Referencing guides

What is referencing?

Referencing is a standardised method of acknowledging the sources of information and ideas that you have used in your assignments and submissions. Referencing provides enough information for the reader to find the original source you have quoted or used. There are dozens of different styles of referencing, but USQ has standard referencing styles for undergraduate students.

Referencing styles

It is University policy that Harvard AGPS or APA referencing styles be used in all undergraduate courses, with the exception of the Law School in the Faculty of Business which also uses AGLC. The Harvard AGPS and APA styles to be used are defined by the Library's referencing guides. 

• Harvard AGPS Referencing Guide
• APA Referencing Guide 
• Australian Guide to Legal Citation (AGLC) 

Before you begin researching and writing, check with the appropriate academic staff member as to which referencing style is required.

Why use referencing in my assignments?

Referencing is an important part of your writing at university. It is essential because referencing is the way you:

• show respect for and acknowledge the work of others
• give your work credibility and reliability
• demonstrate to your lecturer that you have read and considered the relevant literature
• allow your lecturer to validate and read further on a particular point that you have made
  follow academic writing standards
• avoid plagiarism (become familiar with the University's Regulations).

Failing to provide appropriate references is a form of Academic Misconduct called plagiarism. Avoiding plagiarism is the responsibility of every student, and there are penalties.  Also, in your future professional life, you will find that plagiarism can negatively affect the reputation of you, your colleagues and your employer and may even prompt legal action from the copyright owner of any work that is not acknowledged. 

What do I need to reference?

A reference is required when you:

1. Quote another person word for word (direct quotation). It doesn't matter whether it is a phrase, sentence or paragraph, you will need to provide a reference from which it was taken.
2. Paraphrase or summarise.  Ideas or data obtained from another writer must be referenced even if you have changed the wording and/or content.
3. Use statistics. (e.g. population).
4. Use tables, figures, diagrams and appendices.  The source of these must be acknowledged unless they are entirely from your own research work.
5. Use controversial facts, opinions, or a date which might be challenged. However, information of a general nature such as facts which are common knowledge, e.g. the years of World War II, do not need to be referenced.

In other words, you will need to reference any ideas or data you have used which are not your own. Please note that it is just as important to cite electronic sources as it is to reference print materials since they are both covered by copyright law.

What information will I need?

As you gather information for your assignments, you will need to record the details of your sources so that you can cite them in the text of your work and also list the full bibliographic details in your list of references at the end. Both the Harvard AGPS and APA referencing styles used at USQ are author-date styles so the in-text citations will consist mainly of the authors surnames and the year (and page numbers if appropriate). The list of references gives the full bibliographical details and also additional information such as date of access, database name and URL for electronic sources. Our guides contain examples of the detail you will need to include.

Other referencing styles

If your academic staff member teaches and administers another style of their own choice, please contact that academic staff member to clarify any referencing issues you may have. These styles may include:

• Oxford Style
• MLA Style.   

Need additional help applying these guides?

Please note: The Library is not responsible for checking lists of references. We can, however, refer you to our referencing guides and the published manuals listed to help you ensure the accuracy of your referencing.

• For Harvard AGPS and APA style guide enquiries contact a campus Library.
• For AGLC style guide enquiries, contact the appropriate academic staff or the Faculty Librarian (Law).
• For any other styles, please contact the appropriate academic staff member.

The Library has handbooks for various referencing styles that you may wish to consult. These include:

• Style manual for authors,editors and printers (6th ed.). This includes the Harvard AGPS Style that is used at USQ. The call number is 808.02.
• Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.) includes the APA style used at USQ. The call number is 808.06615 Pub. The Library also holds copies of the APA style guide to electronic references at 808.06615 Apa.
• MLA handbook for writers of research papers (5th edn.) is only held in Toowoomba at 808.027 Gib. The 6th edition however, is held at all campuses.
• Electronic styles: a handbook for citing electronic information (2nd ed.) is a standard work for citing electronic sources but provides examples for APA and MLA styles only. The call number is 808.027 Li held at Toowoomba only.

Additional tips on referencing and research skills can also be found on the University's plagiarism site, the Library's Finding Information Tutorial or via the Learning Centre.