Essential Steps

(5) Acknowledging and listing your sources

Although many people do not list their sources and references until they have finished a research project, the best time to think about it is when you begin. Take careful notes of what you have read, and where you read it, so that you can back up your conclusions, and find the information again if you need to.

Techniques for listing sources (citing) vary from department to department. One easy way to find out what style you should be using is to follow the one on your reading list. If in doubt, ask your lecturer or tutor.

It is essential that you acknowledge what you have read to protect yourself against charges of plagiarism. It is is also vital:

• to prove that your work has a substantial, factual basis
• to show the research you've done to reach your conclusions
• to allow your readers to identify and retrieve the references for their own use