The purpose of this document is to establish a uniform reporting template for undergraduate projects written in the Department of Computer Science, University of Calabar, without prejudice to the supervisor of the project. The overall goal is to maintain consistency among our students, as well as simplify the act of reporting the research findings from their projects. Students are therefore expected to align their projects to this model template.
The preliminary pages consist of the title page, certification, dedication, up to the abstract of the project, as listed below:
- Title Page
- Certification
- Declaration
- Dedication
- Acknowledgement
- Table of Contents
- List of Tables
- List of Figures
- Abstract
Each of the items on the list above will be described briefly, for the guidance of students.
The general format for the Title page is shown in Figure 1.
[PROJECT TITLE]
BY
[NAME OF STUDENT]
[MATRIC NO: ]
SUBMITTED TO
DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE
UNIVERSITY OF CALABAR
IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF A BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (B.Sc.) DEGREE IN COMPUTER SCIENCE
[MONTH], [YEAR]
Figure 1. Model Title page
1.3 CERTIFICATION PAGE
A model Certification page is presented in Figure 2.
CERTIFICATION
This is to certify that this research on “[Title of project]”, to the best of my knowledge, is an original work carried out by [Name of Student] with the registration number [Matriculation number] of the Department of Computer Science under my supervision, and has met the regulations governing the award of Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) Degree in Computer Science of the University of Calabar, Calabar.
Sign: .................................................. Date: .......................................... [Title & Name of Supervisor] Supervisor Department of Computer Science University of Calabar, Calabar – Nigeria.
Sign: .................................................. Date: .......................................... [Title & Name of HOD] Head of Department Computer Science University of Calabar, Calabar – Nigeria.
Sign: .................................................. Date: .......................................... [Title & Name of Ext. Examiner] External Examiner
Figure 2. Model Certification page
1.4 DECLARATION PAGE
A sample Declaration page is presented in Figure 3.
DECLARATION
I hereby declare that the project titled “[Title of project]” was duly carried out by [Name of Student] with the registration number [Matriculation number], in the Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Physical Sciences, University of Calabar, under the supervision of [Title & Name of Supervisor]. All sources of information are duly acknowledged by reference.
Sign: .................................................. Date: .......................................... [Name of Student] Student Department of Computer Science University of Calabar, Calabar – Nigeria.
Figure 3. Model Declaration page
Other components of the preliminary pages then follow the Declaration page, each of which should be on a different page. These are, Dedication, Acknowledgement, Table of Contents, List of Tables, List of Figures, and Abstract. For the Acknowledgement, it is required that, it be written concise enough to occupy not more than one and half (1½) pages at the most.
A model Table of Contents is listed below:
- Title Page
- Certification
- Declaration
- Dedication
- Acknowledgement
- Table of Contents
- List of Tables
- List of Figures
- Abstract
- 1.1 Background of Study
- 1.2 Problem Definition
- 1.3 Aim & Objectives of Study
- 1.4 Research Justification
- 1.5 Scope and Limitation of Study
- 1.6 Definition of Terms
- 1.7 Chapter Layout
- 2.1 Chapter overview
- 2.2 State-of-the-art (chronological presentation of the state of development in the subject area)
- 2.3 Literature review (review of contributions of other authors in the topic/subject area)
- 2.4 Proposed Contribution to Knowledge
- 3.1 Chapter overview
- 3.2 System Analysis
- 3.3 System Design (OO or Structured – must be explained)
- 3.3.1 Logical Design
- 3.3.1.1 Input Design (if it is not system software)
- 3.3.1.2 Output Design (if it is not system software)
- 3.3.1.3 Use Case Diagram
- 3.3.1.4 Activity Diagram
- 3.3.1.5 Class Diagram
- 3.3.2 Physical Design
- 3.3.2.1 Program Specification
- 3.3.2.2 Layout of Tables Design & Database Structure (if it is not system software and where applicable)
- 3.3.2.3 System Controls (e.g. security, input, output)
- 3.3.1 Logical Design
CHAPTER FOUR SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION
- 4.1 Chapter overview
- 4.2 Features and Choice of Implementation Language
- 4.3 System Testing Strategies
- 4.3.1 Unit Test
- 4.3.2 Integration Test
- 4.4 Target Computer System Requirements
