Citing Sources 

Because there is no one standard citation style used at MIT:

• Ask your professor or TA which style s/he prefers for the course.
• Use a standard style, such as APA, and be consistent with it throughout your paper.
• Use the Mayfield Handbook of Scientific and Technical Writing (chapter 10) for examples of various citation styles [MIT only].
• Ask for citation and paper-writing assistance at the MIT Writing and Communication Center.

Academic organizations and some disciplines outline their own styles of how to cite sources and format research papers.  Some common styles that you may have heard of or used include:

• APA: American Psychological Association
• MLA: Modern Language Association
• Chicago Manual of Style

Examples of discipline-specific styles include:

• ACS: American Chemical Society
• CBE: Council of Biology Editors
• IEEE: Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers

Citations contain standard elements (authors, titles, dates, etc.), but the format looks different between styles.  Whatever style you use, follow the guidelines accurately and consistently - form and punctuation count.

For example, here is a citation to a journal article using the APA style:

     Morawski, J. (2000). Social psychology a century ago. American Psychologist, 55, 427–431.

The same source is cited below using the Chicago style:

     Morawski, John.  "Social Psychology A Century Ago."  American Psychologist, 55 (2000): 427 - 431.

For examples of how to cite sources in various styles, use a citation tool:

• Style manuals, such as the Mayfield Handbook of Scientific and Technical Writing (chapter 10) [MIT only] 
• Citation software, such as EndNote, RefWorks, or Zotero.

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