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Rasmussen University Online Library

APA 7th Edition Guide

This guide provides an overview of the APA citation style and provides students with basic information to begin learning and applying this style in their academic writing.

APA 7th Edition - The Basics

Components of an APA Paper

Setting up the paper: APA Formatting   

  • Double spaced, one-inch margins
  • Six acceptable fonts
  • Title page format
  • Headings

In-Text Citations

  • Format of in-text citations for paraphrases or summaries: (Author, Date).
  • Format of in-text citations for quotations: (Author, Date, p. #)
  • Place in-text citations at end of sentence (parenthetical) or in the sentence (narrative) where information from source material is integrated.

References

  • References are composed of four elements: Author. (Date). Title. Source.
  • References appear in alphabetical order in the reference list, often the last page of your APA paper.
Citation Tools

Rasmussen University students have access to two resources that can be used to generate APA-style references: 

Six Steps to Proper Citation

Follow this process to gather, integrate, and properly cite information found through your research process into your research assignment.

 

Where to Find Help

APA Tutoring

Make an appointment with an APA tutor to review your paper for the following:

  • Title page
  • Body of paper formatting
  • References list
  • In-text citations

Library Live Chat

The Rasmussen University librarians staff a live chat service to assist students with questions about locating resources, APA citation style, research assignments, and more.  The service is offered:

  • Monday - Thursday       12:00 pm - 8:00 pm (CT)
  • Sunday                            4:00 pm - 8:00 pm (CT)

Look for the Live Chat in the Student Portal, on the Library page, in the Resources tab in your course, as well as in all of the Library Guides.  Enter your Rasmussen student email in the first text box, select your status (student, faculty, staff) in the dropdown menu in the second text box, and click "Start Chat" to begin the session.

 

APA Style Experts: Blog & Style and Grammar Guidelines

The APA Style Experts have created two helpful resources, the APA Style Blog and the APA Style and Grammar Guidelines:

Consider bookmarking these helpful websites!