- 4.5 Results
- 4.6 Discussion
CHAPTER FIVE SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
- 5.1 Chapter overview
- 5.2 Summary
- 5.3 Recommendations (future research direction)
- 5.4 Conclusion
REFERENCES (citation & referencing in APA Style)
APPENDICES
- Appendix A: (any attachments where applicable)
- Appendix B: Source Code Listing
- Appendix C: Sample Output
1.5 ABSTRACT
The abstract should be written in single-line spacing, all in a single paragraph, and reported grammatically in the third person. It should contain a brief reflection of the problem, the overarching aim/purpose of the research, methodology (system design methodology), major sources of data (where applicable), results obtained or findings from the research, as well as key recommendation(s) and conclusion. All these items should be implicitly embedded within the Abstract (without creating sections or paragraphs for them), and within a word count of a maximum of 300 words.
This is generally called the introduction, and gives a general background of the research. Key sections of Chapter One are presented in the next subsections.
This gives general information on the problem domain, showing a general introduction of the problem domain, a brief reflection of the problem identified and a general view of the researcher’s goal in doing work on this area. Your background should provide a brief history of the problem domain to date. Sources of relevant studies should be cited to back up your claims in the problem domain.
This section tries to paint a more detailed and clearer picture of the problem in the area of discourse for which the researcher hopes to provide a solution. This does not refer to the problem from the researcher’s viewpoint only, but the problem as seen by other researchers and users/stakeholders alike. This section, should therefore include some citations, to convince readers that, the problem being defined is not only in the seemingly narrow view of the researcher, but commands attention enough to worth any effort at solution. It is important to identify a key area of concern such as, lack of continuous research in that area, increasing use of a resource (like application of computing in the given area) or the lack of application of computing in that particular area of discourse. This will implicitly serve as your motivation for the research.
The aim of the study is a single statement describing the goal of the research as a logical response to the Problem definition, without including any elements of how it will be achieved. The aim has to be single, and the researcher should stick rigorously to it. The objectives, on the other hand, refer to the logical set of key activities that will lead to the realization of the Aim. The research best practice is that, the objectives should be S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timely). S.M.A.R.T. objectives are further explained below:
- Specific: The more specific your objectives, the bigger the chance that you will achieve them. Specific objectives should answer the questions: What exactly do I want to achieve, Where? How? When? With whom? What are the conditions and constraints? Why exactly do I want to reach this aim/goal? With all these in mind, you will not, but arrive at objectives that are specific.
- Measurable: Objectives are said to be measurable, if they help you identify exactly what is it you will want to see, feel or hear when you achieve your aim. Measurable objectives help you to provide evidence that you have achieved them. Examples include such statements as, “to design a relational database to store and update transactions”, “to deploy Google Maps API to provide map data of various locations”, “to reduce loss to follow-up by 75%”, all qualify as measurable objectives, because, you can measure whether they were achieved or not.
- Attainable: Objectives are attainable if the effort, time and other costs of achieving the objectives are well within your reach and technical capacity. Any unattainable objective can lead into overall project failure.
- Relevant: All your objectives should be relevant to your overall goal. Any objective that does not add to your achieving your study aim is irrelevant. An irrelevant objective will imply that you want to spend/deploy time, effort and other resources on what does not add value to your research. For example, an objective such as “to ensure all systems are connected to the same network segment” will be irrelevant, if your program is purely a desktop application.
- Timely: Your academic programme and indeed your research is time-bound. Your study objectives should therefore be realizable within a reasonable timeframe. If objectives are not timely, the results from your research may be obsolete by the time your study is completed.
