Tips for Writing Assignments in Different Academic Styles

By Duncan Essays •  Updated: 07/29/24 •  2 min read

Different academic styles require specific approaches to writing assignments. Here’s a detailed guide on how to handle assignments in various styles effectively.

APA Style

APA style, used primarily in social sciences, emphasizes clarity and conciseness. Follow guidelines for formatting, in-text citations, and references. Use a title page, abstract, and running head as required.

Example: For an APA-style research paper, include a title page with the title, author name, and institution, and use in-text citations like (Smith, 2020) for referencing sources.

MLA Style

MLA style, common in humanities, focuses on authorship and textual analysis. Include in-text citations with the author’s last name and page number. Format your Works Cited page with detailed bibliographic information.

Example: In an MLA-style essay, cite a book as (Doe 45) in-text and include a Works Cited entry with the author’s name, title, publisher, and publication year.

Chicago Style

Chicago style offers two systems: Notes and Bibliography, and Author-Date. Choose the appropriate system based on your assignment’s requirements. Include footnotes or endnotes and a bibliography for the Notes and Bibliography system.

Example: For Chicago Notes and Bibliography, cite sources using footnotes like “1. John Doe, Title of Book (City: Publisher, Year), page number,” and include a corresponding bibliography entry.

Harvard Style

Harvard style uses author-date citations in the text and a reference list at the end. Include the author’s name, publication year, and page number in in-text citations, and format the reference list alphabetically.

Example: Cite a journal article in-text as (Smith, 2020, p. 15) and list it in the reference list as Smith, J., 2020. Title of Article. Title of Journal, volume(issue), pages.

Turabian Style

Turabian style is a simplified version of Chicago style, used for college students. It involves the same citation systems as Chicago but with slightly adjusted formatting for student papers.

Example: For Turabian, use endnotes or footnotes and include a bibliography. An endnote citation might look like “John Doe, Title of Book (City: Publisher, Year), page number.”

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