Cite My Sources


Create a Citation


The online tools below are designed to help students easily generate citations.
Explore the resources below and bookmark your favorites.

Always double check each citation to make sure it's accurate
and contains all the necessary information.


Easy-to-use options

Scribbr

Subscription required



Reference Management Tools


Reference management tools allow researches to generate citations, store and organize references, annotate research, collaborate with other researchers and more. All in one place. No subscription required.


Chrome extension available


Must download to a laptop or computer


Must download to a laptop or computer


Crash Course in Citations

What is a citation? And why do we do it?

Video created by librarians at North Carolina State University

View the transcript


Why is citing sources - and citing them accurately - so important?


Distinguishes your work from that of others
|
Gives proper credit to the original author
|
Prevents plagiarism and its consequences
|
Allows your readers to explore your sources
|
When in doubt, cite your source!


How do I know when to cite something?



You should cite basically anything that you did not come up with yourself that is not common knowledge.

Citing a source includes two steps:

(1) In-text citation
AND
(2) Works cited page or reference list


What needs to be cited?



Artwork | Drawings | Images

Movies | Music | Videos

Blogs | Emails | Web Pages

Graphs | Maps | Stats

Journals | Magazines | Newspapers

Interviews | Lectures | Ideas

Written & Spoken Words


Citation Styles


Citation style refers to the precise way you organize the details of your sources.

Each citation style consists of a different set of rules.

Your professor will determine which citation style you should use.


Four common citation styles:

Traditionally used in the
social sciences:

Business
Criminology
Education
Psychology
Sociology

Traditionally used in the
humanities and literature:

Communications
English
Philosophy
Religion
Theater

Traditionally used in the
humanities and social sciences:

Art History
Business
History
Philosophy
Religion

Turabian

Turabian

Is a variation of Chicago style
and often used in:

History
Music
Natural sciences
Physical sciences
Social sciences


Style Guides

APA Style

Columbia College Library

  • Examples
    See examples under How Do I Cite? and In-Text Citation tabs


Scribbr

MLA Style

Scribbr

Chicago & Turabian

University of Chicago Press

Scribbr


Library Databases


Many databases allow you to copy the citation from the detailed record page.
For example, to cite an article directly from EBSCOhost:


Open EBSCOhost

Run a search
Pick a title from the search results
Select Cite from the right-hand panel
Choose the appropriate format
Copy/paste the citation into your paper


Remember to double check each source to ensure their accuracy.


Google Docs


Google Docs has a tool that allows users to create and add in-text citations and bibliographies to their research papers - directly from Docs.


To access this feature:

Open Google Docs
Go to the Tools tab
Select Citations


A panel opens on the right-hand side of the screen. From here, you can select APA, Chicago (Autor-Date), or MLA format. Sources that may be cited include books, websites, and journal and newspaper articles.

Once the information is entered, a bibliography list is started and stored on the side panel. From here, in-text citations may be inserted into a paper using the Cite option, and the complete bibliography may be added using the Insert bibliography option.

Choose format and add citation source

Create list and insert bibliography


Example of in-text citations and bibliography


Additional Resources


For more guidance, contact: