A Guide to Referencing Academic Work
Introduction
This interactive tutorial is designed to teach students where and how to reference academic work such as essays and dissertations.
Guidance is provided on the correct use of two different methods of academic citation: the Modern Humanities Research Association (MHRA) system, in which references are contained in footnotes and a bibliography, and the Harvard, or 'author-date' system, where brief citations are placed in brackets within the text and full references are included in a reference list.
On completing this tutorial students should:
- Have an understanding of the importance of accurate and consistent referencing in their academic assignments
- Be aware of the dangers of plagiarism and the need to fully acknowledge their sources
- Have gained a basic level of competence in the use of the MHRA and Harvard referencing systems
- Have had an opportunity to test their knowledge and skills through a series of interactive exercises
The tutorial should take between 11/2 and 2 hours to complete. This can be achieved in as many sessions as required, and students can access the document at any time.
A printable text-only version of the tutorial, without the interactive questions, is available for downloading.
