Research Guides: ENG 111: English Composition I: Cite Your Sources

Why Cite?

Citing Sources -

Allows you to acknowledge your source and the author of the original concept.
Ensures that you are not plagiarizing or claiming someone else's original idea as your own idea.
Shows the careful work you have put into finding good sources.
Helps the reader understand the context of your research and locate other sources of interest.

Primary Citation Style Guides

The best way to ensure you are properly citing sources is to refer to the appropriate style guide. Copies of these guides are available in the library's Reference Collection (1st Floor, Fireside Room).

Style	Copies at Georgetown College Library
APA	Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (all copies) Reference Copy Call Number: REF BF 76.7 .P83 2001
MLA	MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (all copies) Reference Copy Call Number: REF LB2369 .G53 2009
Chicago	The Chicago Manual of Style (all copies) Reference Copy Call Number: Ref Z 253 .U69 1993

Need to locate other style guides? Use the library catalog and search these subject headings:

Authorship--Style manuals
Authorship--Handbooks, manuals, etc.
Scholarly publishing--Handbooks, manuals, etc.

Citation: A Brief Introduction

*Courtesy of North Carolina State University Libraries

How to Cite a Source

The following sites provide information to help you format MLA, APA, or Chicago style citations.

OWL: Purdue Online Writing Lab
Purdue University has put together a useful resource to help students understand how to do parenthetical citations, end notes, footnotes, etc. for APA and MLA citations.
The Basics of APA Style
This tutorial was developed by the American Psychological Association and provides some information about citing sources in APA style. For exhaustive information, see the official APA style guide.