how to properly cite sources in a college paper

#HOW TO PROPERLY CITE SOURCES IN A COLLEGE PAPER HOW TO#

They collect related articles on a subject from scattered sources.

Scientific American is acceptable for most college research papers, but not for a graduate thesis.

Most of the information in academia does not flow through books! The real information flow is through periodicals. Internet Periodicals by Reputable Organizations.Research Forums or Hotlines on the Internet.Reputable Translations of Foreign Works.Government publications are acceptable if they are research or technical publications, but generally not if they are popular brochures or pamphlets. Acceptability depends on how reputable the authors are and how thoroughly the publication checks its facts. Serious popular magazines occasionally have articles by authorities, interviews (even Playboy can be an acceptable source at times President Jimmy Carter got into political hot water over an interview there), or summaries of current topics of interest. Bottom line: use the media only if there is no other source. News media are acceptable only if the story is so fast-moving or so recent that there are no scholarly publications on the subject, or if you are researching a news story that has not yet been reported in other forms. Serious Popular Magazines (New Yorker, National Geographic).Reputable News Media (Time, Newsweek, New York Times).The Following MAY be Acceptable References But don't use it if you're not familiar enough with the subject matter to spot biases or errors. It's generally reliable for checking routine facts and extremely specialized topics, and it's often the only source on popular culture. More recently it's suffered from the problem of deliberate sabotage, vandalism, and censorship. Wikipedia suffers from the problem that it is not a primary source and has very weak quality control. Just like you can drive 65 miles an hour in a dense fog, but it's not a good idea. Don't do it even if permitted, as a general rule. This surprises me, because I didn't think many professors allowed encyclopedia citations, period. Many instructors forbid reference to Wikipedia at all. However, for subjects like AIDS, Comet Hale-Bopp, or the Space Shuttle, where the quantity of published information is huge, newspapers are not acceptable. If the topic is a fast-moving one where most of the information has flowed through the news media, newspapers may be acceptable. If your subject is children's literature, The Cat in the Hat might be an acceptable reference. If the medium itself is the subject of your paper: for example, how textbooks have treated gender roles over time, or how dictionaries have defined controversial terms, or how popular magazines have treated AIDS. You can only use the Internet if it's the equivalent of other acceptable sources. Also it's unregulated and there is no quality control. Most of what is on the Internet is the electronic equivalent of the other print sources listed and therefore not acceptable as a college reference. I can't use the Internet? Not the way most people do. That's why you start work on research papers as soon as they are assigned. I have written tons of encyclopedia articles, and I strive to do the most accurate job possible, but I know the limitations of encyclopedias from all angles.īut won't that take a lot of time? Yes. Start with the sources cited by the textbook or encyclopedia. If you want to document a point in a textbook or encyclopedia article, locate the original source for the idea. These are meant to get you started on a subject they are not research documents. So why do we have encyclopedias and textbooks? To provide an overview or introduction to a topic for complete beginners. Why? For the most part, they are not original sources. The Following are Usually NOT Acceptable References Also, you will have time to think about what you have found. That way, if you have trouble, you have lots of time to work out problems.

#HOW TO PROPERLY CITE SOURCES IN A COLLEGE PAPER HOW TO#

How to let your Professors Know you are Familiar with College Writing Use unconventional or inconsistent referencing styles.Be creative.Ask where to find references the week before the paper is due.Cite your class notes, your textbook, and the morning paper. How to let Professors know you are not Familiar with College Writing Your paper is only as good as its weakest source.

Use the most up-to-date and reliable source available.References for College PapersSteven Dutch, Professor Emeritus, Natural and AppliedSciences, University of Wisconsin - Green Bayįirst - time Visitors: Please visit Site Map andDisclaimer.

How to properly cite sources in a college paper