APA Citation Guide (7th edition) : Welcome

Below is a summary of the major changes in the 7th edition of the APA Publication Manual.

Essay Format:

• Font - While you still can use Times New Roman 12, you are free to use other fonts. Calibri 11, Arial 11, Lucida Sans 10, and Georgia 11 are all acceptable.
• Headers - No running headers are required for student papers.
• Tables and Figures - There is a standardized format for both tables and figures.

Style, Grammar, Usage:

• Singular "they" required in two situations: when used by a known person as their personal pronoun or when the gender of a singular person is not known.
• Use only one space after a sentence-ending period.

Citation Style:

• Developed the Four Elements of a Reference (Author, Date, Title, Source) to help writers to create references for source types not explicitly examined in the APA Manual.
• Three or more authors can be abbreviated to First author, et al. on the first citation.
• Up to 20 authors are spelled out in the References List.
• Publisher location is not required for books
• Ebook platform, format, or device is not required for eBooks.  
• Library database names are generally not required
• Hyperlinks -
  • No "doi:" prefix, simply include the doi.
  • All hyperlinks retain the https://
  • Links can be "live" in blue with underline or black without underlining

The four elements of a reference are colour coded to help you identify them in the example.

By answering these questions, a reference list can easily be created.

Note the punctuation for each section of the reference.

• There should always be a period after the author.
• The date should be closed in parentheses and end with a period outside the parentheses.
• There should be a period after the title.
• For journals, the title should be italicized with a comma placed after it.
• The volume number should be italicized. The issue number is not italicized and is enclosed in parentheses.
• The page or page range must end with a period. 
• Lastly, the source of the article must be copy/pasted and there is no period at the end of the link.
  • If there is a DOI, that must be used and it can be shortened at http://shortdoi.org.

Citing:

The process of acknowledging the sources of your information and ideas.

DOI (doi):

Some electronic content, such as online journal articles, is assigned a unique number called a Digital Object Identifier (DOI or doi). Items can be tracked down online using their doi.

In-Text Citation:

A brief note at the point where information is used from a source to indicate where the information came from. An in-text citation should always match more detailed information that is available in the Reference List.

Paraphrasing:

Taking information that you have read and putting it into your own words.

Plagiarism:

Taking, using, and passing off as your own, the ideas or words of another.

Quoting:

The copying of words of text originally published elsewhere. Direct quotations generally appear in quotation marks and end with a citation.

Reference:

Details about one cited source.

Reference List:

Contains details on ALL the sources cited in a text or essay, and supports your research and/or premise.

Retrieval Date:

Used for websites where content is likely to change over time (e.g. Wikis), the retrieval date refers to the date you last visited the website.

NoodleTools is a citation and research tool that helps you:

• Brainstorm and organize your ideas
• Create an outline
• Generate a Works Cited and in-text citations
• Link your sources to your ideas

This guide is used/adapted with the permission of Seneca College Libraries and the Columbia College Libraries.

Note: When copying this guide, please retain this box.