Here is a one-sheet for APA documentation with examples. More questions, contact Emily in the library!
A: Citing sources is essential because it gives credit to the original creators of ideas, supports your arguments with credible evidence, and helps readers locate the sources you used. It also shows academic honesty by avoiding plagiarism and demonstrates that you’ve engaged thoughtfully with existing research. In short, citations build trust and transparency in your work. They are a must for entering the academic conversation (and earning a good grade on assignments!) The most common systems you'll use in college are APA and MLA.
Documentation in academic writing has two key components: in-text citations (or footnotes) and a bibliography (called "Works Cited" in MLA and "References" in APA) at the end of your project. In-text citations or footnotes briefly identify the source of a specific idea, quote, or fact within the body of your paper. The full details for each source are then listed at the end, allowing readers to locate and verify them. What these parts are called—and how they're formatted—depends on the citation style you're using. For example, MLA uses in-text citations and a Works Cited page, APA uses in-text citations and a References page, while Chicago often uses footnotes and a Bibliography. Your professor or discipline typically determines which style to use: MLA for humanities, APA for social sciences, and Chicago for history or other research-intensive fields
In our databases, citations are usually available with just a click. However, sometimes you must build them. Start here:
Purdue OWL: Research and Citation Resources is a great starting point!
Check out Purdue's Citation Chart--a handy place to find examples for all types of situations.
For a citation generator, try ZoteroBib — it’s free, simple, and accurate. Just paste in your source link, choose your style (APA, MLA, Chicago), and you’re good to go. No login required!
We recommend two powerful AI tools that support academic research: Elicit and Scispace. Both tools are free to use with optional upgrades, and they serve different but complementary roles in the research process. If your needs go beyond what is available through the free platform, come talk to Emily in Deets Library.
Elicit is an AI-powered research assistant that helps you find and summarize academic papers based on research questions. It’s designed to streamline the literature review process by extracting key insights from relevant articles.
Key Features and Benefits
- Ask research questions and get relevant paper summaries
- Extracts population, intervention, outcomes, and conclusions
- Suggests related research questions
- Organize research into saved projects/workspaces
How to Sign Up
1. Go to https://elicit.com
2. Click “Try Elicit” or “Sign in”
3. Use a Google account to log in
Ethical and Effective Use
- Always read original articles—don’t rely solely on AI summaries
- Verify that papers are peer-reviewed and trustworthy
- Cite original sources, not just AI summaries
- Follow institutional policies for academic integrity
Scispace is an AI-powered platform that helps you understand complex academic papers by explaining them in simpler language. It’s especially helpful when you’re reading PDFs and need support interpreting dense material.
Key Features and Benefits
- Upload a PDF and ask questions about it
- AI answers based on the document’s content
- Explains difficult terminology and concepts
- Includes citation and reference tools
How to Sign Up
1. Go to https://www.scispace.com
2. Click “Sign up”
3. Use an email address or Google account to log in
Ethical and Effective Use
- Use explanations to support comprehension, not replace reading
- Confirm interpretations by cross-referencing the text
- Credit Scispace if you rely on its explanations