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Similar Topics:
• Footnotes, Endnotes, and In-Text References
• Avoid Plagiarism

Create a Bibliography

A bibliography (also sometimes called a "Works Cited" page) lists all the materials used in the creation of an academic paper or project. A bibliography can be a simple list of website addresses or a very detailed list published in a specific format or "style" and included at the end of your report. Be sure to check with your teacher and specific school policies to find out which bibliography format you should use.

The Internet and presentation tools have made it very easy to simply copy and paste information that you did not author. However, anytime you borrow information from the Internet, you must be sure you provide the proper citations and acknowledgements. In other words, you must include footnotes, endnotes or in-text citations, and a bibliography.

Here are two common formats for listing a professional website within a bibliography:

MLA Style (Humanities Style)
Author’s Last Name, First Name. "Title of Document." Title of Complete Work [if applicable]. Version or file numbers [if applicable]. Name of the institution or organization associated with the site [if applicable]. Document date or date of last revision [if different from access date]. Access Date <URL>.
APA Style (Scientific Style)
Author’s Last name, Initial(s). (Date of publication or "No Date" if unavailable). Title of work or article. Title of Complete Work. Version or file numbers [if applicable]. Available: Specify URL [date of access].

Example: Creating a Bibliography or Works Cited Page

Let's say you wrote a research paper on Frederick Douglass and used the following three sources:

"The Autobiography of Frederick Douglass"
"American Visionaries: Frederick Douglass"
"Frederick Douglass: Abolitionist/Editor"

Example of website being cited:

To create your bibliography page, perform the following:

1. Open a new document within your word processor and name it "Bibliography" or "Works Cited."

2. List in alphabetical order each article or piece of information for which you need to provide a citation. We suggest using either MLA or APA style (see above). Although these formats are standard, you should always check with your school/instructor for specific bibliography instructions.

3. An acceptable bibliography for these three sites would look like this:

A Hypertext on American History

http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/B/fdouglas/doug01.htm

"Judgment Day: Frederick Douglass." Africans in America. WGBH Educational
Foundation. 1998. 8 July 2002 <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p1539.html>.

Thomas, Sandra. "Frederick Douglass: Abolitionist/Editor." University of Rochester. 8 July 8, 2002 <http://www.history.rochester.edu/class/douglass/home.html>.

We encourage you to learn more about bibliographies by checking out the following websites.

Bibliography Information on the Internet:

Style Sheets for Citing Internet & Electronic Resources
How to write a bibliography in 3 different styles: Humanities, Scientific, & History. (http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Style.html)

How to Write a Bibliography
Guidelines for writing a bibliography for a report.
( http://www.geocities.com/EnchantedForest/Tower/6766/bibliography.html)