There are many different "styles" you may choose from when citing sources. Your professor will probably tell you which "style" is preferred for your class. MLA (Modern Language Association), Chicago, and APA (American Psychological Association) are three of the most commonly used citation styles, but there are hundreds.
Recent editions of style manuals, which include detailed information and examples, are available at the Services & Information Desk at the University Library. If you need help on your research project, please contact a subject specialist librarian.
We have the Chicago Manual of Style available online as well as in print. For quick reference, there are many online sources. One of the best is the Purdue OWL. But be aware that the manual is always the most authoritative source.
Citation management tools allow you to keep citations, full-text articles, and other research resources organized in one place. These tools can also be used to format your bibliographies and the citations in your papers according to the appropriate style (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.) To use these tools, you should be familiar with the target citation style in order to input information correctly and notice any errors in your bibliography. Please contact a subject librarian for further assistance.
EndNote is software that helps manage citations for bibliographies. Includes an add-in for Microsoft Word. For questions about EndNote, please contact your subject librarian.
Mendeley is a free reference manager and academic social network that can help you organize your research, collaborate with others online, and discover the latest research. It includes a Microsoft Word plug-in and web importer. For questions about Mendeley, please contact Rachel Hinrichs, the Mendeley specialist librarian, or your subject librarian.
Zotero is a free Firefox extension to help you collect, manage, cite, and share your research sources. It includes an add-in for Microsoft Word. For questions, please contact your subject librarian.
Before you start to write and cite, you have to keep track of your research. You can do this in whichever way works best for you. Some people use a notebook and turn it into a research journal. Some people make notecards for each potential source, writing down the location of important quotes. Others, like me, have gone paperless and use a Citation Manager that allows you to take notes about each source as well as highlight and annotate a PDF or other file.
A research journal can also be a place to track searches and search strategies. I like to use a spreadsheet to track where I've searched, what keywords I used, and where I still need to look.
The bottom line is for you to track what you've done so you don't have to retrace your steps and so you can locate a source to properly cite it. Professionals have been accused of plagiarism because they failed to take good notes during their research.
The IU Indianapolis University Writing Center (UWC) is a free service available to all IU Indianapolis students, faculty, and staff, at both the graduate and undergraduate level. It is a place where students can go for help with writing assignments and projects. The UWC offers students the opportunity to work one-on-one with experienced readers and writers.
The UWC offers two convenient locations: Cavanaugh Hall (CA 427) and University Library (UL 2125).
To schedule a tutoring session at either the Cavanaugh Hall location or University Library location, you may telephone the CA location at (317) 274-2049, telephone the UL location at (317) 278-8171, or visit either UWC location. You must provide both your name and your University ID number, at the time you schedule the session.