1.7 RESEARCH JUSTIFICATION
This is also called Significance of the study. In this section, you explain how your project will contribute to the area of discourse or field for which you are undertaking the research. This section will be easier to write, if your Problem definition was well written, as clear rationale for the research would have been laid bare as the problem is described. Readers or any stakeholder will easily believe you have reason to embark on the research, if you are able to quantify the gravity of the problem and the impact your research is going to make when completed and applied. For example, a statement like “each year, the University community spends X million Naira in acquiring antivirus software’ in your Problem definition could be linked to a statement like “a mass SMS enlightenment of Bluetooth information sharing will reduce the expenditure on antivirus software by 75% by the University community’ in your Research justification. This will
very much be clear that, your research is worth doing. There are other more subjective ways of justifying your research; but this should be clear enough that, no reader or stakeholder should be in doubt why the research is worth the effort.
1.8 SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF STUDY
Scope establishes the boundary of your research. In other words, where and where will your research be applied. Your scope could also be that your study will be applied to a category of information technology products or resources. This will help your readers to know the context in which they expect the output of your program to operate. Without a scope, expectations from readers could be varied and elastic, and your study may be judged ineffective. For example, if you have a topic like “development of lecture reminders for University Students”; part of your scope could read like “the scope of this research is the University of Calabar, and the type of phones to use this application are Android phones”. With this, it is clear, for example, which type of phone a user should use to test/use your application. Limitations of study, on the other hand, refer to constraints of factors such as time, resources, location, theories or algorithms. For example, the location of a hard-to-reach weak communication area could be a limitation to the effective deployment of an application that runs on steady Internet. You can also have a limitation like, “although the application speeds up transactions, it cannot handle data beyond 1 million records due a constraint on the underlying ABC algorithm”.
1.9 DEFINITION OF TERMS
This section contains brief definitions of related terminology used in the research. These should not be mere definitions of any computing or information technology words, but terms that are related to the problem domain. For instance, for a Computer Science project, including a term like “computer” or any unrelated term in your Definition of terms is not acceptable.
1.10 CHAPTER LAYOUT
A Chapter layout sketches out how the project is structured. It shows how the chapters are linked, and that, one chapter logically links to another. It is alternately called “Structure of the thesis” for postgraduate projects. The purpose of this section is to help the reader see a summary of the entire project, chapter by chapter. It should be written in a way that; each chapter takes a different paragraph.
This chapter helps you to review your background materials for your research. What is expected in this chapter is your examination of the approaches and techniques used by other researchers in your topic area or problem domain. In your previous reading of that subject area, you would have been able to see the flaws in research methods and/or design methodology, implementation or presentation of results by other studies. Use your knowledge of those flaws to point out how a previous study may have made a limited contribution to solving the problem you have proposed to solve. Start this chapter with an overview of what will be covered.
You should chronologically present in this section, the state of development in the topic/subject area, over time. This will help readers to follow how the core technology or research outcomes in the subject area have evolved over time; to be able to relate with whether what you are about to research on is current or obsolete.
This section is an examination or review of all relevant and available studies in the topic or subject area; most of which should come from journals and other research dissemination avenues. It helps you to gather and link together the opinions expressed by others in the topic area. Your review should lead to an understanding of which methods and approaches can be used in achieving solutions to the problem. This will help you to select an appropriate method (in Chapter 3) for your own research. The review should have sub-themes relating to the study.
This is one section of your project that all external examiners will want to read. They want you to explain how your project contributes to the subject area of discourse. It is one of the most important sections of your project, and must therefore, be well-written. Contribution to the body of knowledge could be in the forms of algorithm/theory development, innovative methods, outright software solutions, among other contributions. You should identify one of these contributions as the basis of your primary contribution to the subject area under research.
