APA Formatting & Citation Guide (7th Edition)

This guide gives you practical steps for formatting papers and creating in‑text citations and reference lists in APA 7th edition, adapted for VTI students across programmes. For full details and more examples, see the official APA Style guidelines and the Purdue OWL APA introduction. [web:36][web:41][web:45]

How to Use This Guide

1. APA Paper Basics (Format)

These rules apply to most student APA papers unless your lecturer specifies otherwise. See APA’s overview of student papers and paper format for more detail. [web:51][web:45]

  • Font: Use a readable font such as 12‑pt Times New Roman, 11‑pt Calibri, 11‑pt Arial, or 11‑pt Georgia, consistently throughout the paper. [web:36]
  • Spacing: Double‑space the entire paper, including title page, headings, quotations, and reference list. [web:36]
  • Margins: Use 1‑inch (2.54 cm) margins on all sides. [web:36]
  • Alignment: Left‑align the text and leave the right margin ragged (do not justify). [web:36]
  • Paragraphs: Indent the first line of each paragraph by 0.5 in (use the Tab key once). [web:36]
  • Page numbers: Include a page number in the top right corner of every page, starting with page 1 on the title page. [web:36]

Tip: For visual examples and downloadable templates, see APA’s sample papers page and Purdue OWL’s APA sample paper. [web:49][web:50][web:51]

2. In‑Text Citations: The Basics

Every time you use information from a source (quote, paraphrase, or summarize), include a brief in‑text citation in the body of your paper. See APA’s page on in‑text citations for more examples. [web:40][web:45]

General pattern

APA in‑text citations normally include author surname and year, and for direct quotations also a page number. [web:46]

  • Parenthetical citation: (Field, 2005) or (Field, 2005, p. 14).
  • Narrative citation: Field (2005) argued that …; Field (2005, p. 14) found that “…”

See the APA overview of basic citation principles for more layouts. [web:45]

Number of authors

  • One author: (Nguyen, 2023)
  • Two authors: (Jones & Lee, 2021) – use “&” inside parentheses, “and” in narrative form (Jones and Lee, 2021).
  • Three or more authors: (Martins et al., 2022) – use first author’s surname + “et al.” from the first citation; see APA’s note on three or more authors. [web:40]

Missing information

  • No author: Use the first few words of the title and the year, e.g., (“Caribbean ICT Report,” 2020). See APA’s guidance on works without authors. [web:45]
  • No date: Use “n.d.” instead of the year, e.g., (Smith, n.d.). [web:40]
  • No page numbers: For sources like webpages or videos, use a paragraph number or section heading, e.g., (Jones, 2022, para. 4). [web:40][web:48]

Important: Every in‑text citation must match a reference list entry at the end of your paper. Purdue OWL explains this on its page about in‑text citations: the basics. [web:34]

3. Reference List: General Rules

The reference list appears on a new page titled “References” and gives full details for every source cited in the text. See APA’s reference list guidelines and Purdue OWL’s page on basic reference list rules. [web:34][web:45]

  • Title: Centre the word References at the top of the page (bold, same font as text). [web:47]
  • Order: Arrange entries alphabetically by the first author’s surname (or by title when there is no author). [web:34][web:47]
  • Spacing: Double‑space all entries; do not add extra blank lines between entries. [web:34][web:47]
  • Hanging indent: Use a hanging indent of 0.5 in for each entry (first line at the margin, next lines indented). [web:34][web:47]
  • Authors: Write surnames and initials (e.g., Brown, J. M.). For up to 20 authors, list all; for more than 20, list the first 19, insert an ellipsis, then the final author (see APA’s guidance on the author element). [web:45]

4. Core Reference Patterns (Examples)

These simplified patterns cover the sources you will use most often. For more variations (edited books, reports, videos, etc.), see APA’s reference examples by type. [web:45]

Book (print or ebook)

Pattern: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of book: Subtitle if any. Publisher. [web:45]

Journal article (with DOI)

Pattern: Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal in Italics, Volume(Issue), page–page. https://doi.org/xxxxx [web:45]

Webpage (no individual author)

Pattern: Organization Name. (Year). Title of webpage. URL [web:45]

Webpage (individual author)

Pattern: Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of webpage. Website Name. URL [web:60][web:45]

  • Example: Smith, L. (2022, May 10). Why open educational resources matter for the Caribbean. Caribbean Education Forum. https://www.caribed.org/oer‑caribbean
  • In‑text: (Smith, 2022) or Smith (2022).
  • More webpage examples: APA webpage/website references. [web:45]

5. Quoting, Paraphrasing and Avoiding Plagiarism

Using sources correctly means choosing between quoting and paraphrasing, and always giving credit. APA summarises this under its guidance on quotations and paraphrasing. [web:45]

  • Quoting: Use the exact words from a source, enclosed in quotation marks, and add author, year, and page number, e.g., (Field, 2005, p. 14). [web:46]
  • Paraphrasing: Restate the idea in your own words and sentence structure; still include author and year, but page numbers are optional, e.g., (Field, 2005). [web:40][web:46]
  • Avoid patchwriting: Do not only change a few words; instead, read, think, close the source, and then write the idea in your own way before checking for accuracy. [web:37]

Key rule: If the idea came from a source (even if you changed the wording), you must include an in‑text citation and a reference list entry. Purdue OWL’s section on using research and avoiding plagiarism is a helpful supplement. [web:37][web:34]

6. Useful Citation Tools

These tools can help you generate and manage APA citations, but you must always double‑check them against the APA links above. [web:40][web:57]

  • Scribbr APA Citation Generator – Generates APA 7 in‑text citations and references with many source types. [web:40][web:57]
  • Citation Machine (APA) – Citation generator that supports APA and other styles (watch for ads and double‑check output). [web:57]
  • MyBib APA Citation Generator – Free tool to create APA references and export reference lists. [web:57]
  • Zotero – Free reference manager to collect sources and automatically format citations and bibliographies in APA. [web:57]
  • Mendeley Reference Manager – Tool for storing PDFs and generating APA references (desktop and web versions). [web:57]

Reminder: Citation generators often make small mistakes with capitalization, italics, or missing elements—always compare the result with the official APA examples linked above.

Scroll to Top