22 Citing from Reliable Sources: In-text Citations and List of References

Imagine that you have to travel from Washington DC to New York City. What are the different ways in which you can complete the journey? Some of the options are: take a train, drive by car, fly by plane, take a bus, and so forth. The goal is the same–to reach New York City, but the formats to do so may vary from one option to another.

Citing sources in academic assignments is a bit like that. In different disciplines, different formats are preferred in terms of how you provide in-text citations and also list references at the end of your assignments. Look at the helpful infographic below, provided by the Utah State University, to see some of the most popular formats that are used in different academic disciplines.