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Citing references

Guidance on citing references for students at the University of Reading
Top tips for citing references

In this guide we cover all aspects of referencing from citing specific sources to avoiding plagiarism. These are our top tips. Explore the menu on the left to delve deeper.

  1. Find out which style your department uses and what is required for your specific assignment.
  2. Check and double check your references against your departmental guidance. Make sure references are complete, accurate, in the right style, in the right order and have correct punctuation. 
  3. Use sources to support your arguments – paraphrase effectively and only use quotations when appropriate.
  4. Use Turnitin similarity reports, if available, to check your referencing and appropriate use of sources.
  5. Consider using a reference management tool such as EndNote or Mendeley to help take some of the pain out of referencing.

"I know how to reference - why should I use this guide?"

Referencing is a key academic practice for university students. Through correct referencing, you...

  • acknowledge the author/s contribution to your understanding
  • give your reader the opportunity to reproduce your research by following the same cited texts
  • show that you can work with accuracy and rigour by learning and following a set of rules.
What's expected at University?

You may have used citations and references before, in school or college, or when studying outside the UK. However, this is likely to be quite different from what we expect you to do at the University of Reading. You should always check the Course Handbook for the subject you are going to submit your assignment to and any specific requirements given in the assignment brief. The Course Handbook will show you which referencing style is required and may give you some examples. We've also listed the styles in use in each department along with links to more specific guidance on the 'Which style does your School/Department use?' page in this guide.

You can lose marks for incorrect referencing, or even find yourself guilty of accidental plagiarism. So do read through all of the sections - not just the sections on how to write citations. Once you have learnt the principles, you will be able to adapt them to cite all the different materials you may use in your studies at university.

Use the menu on the left to explore topics in this guide.

Watch these short videos on how to reference

We've produced a series of short videos to help you reference correctly and give other tips to help you with citing references.

If you are unable to view these videos on YouTube they are also available on YuJa (University username and password required):

Cite Them Right guide