This chapter encompasses everything about the design of the proposed new system that will be the outcome of your research, hence the name, System Analysis & Design Methodology. It should start with an overview, that briefly highlights what would be covered in the chapter. This is the most important chapter of your project, and it is adjudged well-written, if any other researcher can successfully replicate your system by following the steps and processes outlined as well as described in your design methodology. The most-likely sections in the chapter on system analysis and design methodology are briefly described next.
This section helps you to explain/specify how the existing system works, and what the new system would do. System analysis describes clearly the “what” that a system must do to solve the problem. A good system analysis section shows that, the researcher understands the system s/he is about to develop. One key component that is expected in this section at the undergraduate level, is a listing and description of a set of requirements for the proposed new system.
The system design describes “how” the system will work; specifying all the components of the system and how they work together to provide the expected solution. The system design is the blueprint for the software system construction. Two system design approaches that can be adopted are: structured design (with the use of tools like system flowchart, program flowchart, structure charts, etc.), and object-oriented design (using tools like use case, activity, sequence, and class diagrams, respectively). You should consider your system design in terms of logical and physical designs, respectively. The logical design belongs to an abstract representation of data flows, inputs and outputs of the system. The physical design, on the other hand deals with the actual system entities of data and algorithm design. While in logical design we could be describing entities of input/output design interfaces (using series of As for alphabetic representation, 9s for numeric and Xs for alphanumeric); we have database design and program specification (usually by pseudocode) in the physical design.
This chapter, the system implementation, starts with an overview of what will be covered. Other sections to be covered in this chapter are presented next.
The purpose of this section is to help you, the researcher, present the rationale for choosing the programming language and related implementation technology (like the database system, etc.) for your research. You are to briefly discuss the key features and strengths of the implementation technology, so your readers can see why you chose that programming language and related technology.
Every software system requires testing before it goes into production. However, at the end of your project, your software will not be expected to have been in the hands of users. Therefore, only the unit and integration testing strategies are expected to be discussed here. It is expected that, you contextualize how the unit (module/class) testing and integration (system-wide) were done in your research/project.
More often than not, the development (your) computer system has dissimilar hardware and software features with the production (the end-user computer) system. It is therefore important to state/describe the hardware and software features that any potential user computer should have, to be able to run the application. These features should be presented in respective (hardware and software) tables.
This section should contain a display of the results/output from your research. This can be a set of output screenshots, result tables and any other form of output from your project. Result tables should be labeled as tables, while output images should be labeled as figures.
4.5 DISCUSSION
The discussion section is where you describe the respective results/outputs presented in the preceding (Results) section, one by one, as they appeared. An elaborate discussion of the result should have one or more citations supporting the results, to show that what you did is in line with what should be expected from a similar work. However, should your results vary from the expected norm, you should also cite a situation where another research had a similar result (like your dissimilar result).
As expected, this chapter should start with an overview of what to expect. The chapter should consist the next few sections.
This section helps you to put together a concise description of how your research went. It should briefly reflect the purpose of the research, the methodology as well as the implementation technology. You should then briefly describe how the resulting software was applied to the problem domain, and whether it worked or not.
Research is a continuum, hence, there is no perfect research. There are always things that you would have done or included in your work that you could not, apparently due to some technical limitations on your part, unavailability of a particular technology that would have helped you deliver something better, and the like. You should use this section to recommend that future researchers should focus in this area of your challenge or limitation, stressing the importance of addressing these limitations to the overall outcome in this problem domain.
This section should reflect briefly on the goal/purpose of your research. You should then state whether the final outcome of your research has fulfilled this goal. It is not a place for elaborate and verbose writing. It is a concise description of whether the result of your research satisfied the goal.
This is the section to list all cited works (in the body of your project) in alphabetical order, formatted in a hanging style, such that, all lines after the first line are indented (0.5" for example). This is a standard practice aimed at improving readability. The style for citation and referencing is the APA (American Psychological Association) Style. A detailed guide of this referencing system is adapted and presented in Annex 1.
