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Reference List

General Information

Introduction to References

Reference Elements

Each reference has a standard format that contains at least four pieces of information:

  • author,
  • year,
  • title, and
  • source.

In APA @ Conestoga, each piece is separated by punctuation.

Depending on the type of source, more information may be required.

Reference Format

Your references page must

  • be on a separate page after the body of the paper, but before any appendices,
  • have a centred and bold title (Reference if you use one source or References if you use more than one source),
  • use double-spaced lines,
  • have a hanging indent for each entry, and 
  • be alphabetized A – Z according to the first letter of each entry.

Ordering Entries

Entries in a reference list are always listed alphabetically. The table below outlines how to order entries in instances where alphabetizing may be unclear.

Table 1

Ordering Tricky Reference Entries

Different Authors, Same Last Name, Different First Initial Order the entries alphabetically using the first initial. Miller, J.
Miller, L.
Different Authors, Same Last Name, Same First Initial Include the first name of the author in the reference with the full name of the author in square brackets after the initial. Smith, P. [Paul]. (2016).
Smith, P. [Pierre]. (2015).
Same Author, Same Year, Two Different Sources Order the entries alphabetically by title and add a lowercase letter beside the year. Jones, J. R. (2001a). Contrastive Analysis Implications.
Jones, J. R. (2001b). Deciphering the English Language.