Writing at university involves researching the ideas of other people, which you can combine with your own ideas and conclusions. Learning to acknowledge other people’s work through in-text citing and referencing will help differentiate between their ideas and your own. This is central to the idea of academic honesty in Western academic institutions.

Reasons for referencing:

• To show respect for the original source. Using someone else’s work as your own without properly acknowledging it is considered intellectual theft.
• To demonstrate that you have done the research. Your teachers want to see that you have considered the experts when forming the basis of your arguments.
• To show what research you've done. Your teacher must assess the quality of your research. Accurate referencing following a specific style will enable the reader to easily locate and verify your research.
• To avoid plagiarism. Failure to properly acknowledge when you have used the work of others means you are implying that the idea or words are yours. This is plagiarism and the consequences may affect your academic progress at university.

Read the VU Academic Honesty and Preventing Plagiarism Policy for more details.

We have provided guides (on the Library's LibGuides platform) for each of the referencing styles used at VU.

Before you write your reference list or bibliography, check with your lecturer/tutor which style they prefer you to use and refer to the instructions included with your assignment.