Why citation matters
Citing your sources gives credit to the researchers whose work you build on, lets readers trace your evidence, and protects you from plagiarism. Every claim that is not your own idea — a quotation, a paraphrase, a statistic, a figure — needs a citation.
This guide covers the citation styles supported at Aurora, the tools the library licenses, and the two special cases students ask about most: Arabic sources and AI-generated content.
Choosing a citation style
There is no single correct style — each discipline has its own conventions. The four styles below cover almost every programme at Aurora. Use one style consistently throughout a piece of work; never mix them.
Your department may mandate a specific style and edition. Check your course handbook or ask your supervisor before you start writing.
| Style | Typical disciplines | In-text form | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| APA 7 | Social sciences, education, psychology | Author–date | (Al-Harbi, 2026) |
| MLA 9 | Languages and literature | Author–page | (Farouk 143) |
| Chicago 17 | History, arts, Islamic studies | Footnotes + bibliography | 12. Mansour, 88. |
| IEEE | Engineering, computing | Numbered brackets | [14] |
Reference managers
A reference manager stores your sources, inserts citations while you write, and rebuilds the bibliography when you switch styles. The library supports three:
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Zotero
Free and open source. The recommended default for undergraduates; the library runs a beginners' workshop each term.
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EndNote
Covered by the university site licence for faculty and postgraduates. Strongest for very large libraries and team projects.
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Mendeley
Free tier with cloud sync and PDF annotation. Popular in engineering and the sciences.
Citing Arabic sources
When you write in English about an Arabic source, romanise the author and title using the ALA-LC scheme, then give the publication details as usual. When you write in Arabic, cite Arabic sources in Arabic script directly — do not romanise.
al-Jābirī, Muḥammad ʿĀbid. Naqd al-ʿaql al-ʿArabī. Beirut: Markaz Dirāsāt al-Waḥdah al-ʿArabīyah, 2009.
The A–Z directory sorts Arabic and Latin titles together under one collation, so you can verify the exact transliterated title the library catalogue uses before you cite it.
AI-generated content
If a generative-AI tool contributed to your work, your department's policy determines whether that use is permitted. Where it is, cite the tool, the version, the date and the prompt context, following the pattern your citation style publishes.
Submitting AI-generated text as your own work, without citation, is treated as plagiarism under the Academic Integrity Policy.
Read the Academic Integrity PolicyCommon questions
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Do I cite a source if I only read the abstract?
Cite only what you actually consulted. If you rely on an abstract, say so — or find the full text through the discovery search first, which links to the licensed copy.
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How do I cite a database record with no named author?
Move the issuing organisation, or the database itself, into the author position. Use the date of the record, not the date you read it.
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Two works by the same author in the same year — how do I tell them apart?
Add a lowercase letter after the year, in the order the works appear in your reference list. A reference manager does this for you automatically.
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Can I reuse a bibliography from an earlier assignment?
Yes, but re-check every entry: links rot and editions change. Reusing your own submitted text without citing it counts as self-plagiarism under the Academic Integrity Policy.