In academic writing, authors are expected to cite their sources for a variety of reasons:
In this field, students usually cite in American Psychological Association (APA) style. The primary APA resource that all students should use is the APA guide that is required for their program.
The following APA guide is required for your program:
Traditional and Graduate
American Psychological Association. (2019). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
RN/BS and ATB
American Psychological Association (2020). Concise guide to APA Style (7th ed.).
Copies of these guides are available in print in the library:
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association by
The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, Seventh Edition is the official source for APA Style. With millions of copies sold worldwide in multiple languages, it is the style manual of choice for writers, researchers, editors, students, and educators in the social and behavioral sciences, natural sciences, nursing, communications, education, business, engineering, and other fields. Known for its authoritative, easy-to-use reference and citation system, the Publication Manual also offers guidance on choosing the headings, tables, figures, language, and tone that will result in powerful, concise, and elegant scholarly communication. It guides users through the scholarly writing process--from the ethics of authorship to reporting research through publication. The seventh edition is an indispensable resource for students and professionals to achieve excellence in writing and make an impact with their work. The seventh edition has been thoroughly revised and updated to reflect best practices in scholarly writing and publishing. All formats are in full color, with a new tabbed spiral version Improved ease of navigation, with many additional numbered sections to help users quickly locate answers to their questions Resources for students on writing and formatting annotated bibliographies, response papers, and other paper types as well as guidelines on citing course materials Dedicated chapter for new users of APA Style covering paper elements and format, including sample papers for both professional authors and student writers New chapter on journal article reporting standards that includes updates to reporting standards for quantitative research and the first-ever qualitative and mixed methods reporting standards in APA Style New chapter on bias-free language guidelines for writing about people with respect and inclusivity in areas including age, disability, gender, participation in research, race and ethnicity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, and intersectionality More than 100 new reference examples covering periodicals, books, audiovisual media, social media, webpages and websites, and legal resources More than 40 new sample tables and figures Expanded guidance on ethical writing and publishing practices, including how to ensure the appropriate level of citation, avoid plagiarism and self-plagiarism, and navigate the publication process Guidelines that support accessibility for all users, including simplified reference, in-text citation, and heading formats as well as additional font options
Concise Guide to APA Style by
Concise Guide to APA Style, Seventh Edition is the official APA Style resource for students. Written for high school and undergraduate students, instructors, and writers learning APA Style, this easy-to-use pocket guide is adapted from the seventh edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. It provides complete guidance for new writers on effective, clear, and inclusive scholarly communication and the essentials of formatting papers and other course assignments. The seventh edition has been thoroughly revised and updated to reflect best practices in scholarly writing and publishing. Full color throughout Content relevant to a range of majors and courses, including psychology, social work, criminal justice, communications, composition, education, business, engineering, and more New chapter focused on student papers Sample student title page, paper, and annotated bibliography Streamlined APA Style headings and in-text citations New chapter on writing style and grammar Chapters on punctuation, lists, italics, spelling, capitalization, abbreviations, numbers, and statistics Latest bias-free language guidelines More than 20 new sample tables and figures Comprehensive guidelines on citation to help writers credit their sources appropriately and avoid plagiarism and self-plagiarism More than 100 new reference templates and examples, including traditional sources (e.g., journal articles, books, dissertations, and reports) plus many others (e.g., social media, webpages and websites, legal)
The library's APA citation guide is available here. We also have information about using NoodleTools and Zotero to help you keep track of your research and cite your sources.
The APA's website and blog have a great deal of information about the mechanics of citation:
For more resources on citing sources in different styles, visit the following guide:
For resources on writing papers and creating projects in this discipline, view the following:
These sample papers demonstrates how your paper should be formatted, organized, and written to meet course and APA style guidelines. The sample papers are in pdf format; your papers should be created and saved using Microsoft Word* unless otherwise specified or allowed by the instructor or course instructions.
*Note: All students have free access to Office 365, which includes Microsoft Word.
This checklist was created by nursing faculty to ensure that you follow the steps to submit your best possible paper. It was created for students taking SUO nursing courses, but students in the traditional program may want to view it as well. Feel free to download a copy and use as a resource when writing a paper.
Nursing students have access to writing tutors who can assist with citation as well as the general organization of an academic paper.
Students taking on-campus classes can make an appointment with Academic Link writing tutors through the TutorTrac system.
Students taking online classes have access to Brainfuse, an online tutoring service. The online tutors can review your writing or answer questions in a live session. You can access Brainfuse from your Blackboard course. Find more information about Brainfuse by viewing their website.
SafeAssign is used in the majority of nursing classes when your work is submitted through the assignment link. This tool checks submitted assignments for originality against other submitted works in the Global Reference Database.
Click here to learn more about how SafeAssign works
When you submit your assignment it may take up to 24 hours for the originality report to be generated for your review. It is important that you understand how to review your SafeAssign Originality report and how to interpret the scores. Review the links below for detailed information.
Click here to learn how to review your originality report in the new layout
Click here to learn how to interpret your SafeAssign scores
Some instructors may have a suggested threshold for your SafeAssign score. Check your syllabus or assignment instructions for more information.