This section should contain any extraneous information that could have distorted the smooth reading flow of your project. Materials such as non-confidential documents from a client organization that were critical to the development of the system should be put in the appendix. Code listing, including a long program specification, as well as extra output, should all be put under the Appendix.
For the purpose of consistency, the following guide is recommended:
- Paper size (Quoto – this document is already formatted as Quoto):
- width = 8.5 inches (215.9mm)
- height = 10 inches (254mm)
- Margins:
- Top = 1 inch (25.4mm)
- Bottom = 1 inch (25.4mm)
- Left = 1.5 inches (38.1mm) – this allows space for binding
- Right = 1 inch (25.4mm)
- Font type: Times New Roman
- Font size: 13.5 or 14.0
- Line Spacing: 1.5
- Paragraphing style: Block (not indented) – for Block style, you leave a line before next paragraph.
- Citation and Referencing: APA Style
- Headings: All other headings, except the chapter headings, must be left-aligned. Chapter headings should be center-aligned and capitalized. All headings must be in bold print, Sentence case and numbered. Every other part of the project should be aligned Justify.
- Printing: Use LaserJet Printer (DeskJet prints wash off easily in contact with any liquid).
Referencing is a standard practice for acknowledging information sources in academic writing at university. Whenever you write an assignment that requires you to find and use information, you are expected to reference all the sources of information and ideas included in your writing.
This handout provides guidelines for using the APA 6th edition referencing system. There are two components to an APA reference:
-
an in-text reference in the body of your assignment: Chan (2011) explores a range of themes and ideas ...
-
full reference details in your reference list: Chan, D. P. (2011). Business in China. Hong Kong: Dragon Press.
This guide is divided into two parts. The first part (pp. 1-10) illustrates the basic rules for APA 6th edition referencing, provides a sample text which uses APA 6th edition referencing, and answers some frequently asked questions. The referencing guide in the second part (pp. 11-17) contains specific rules and examples for a variety of different reference types.
Most academic assignments require wide reading so that previous and current thinking about a particular topic can be identified. It is important to show your reader that you have sought out expert, reliable sources to help support and develop your thinking on your topic. The referencing in your assignment should:
- demonstrate good research practice
- show the range of ideas and approaches you have found and thought about
- acknowledge where those ideas came from
- tell your reader where they can locate the sources you have used
Referencing also helps you to avoid plagiarism. If you present someone else's ideas, and/or the way they express their ideas, as if they are your own work, you are committing plagiarism. Plagiarism can be unintentional due to poor referencing, but the consequences are always serious. Accurate referencing helps you to avoid this.
Every time you include someone else's words, ideas or information in your assignment, an in-text reference must be provided. Insert an in-text reference whenever you:
- paraphrase someone else's ideas in your own words
- summarise someone else's ideas in your own words
- quote someone else's ideas in their exact words
- copy or adapt a diagram, table or any other visual material
An in-text reference is provided each time you refer to ideas or information from another source, and includes the following details:
the author's family name (do not include given names) + the year of publication + page numbers when needed.
There are two main ways to present an in-text reference:
a) Integral referencing The reference is in the body of your sentence, with the author's family name integrated into the sentence structure, and the date is given in brackets. This type of reference is often used when you want to give prominence to the author.
Lam (2010) argues that Hong Kong needs to further assimilate into the Pearl River Delta economy if its long term growth is to be assured.
b) Non-integral referencing The reference is enclosed in the sentence in brackets. This type of reference is often used when you want to give prominence to the information.
The Hong Kong economy expanded by 2.3% in the third quarter of 2011 (Census and Statistics Department, 2012).
Page numbers should be included when you:
- use a direct quote from a particular source
- copy tables or figures, or present specific information like data/statistics
Cheung (2012) notes that “universities in Hong Kong need to strengthen their academic credentials” if they are to compete in the world economy (p. 48).
There are many ways to cite a direct quotation. It is recommended that the page number should be placed after the quotation. See below for examples:
- According to Palladino and Wade (2010), “a flexible mind is a healthy mind” (p. 147).
