Resources for Students
Resources for Students
Resources for Students
Resources for Students
Student Resources
Academic Writing
APA Referencing & Citation
APA style refers to the academic format style developed by the American Psychological Association. It is generally used in the social sciences (including communication studies, economics, education, psychology, sociology, etc.).
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In-text citations use an "author-date" style, providing the last name of the author of the source and the date when the source was made or published, written in parentheses, e.g. (Smith, 2015).
In the reference list, sources are listed alphabetically, according the first letter of the author’s last name (or the first letter of the name of the website, company, or university that published the material). Each entry uses “hanging indentation” which can be easily done using the paragraph settings in MS Word.
For more information, visit these recommended websites:
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The American Psychological Association APA Style Website or the APA Style Blog
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Purdue University Online Writing Lab (APA Formatting & Style)
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IEEE Referencing & Citation
IEEE style (often referred to as “I-Triple-E”) refers to the referencing and citation style developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. It is used in fields of electrical and electronics engineering, computers, and IT.
In-text citations use a “numeric” system in which each citation appears as a number in square brackets e.g. [1] at the end of a sentence before the punctuation mark. Each number represents an individual source (article, book, etc.). The number given to each source depends on when the source is referred to in the text (the first citation will be number 1); throughout the text that number will always refer to the same source.
In the reference list, sources are listed numerically according to the number they were given in the text.
For more information, visit these recommended websites:
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MLA Referencing & Citation
MLA style refers to the academic format style developed by the Modern Language Association. It is generally used in the liberal arts and humanities (including literature, philosophy, religion, art, music, history, etc.).
In-text citations use an “author-page” system of referencing and citation, providing the author’s last name and the page in the source from which the information was taken, written in parentheses e.g. (Smith, 175).
The "Works Cited" list entries are listed alphabetically, according the first letter of the author’s last name (or the first letter of the name of the company or organization that published the material). Each entry uses “hanging indentation” as shown below. This can be easily done using the paragraph settings in MS Word.
For more information, visit these recommended websites:
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Literature Reviews
A Literature Review is basically a summary discussion of research that has been published related to a specific academic subject or field of study.
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Literature reviews look like academic essays, and follow the same format rules regarding font size and style, line spacing, page margins, referencing and citations, etc. Literature reviews are often organized into sections, each with their own headings and sub-headings. Literature reviews are often written as a part of a longer research paper, but they may also be required as a stand-alone (i.e. separate) course assignment.
The purpose of literature reviews can be summarized as follows:
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To highlight scholarly literature related to a topic;
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To highlight the focal point of the writer’s own research;
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To show how the writer’s research is related to other, past research;
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To demonstrate the writer’s ability to critically evaluate relevant sources and incorporate them into new, original academic work.
For more information:
Download the WCP Essentials Guide to Literature Reviews
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Or Watch: Literature Reviews: Gathering and Synthesizing Research
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Additional Resources:
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The Literature Review (University of Toronto Writing Advice)
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How to Write a Review of Literature (University of Wisconsin Madison)
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Literature Reviews (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Writing Center)
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Abstracts (Content & Format)
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An Abstract is basically a summary which outlines key information and content areas of a longer work such as an academic article, scientific research paper, research (and conference) proposals, and graduate-level theses and dissertations.
Abstracts are typically formatted as a single paragraph that appears at the beginning of a research paper. Longer abstracts may be organized into short paragraphs focusing on specific components and information. Although they appear at the beginning of the paper, abstracts are generally written last, when all the research has been completed, the results analyzed, and the paper written. The crucial requirement for all abstracts is that they use clear, concise language to efficiently summarize the essential components, ideas, and information in the paper.
For More information,
Download the WCP Essentials Guide to Abstract Writing
Or view these recommended resources:
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Writing Report Abstracts and Journal Abstracts (The Purdue University OWL)
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Writing an Abstract for your Research Paper (with examples) (The Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin, Madison)
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Thesis Statements
The thesis statement (sometimes referred to as simply the thesis) of your research paper is the statement around which the rest of the composition is built. Some refer to it as the umbrella under which the main points of the essay (argumentative, analytical, descriptive, or expository) are presented. The style and substance of the thesis statement may vary, depending on the type of essay or research paper you are writing, but typically academic thesis statements share certain core characteristics.
Generally speaking, a thesis statement
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appears at the beginning of the essay, often in the first paragraph, but not always
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clearly presents the main idea of the essay
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is written as just that, i.e. a “statement”, not a question
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is not a commonly known fact or something that cannot be argued (or defended)
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makes an assertion (esp. in argumentative writing) regarding the author’s position or intent
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indicates to the reader what to expect in the rest of the essay
For more information on how to write an effective thesis statement, visit these recommended websites:
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Tips and Examples for Writing Thesis Statements (Purdue University Online Writing Lab)
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Developing Strong Thesis Statements (Purdue University Online Writing Lab) ​
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