), & Director, D. D. (Director). (Original air date). Title of episode (Season number, Episode number) [Tv series episode]. In P. Executive Producer (Executive Producer), Series title. Production company(s). 

YouTube Video

Person or group who uploaded video. (Date of publication). Title of video[Video]. Website host. URL 

Podcast

Executive Producer, E. P. (Executive Producer). (Range of publication). Title of podcast [Audio podcast]. Production company. URL

Single Podcast Episode

Executive Producer, E. P. (Executive Producer). (Date of publication). Title of podcast episode (Episode number) [Audio podcast episode]. In Title of podcast. Production company. URL

Music Album

Recording artist. (Year of release). Title of album [Album]. Record label.

Single Song or Track

Recording artist. (Year of release). Title of song [Song]. On Title of album. Record label. 

Artwork 

Artist, A. (Year of release). Title of artwork [medium]. Name of museum, City, State, Country. URL of museum

Clip Art or Stock Image

Theitation requirements for images depend on the license connected with the image. If your image says "no attribution required," you do not need to create a citation. Use the guidelines below for an image that requires attribution. (If you don't know, always cite!)

APA guidelines say you should use images as figures in your paper. Put a Copyright Statement with the image, then your reference list entry with your other references. 

Copyright Statement:

Title of image [format], by Author, Year of release, Name of Website (URL). License. 

Reference List Entry:

Artist, A. (Year of release). Title of image [format]. Name of Website. URL 

Basic Format

Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of dissertation/thesis (Publication No.) [Doctoral dissertation/Master’s thesis, Name of Institution Awarding the Degree]. Database or Archive Name.

Tweet

Lastname, F. M. or Name of Group [@username]. (Year, Month Date). Content of the post up to the first 20 words[Tweet]. Site Name. URL

Twitter Profile

Lastname, F. M. or Name of Group [@username]. (n.d.). Tweets [Twitter profile]. Retrieved Month Date, Year, from URL

Facebook Post

Lastname, F. M. or Name of Group. (Year, Month Date). Content of the post up to the first 20 words [Type of post]. Site Name. URL

Facebook Page

Lastname, F. M. or Name of Group. (n.d.). Home [Facebook page]. Site name. Retrieved Month Date, Year, from URL

Instagram Post

Lastname, F. M. or Name of Group [@username]. (Year, Month Date). Content of the post up to the first 20 words [Type of post]. Site Name. URL

Instagram Reel

Lastname, F. M. or Name of Group [@username]. (Year, Month Date). Content of the post up to the first 20 words [Video]. Site Name. URL

Instagram Profile

Lastname, F. M. or Name of Group [@username]. (Year, Month Date). Page of profile being cited [Instagram Profile]. Instagram. Retrieved Month Date, Year. URL

TikTok Video

Lastname, F. M. or Name of Group [@username]. (Year, Month Date). Content of the post up to the first 20 words [Video]. TikTok. URL

TikTok Profile

Lastname, F. M. or Name of Group [@username]. (Year, Month Date). Content of the bio up to the first 20 words [TikTok Profile]. TikTok. Retrieved Month Date, Year. URL

Blog Post

Lastname, F. M. (Year, Month Date). Title of post. Publisher. URL

Website (with author)

Lastname, F. M. (Year, Month Date). Title of page. Site name. URL

Website (organization as author)

Group name. (Year, Month Date). Title of page. Site name. URL

Website (no author)

Title of page. (Year, Month Date). Site name. Retrieved Month Date, Year, from URL

Basic Format (same as for scholarly articles)

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number), pages. https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy

When citing indirect citations (if a source references or quotes another source) provide the source in which the original work was referenced in the bibliography. For the in-text citation: (Miller, 1953, as cited in Agrios, 2005). 

APA Style considers personal communications to be any work that cannot be recovered by the reader of a paper. 

Personal communications include:

• Emails
• Texts and DMs
• Phone calls
• Personal interviews
• Speeches, lectures, livestreams, or webinars that are not archived anywhere
• Letters

These types of communication are only cited as in-text citations.

Parenthetical Citation: (J. Kirk, personal communication, March 22, 2009)

Narrative Citation: J. Kirk (personal communication, March 22, 2009)

When citing information from the Traditional Knowledge or Oral Traditions of Indigenous Peoples, there are times when using a form of personal communication citations are appropriate. The APA Style online guide discusses these citations in their personal communications guide. Personal Communications and Citing Traditional Knowledge.