Why citation matters
Citation is the practice of acknowledging the sources of ideas, arguments, and evidence used in academic writing. It serves three purposes: it credits the original authors of ideas, it enables readers to locate and verify your sources, and it demonstrates to your marker that your argument is grounded in credible scholarly evidence.
Failing to cite sources, whether intentionally or through carelessness, constitutes plagiarism, which is a serious academic offence. Every claim that is not the writer's own original analysis must be attributed to a source. For a complete guide to avoiding plagiarism, read our article on how to avoid plagiarism.
In-text citations
In-text citations appear within the body of your essay immediately after the claim they support. The format varies depending on the referencing style required by your institution. In Harvard and APA, the citation takes the form (Author, Year). In OSCOLA (used in law), citations appear in footnotes. In Vancouver (used in health sciences), citations are numbered sequentially.
Always use the referencing style specified by your module or department. Mixing styles within a single piece of work is penalised. For complete guides to specific styles, see our articles on Harvard referencing, APA 7th referencing, and OSCOLA referencing.
Quoting directly
A direct quotation reproduces the source's exact words. In Harvard and APA, short quotations (fewer than approximately 40 words) appear in quotation marks within the running text, with the citation including a page number: (Smith, 2021, p. 34). Longer quotations are set as an indented block, without quotation marks.
Use direct quotation sparingly, paraphrasing with a citation is almost always preferable. Direct quotation is most appropriate when the original wording itself is the subject of analysis, when precise phrasing is legally or theoretically significant, or when the original passage is particularly eloquent and cannot be adequately restated.
Paraphrasing with citation
Paraphrasing restates an idea from a source in your own words and sentence structure, followed by a citation. It does not require a page number (though you may include one for clarity). Paraphrasing is the primary mode of engaging with sources in academic writing and demonstrates comprehension rather than mere copying.
A citation is required for paraphrased material just as much as for direct quotations. The idea belongs to the original author regardless of how thoroughly the wording has been changed. For detailed guidance on paraphrasing correctly, read our article on how to paraphrase.
Citing secondary sources
A secondary source is a source that discusses or quotes another author's work. Ideally, you should locate and read the original (primary) source rather than relying on another author's account of it. Citing secondary sources excessively suggests limited engagement with primary scholarship.
When the primary source is genuinely unavailable, secondary citation is acceptable and should be formatted as: "Smith (1985, as cited in Jones, 2021) argues that…" and only Jones (2021) appears in the reference list, since that is the source you actually read.
Reference list vs bibliography
A reference list contains only the sources cited within the text of your essay, every source cited must appear, and every entry listed must be cited. A bibliography may include additional sources consulted but not directly cited. Most UK university assignments require a reference list rather than a bibliography.
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