- In 2010, Palladino and Wade noted that “a flexible mind is a healthy mind” (p. 147).
- In fact, “a flexible mind is a healthy mind” (Palladino & Wade, 2010, p. 147).
- “A flexible mind is a healthy mind,” according to Palladino and Wade’s (2010, p. 147) longitudinal study.
- Palladino and Wade’s (2010) results indicate that “a flexible mind is a healthy mind” (p. 147).
McAdoo, T. (2010, March 25). How to cite direct quotations [Web blog post]. Retrieved from http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2010/03/how-to-cite-direct-quotations.html
You can also include a page number when you take an idea from a particular page. However, it would not be appropriate academic style to include a page number in all or most of your in-text citations if you are only taking ideas from a source.
- Use of “et al.”
Where there are several authors (first time more than six), only the first author should be used followed by “et al.” (which is Latin for et alia) meaning ‘and others’:
Wong et al. (2005) found that the majority ...
or as a non-integral reference:
Recent research (Wong et al., 2005) has found that the majority of ...
“et al.” should be used the second time for three or more authors.
The following chart shows how to format in-text citations for APA 6th edition referencing style:
| Type of citation ➡️ | Integral | Non-integral | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of authors ↓ | First citation in text | Subsequent citations in text | Citation in brackets, first citation in text | Citation in brackets, subsequent citations in text |
| One author | Chan (2010) argues ... | (Chan, 2010) | (Chan, 2010) | |
| Two authors | Chan and Leung (2010) suggest ... | (Chan & Leung, 2010) | (Chan & Leung, 2010) | |
| Three authors | Tsui, Leung, and Collins (2010) find ... | Tsui et al. (2010) find... | (Tsui, Leung, & Collins, 2010) | (Tsui et al., 2010) |
| Four authors | Wong, Lam, Collins, and Smith (2010) mention ... | Wong et al. (2010) mention ... | (Wong, Lam, Collins, & Smith, 2010) | (Wong et al., 2010) |
| Five authors | Preston, Lee, Chan, Smith, and Au (2010) report ... | Preston et al. (2010) report ... | (Preston, Lee, Chan, Smith, & Au, 2010) | (Preston et al., 2010) |
| Six or more authors | Finney et al. (2010) assert ... | Finney et al. (2010) assert ... | (Finney et al., 2010) | (Finney et al., 2010) |
| Groups (easily identified by abbreviation) as authors | The Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA, 2008) states ... | The HKHA (2008) states ... | (The Hong Kong Housing Authority [HKHA], 2008) | (HKHA, 2008) |
| Groups (no abbreviation) as authors | Animals Asia (2007) defines ... | Animals Asia (2007) defines ... | (Animals Asia, 2007) | (Animals Asia, 2007) |
| With page number for quotation | Chan (2010) argues that “...” (p. 15). | (Chan, 2010, p. 15) | ||
- Ellipsis and square brackets
Ellipsis refers to dots in the middle of a sentence. Their purpose is to let the reader know that some part of a quotation has been left out. If it is necessary to interrupt a quotation you are citing in order to clarify something, you should enclose your remarks in square brackets.
Original: “Students in the university should study outside class, in all credit bearing subjects, for at least 6 hours a week.”
With text omitted and clarification: “Students in the university [The Hong Kong Polytechnic University] should study ... for at least 6 hours a week.”
Sample text with in-text referencing and reference list
APA in-text referencing uses author’s surname and year. Include a page number (or paragraph number for online sources) for direct quotations. The reference list is in alphabetical order.
Until recently, development in the textile and clothing industry has focused on “technological and cost aspects” (HKRITA, 2012, para. 5). According to Chen and Burns (2009), emphasis has been placed on keeping the price of the “final product low and increasing efficiency in production” (p. 255). Tukker et al. (2011) further point out that designers, manufacturers and retailers have paid less attention to other dimensions of the offering, e.g., ownership and related business models, as well as consumer wishes and values. Hence, the products are designed and produced according to regularly changing trends that enable quick profit (Lee & Chen, 2009), rather than radically rethinking the ways of designing and manufacturing the offering that is based on consumer needs and sustainability as proposed by Park and Tahara (2011).
