When using outside sources or others’ ideas to strengthen an argument in your paper, you must give the author(s) credit to avoid any charges of plagiarism (see John Jay College’s policy on Academic Integrity).
APA (American Psychological Association), MLA (Modern Language Association) and Chicago are three of the most popular citation styles. They each have their own style and rules for how to:
1. Design the lay out of your research paper (title page, headings, page numbers, etc.)
2. Prepare and format citations for your References (APA and Chicago) or Works Cited (MLA) page--the list of outside sources you've used which is located at the end of your research paper, and
3. Prepare and format your in-text citations or references, within the body of your paper, to a specific source you have quoted, paraphrased or summarized that is listed on your References or Works Cited page.
Click on the tabs to the left or the links below to the specific style guides provided. These guides provide citation examples for the most common types of sources. Use the tabs on the left in each guide for help with formatting your paper, citing different types of source and creating in-text citations.
APA 7 (most current APA style)
MLA 9 (most current MLA style)
Bluebook for legal citations.
If you need more guidance, contact your instructor, a Lloyd Sealy librarian or the John Jay Writing Center.