RMIT University

Referencing guides

There are many referencing styles. Make sure that you know which referencing style your School or lecturer wants you to use.

We create and maintain guides for most referencing styles and provide links to other referencing resources. If you need assistance with the interpretation and use of referencing styles, please contact your lecturer, or visit the Study and Learning Centre website.

What is referencing?

When writing an essay or assignment, you are required to acknowledge all the sources of information that you have used, whether you are directly copying the words of another author (quoting) or putting their ideas into your own words (paraphrasing). This is so you can

References have two parts:

Other University referencing guides

AGLC referencing style

Australian Guide to Legal Citation (AGLC) is a required referencing style for RMIT Juris Doctor. It is published by Melbourne University Law Review Association Inc.

APA referencing style

APA is an author-date referencing style produced by the American Psychological Association. There have been several editions of the Publication Manual, the aim of which is to aid authors in the preparation of manuscripts. Always follow information given to you by your lecturer regarding referencing.

* APA Quick Guide (DOC, 73 KB, 3 pages)

* APA Extended Guide (DOC, 135 KB, 10 pages)

See also:

Harvard referencing style

Harvard is an author-date referencing style widely accepted in scholarly circles. Each reference is indicated in the text by the author and date of the publication cited, sometimes with added information such as page numbers. The full details of these references are listed at the end of the text in a Reference list. Always follow information given to you by your lecturer regarding referencing.

Business students should use the RMIT Business style not the general Harvard style.

* Harvard Quick Guide (DOC, 67 KB, 2 pages)

* Harvard Extended Guide (DOC, 161 KB, 14 pages)

See also:

RMIT Business referencing style

RMIT Business produce their own referencing guidelines entitled Written reports and essays: guidelines for referencing and presentation in RMIT Business which all Business students should use. The referencing style that is used is a variation of the Harvard style known as the AGPS style, published in the Style manual for authors, editors and printers, 6th ed.

RMIT Business referencing guidelines (RTF, 1,286 KB, 52 pages)

A supporting Referencing website has been developed for the RMIT Business guidelines.

Vancouver referencing style

Vancouver is a numbered referencing style that is predominantly used in the medical field. It follows rules established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. It is also known as: Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals. Each source is given the same number each time it is referred to in the work. Always follow information given to you by your lecturer regarding referencing.

* Vancouver Quick Guide (DOC, 46 KB, 2 pages)

* Vancouver Extended Guide (DOC, 54 KB, 4 pages)

See also:

ACS referencing style

ACS is a referencing style produced by the American Chemical Society. It offers two different types of referencing, either; (a) a numbered style, or (b) an author-date style. Always follow information given to you by your lecturer regarding referencing.

AIP referencing style

AIP is a numbered referencing style produced by the American Institute of Physics. References are numbered in the order of appearance in the article and listed in that order at the end of the article. Always follow information given to you by your lecturer regarding referencing.

Chicago referencing style

Chicago is a referencing style developed by the University of Chicago. It offers two different types of referencing, either: (a) a footnotes-bibliography style, or (b) an author-date style. The RMIT University Library’s guide provides examples using the footnotes-bibliography style. Always follow information given to you by your lecturer regarding referencing.

* Chicago Quick Guide (RTF, 80 KB, 2 pages)

* Chicago Extended Guide (RTF, 427 KB, 17 pages)

See also:

IEEE referencing style

The IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) citation style is a numbered referencing style used in electrical, electronic and computing publications. IEEE provides instructions for authors for each type of publication such as journals, magazines, newsletters, and standards. References are numbered in the order of appearance in the article, not in alphabetical order. Always follow information given to you by your lecturer regarding referencing.

* IEEE Quick Guide (RTF, 104 KB, 2 pages)

* IEEE Extended Guide (RTF, 176 KB, 7 pages)

See also:

MLA referencing style

The MLA referencing style was developed by the Modern Languages Association of America (MLA). The organisation was founded in 1883, when modern languages were beginning to gain a place in the curriculum alongside the classical languages – ancient Greek and Latin. The MLA Handbook originated over fifty years ago being first published as the “MLA Style Sheet” in 1951. Always follow information given to you by your lecturer regarding referencing.

* MLA Quick Guide (RTF, 96 KB, 2 pages)

* MLA Extended Guide (RTF, 348 KB, 16 pages)

See also: MLA handbook for writers of research papers, 7th edition