Integrating and Citing Sources/Citation formatting

From UBC Wiki

Citation Formatting

Proper citation includes two parts: in-text citations and a complete reference list of sources from which these arose. In-text citations show the reader the specific information you have used in your paper and where exactly you draw on these sources in your discussion. The list of sources at the end of your paper gives the exact references you used, which allows anyone to easily find and refer back to them.

In STEM disciplines, there are different ways to format and organize citations, and these “style guides” are discipline-specific (and sometimes course-specific) (Hochberg, 2019, p. 14). Be sure to check with your instructor about which style they would prefer before you write your first lab report or paper.

Discipline/Subject
Association/Organization
Style Guide
Chemistry American Chemical Society ACS Citation Style Guide
Mathematics American Mathematical Style AMS Style Guide
Psychology and many other social science disciplines American Psychological Association APA Citation Style Guide
Some Engineering disciplines American Society of Civil Engineers ASCE Citation Style Guide
Various STEM disciplines The University of Chicago Press Chicago Manual of Style
Biology and other various STEM disciplines Council of Science Editors CSE Citation Name-Year Style Guide
Various engineering disciplines including:

Civil Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers IEEE Editorial Style Manual
Medical and Scientific journals; various Engineering disciplines International Committee of Medical Journal Editors Vancouver Style
Physics American Institute of Physics AIP Citation Style

When deciding which style of citing to use, make sure you follow any directions you were given. Once you choose a style, you must stick to it throughout your whole article. It is very important to be consistent with your formatting; it makes it easier for the reader to follow!

Check out UBC’s Library Tutorial on Citing Sources for a series of helpful videos!