You may use either MLA or APA style for your paper. You must pick one or the other, do not mix formatting styles.
When you are ready to cite the sources you have used for your research, visit the library's homepage and click MLA or APA under the Citation heading for the guide prepared by the library. It will offer example citations for the most common source types.
If you need help, ask a librarian or submit your question to Ask us anything!
You need to cite where your information came from in the body of your paper (in-text/parenthetical citations) AND on a Works Cited/References page at the end.
You can choose to use either MLA or APA style. Pick ONE OR THE OTHER. Do not mix citations styles within your paper.
Be aware that MLA has updated their format guidelines Summer 2016. Databases may cite in MLA 7 or MLA 8.
MLA In-text:
A survey of high school football coaches showed that 70 to 90% would send a player showing signs of a concussion to a healthcare professional before permitting them to return to play. (Guilmette, Malia and McQuiggan 1043).
Or:
A study by Guilmette, Malia and McQuiggan shows that most high school football coaches (70 to 90%) would require a player showing signs of a concussion to be seen by a healthcare professional before returning to play (1043).
MLA 8 Works Cited Page:
Guilmette, Thomas J., et al. "Concussion Understanding and Management among New England High School Football Coaches." Brain Injury, vol. 21, no. 10, Sept. 2007, pp. 1039-1047. Academic Search Complete, lib-proxy.sunywcc.edu:2065/ehost/detail/detail?vid=3&sid=93103e3a-f6a6-49a8-9f6c-84da21e7cf77%40sessionmgr4007&hid=4213&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=26705688&db=a9h. Accessed 27 Feb. 2017.
APA In-text:
A survey of high school football coaches showed that 70 to 90% would send a player showing signs of a concussion to a healthcare professional before permitting them to return to play. (Guilmette, et.al., 2007, p. 1043).
Or:
A study by Guilmette, et. al. (2007) shows that most high school football coaches (70 to 90%) would require a player showing signs of a concussion to be seen by a healthcare professional before returning to play (p. 1043).
APA References Page:
Guilmette, T.J., L.A. Malia, and M.D. McQuiggan. (2007) Concussion understanding and management among New England high school football coaches. Brain Injury, 21(10), 1039-1047.Retrieved from Academic Search Complete. doi:10.3109/02699051003648227
Plagiarism occurs when you use another person's verbal or written words or text in your own work without appropriately documenting the source of the borrowed words or text. The borrowed text could come from a variety of places, such as a book, a newspaper, a magazine, a website, or even another student's paper.
The WCC Academic Honesty Policy states:
PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is the act of presenting another person’s ideas, research, or writing as your own. Examples include:
Copying another person’s actual words without both the use of quotations and documentation.
Presenting another person’s ideas or theories in your own words without documentation.
Using information that is not considered common knowledge without acknowledging the source.
Using a paper writing “service” or having a friend write the paper for you.
Note: The guidelines that define plagiarism also apply to information secured on internet websites. Internet references must specify precisely where the information was obtained and where it can be found.
You may think that citing another author’s work will lower your grade. In some unusual cases this may be true, if your instructor has indicated that you must write your paper without reading additional material. But in fact, as you progress in your studies, you will be expected to show that you are familiar with important work in your field and can use this work to further your thinking. Your professors write this kind of paper all the time. The key to avoiding plagiarism is that you show clearly where your own thinking ends and someone else’s begins.
No matter where the text comes from, it must be documented accurately. Accurate documentation means that you must follow the MLA (Modern Language Association) or APA (American Psychological Association) rules for documentation.
The above video will show you how to format your Word doc in APA style (e.g. how to insert running headers etc).
While the librarians can help you find sources for your paper, visit the Writing Center (part of the Academic Support Center) for help with writing and structuring your thoughts on paper.
The virtual tutoring services thru ZOOM are offered Monday thru Friday 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM. Students who are enrolled in Online Synchronous/ Asynchronous classes will have the priority when scheduling virtual tutoring appointments.
Request a virtual appointment Askatutor-wri@sunywcc.edu or call them at (914) 606-7853.
