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APA (6th ed.) Citing Guide

APA examples are not exhaustive & focus on referencing & citations. Assistance from your professor and/or Writing Centre is suggested. The library is not responsible for errors, omissions, or interpretation.

APA 6th Edition

This guide is representative of the 6th edition Publication Manual of APA.

APA examples are not exhaustive and focus on referencing and citations. Assistance from your professor and/or Writing Centre is suggested for clarification.

Users are responsible for interpretation of APA style guidelines and to seek further assistance when necessary.

Effective October 1, 2019.

 

Georgian will be adopting the 7th edition Publication Manual of APA in September 2020. (posted February 24, 2020)

Your APA Formatted Paper

APA format requires that your paper include:

  • A cover or title page
  • The paper itself (body/text)
  • A references page
  • Appendices (if necessary)

We strongly recommend that you:

  • Gather citations for the sources you plan to use as you do your research
  • Prepare your reference page BEFORE you write your paper
  • Check the Tips & Hints section for time savers
  • Use Citation Generators & database "Cite" features with caution - great as starting points, but not 100% accurate

With these two tasks done, you can simply insert your references as you cite them, greatly simplifying the task!

Review the sections of this box for specific tips about each section of your paper, more resources & helpful videos that explain how to apply APA formatting in Microsoft Word.

 

APA 6th edition does not typically include your course name, course code, date, or professor's name on the cover/title page. Cites & Sources recommends that students include this information. Please check with your professor for individual expectations.

To view a sample coverpage in APA format, click on the image below.

View a sample version of an APA formatted title/cover page

How to do it in Microsoft Word

The following videos, created by Walden University Academic Skills Center, may be helpful in applying the basic formatting needed for APA style, when using Microsoft Word.

To view a sample of what the body of an APA formatted paper looks like, click on the image below.

A sample of what the body/text part of an APA formatted paper would look like

How to do it in Microsoft Word

The following videos, created by Walden University Academic Skills Center, may be helpful in applying the basic formatting needed for APA style, when using Microsoft Word.

To view a sample of an APA reference page, click on the image below.

How to do it in Microsoft Word

The following videos, created by Walden University Academic Skills Center, may be helpful in applying the basic formatting needed for APA style, when using Microsoft Word.

To view a sample of an APA appendix page, click on the image below.

Other types of assignments

Many assignments are not in the form of an essay, report or research paper.

Always check with your Professor for exact details on how he or she would like citations to appear in assignments such as

  • Powerpoint slidessome assignments are not even in print - like presentations and slides
  • Videos or screen casts
  • Websites
  • Blogs & journal entries
  • Portfolios
  • Lab report
  • Poster boards

This page suggests how you may incorporate APA citation into other types of assignments.

Remember we cite to:

  Give credit to the author/creator of information
  Guide our reader to the source of our information
  Improve our credibility
  Avoid plagiarism

The official APA guide does not indicate how to include citations in certain forms of assignments. While the formatting of the overall assignment may vary, incorporate APA citations and a reference page into other types of assignments as best you can.