Referencing in Essays

Referencing in essays is very critical for attaining top grades. It demonstrates that the writer has researched properly and thoroughly knows the topic. It proves to the editor or checker that the content of the essay is not just copied by the author.

Here is the list of things one should keep in mind when it comes to listing references:

• Using References

Everyone gets many ideas or thoughts from different resources and then expresses them in their own distinct ways. Writers mainly get the ideas by reading books, newspapers, works published over the Internet and researching other sources. Many authors can memorize the ideas, but most often they are unable to recall the sources, particularly with the passage of time. Therefore, the best thing to do is to keep a record of all the sources of the ideas that are related to one’s topic or one may use in future works.

Properly attributing all the ideas that belong to others is a key when referencing in essays. It is a good practice to use referencing, even if the source of the information is anonymous. Writers should not only give credit for quotations, but also for particular theories and propositions. If the writer rephrases, summarizes or translates someone’s work, it is still important to pass on the credit. If the writer doesn’t remember the source of information, it is advised to not to use it at all.

• Referencing Systems

Several systems are used for referencing in essays. Often the guidelines don’t list a specific referencing system a writer must use. In that situation, author should use the most appropriate one that is best for the particular essay. It is recommended that if the writer has the choice then he or she must select a popular system like Harvard or numeric referencing.

Harvard System for Referencing: This style involves using in-text references. Citations that include the source name, year of publication and the number of related page are used at appropriate points within the text. The details for each citation are provided in the reference list after the conclusion of the essay. This system can be quite confusing, particularly when the large number of citations are there.

Numeric System for Referencing: This system uses several referencing styles like British, Vancouver, IEEE and MHRA. It involves inserting numbers starting with 1 at appropriate places in the text to support the work. The reference list or bibliography is used at the end of the essay to give details about these numbers.

Sometimes the writers may come across odd references like websites, e-books, podcasts or emails that are difficult to list using the traditional styles. Though one can experiment a bit to adjust such references in the essay, it is recommended that writers should follow the chosen referencing system.

• Reference List or Bibliography

The reference list or bibliography is where writers provide the detailed information about the various sources used in compiling the essay. Simply adhere to the system selected earlier like for numeric systems use linear order and for Harvard use chronological order.

Creating a proper referencing in essays is very important for the writes as it provides a good idea to the examiner, whether through research is done or not. Writers with doubts about selecting the system or how to use references correctly must take the opinion of professional essay advisor.