References
Chen, H., & Burns, D. L. (2009). Environmental analysis of textile products. Clothing and Textile Research Journal, 24(3), 248-261.
Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel. (2012). HKRITA features latest innovations in ITMA 2011. Retrieved from http://www.hkrita.com/newsletter/issue21/coverstory.htm
Lee, S., & Chen, J. (2009). Mass-customization methodology for an apparel industry with a future. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 16(1). Retrieved from http://www.jindeco.edu.eu
Park, P., & Tahara, K. (2011). Quantifying producer and consumer-based eco-efficiencies for the identification of key ecodesign issues. Hong Kong: Blacksmith Books.
Tukker, A., Emmert, S., Charter, M., Vezzoli, C., Stive, E., Andersen, M. M., ... Lahlou, S. (2011). Fostering change to sustainable consumption and production: An evidence based view. Journal of Cleaner Production, 16, 1218-1225.
The reference list provides full bibliographic details for all the sources referenced in your essay so that readers can easily locate the sources. Each different source referenced in your essay must have a matching entry in your reference list.
It is important to note that the reference list is not a bibliography. A bibliography lists everything you have read, while a reference list is deliberately limited to those sources for which you have provided in-text references. A bibliography is not needed unless specifically requested by your lecturer.
The reference list is titled “References” and must be:
- arranged alphabetically by author's family name (or title/sponsoring organisation where a source has no author).
- a single list where books, journal articles and electronic sources are listed together. Do not divide into separate lists.
The main elements required for all references are the author’s name(s), year, title and publication information. The basic reference formats are shown in the following examples. These should be followed exactly, paying special attention to details of capitalisation, punctuation, use of italics and order of information.
First author’s surname, Initials., Second author’s surname, Initials., & Third author’s surname, Initials. (Year of publication). Title of article. Name of journal, Volume number(Issue number), Page range of article.
graph TD A[The author's family name, followed by a comma.] --> B[The author's initials, each followed by a full stop. Space between initials.] B --> C[Use ampersand (&) before the final author. Use a comma before ampersand.] C --> D[Year of publication in round brackets, followed by a full stop.] D --> E[Title of the article, followed by a full stop. Use upper case for the first letter of the title and lower case for the rest unless referring to names or places.]E --> F[Second line of reference indented by five spaces.]
E --> G[Name of the journal in italics, followed by a comma. Use capital letters at the start of all key words.]
E --> H[Volume of the journal in italics. No space between volume number and issue number.]
E --> I[Number of the issue in round brackets, followed by a comma.]
E --> J[Page range of the article, with dash (-) between the numbers. Full stop at the end.]
subgraph Reference Example
A -- Wong, K. M., Au, C. P., & Cheung, E. H. (2009). The Chinese university student. Journal of Chinese and Asian Education, 12(2), 891-902.
end
4. Book format
First author’s surname, Initials., Second author’s surname, Initials., & Third author’s surname, Initials. (Year of publication). Title of book. City of publication: Publisher.
graph TD A[The author's family name, followed by a comma.] --> B[Chan, M. T.] C[The author's initials, each followed by a full stop. Space between initials.] --> D[Wong, R. H.] E[Year of publication in round brackets, followed by a full stop.] --> F[(2012)] G[Title of the book in italics, followed by a full stop. Use upper case for the first letter of the title and lower case for the rest unless referring to names or places.] --> H[The child examiner.] I[City of publication, followed by a colon.] --> J[Hong Kong:] K[Publisher, followed by a full stop.] --> L[Blacksmith Books.]B -- "Use ampersand (&) before the final author." --> D
D -- "Full stop before the year." --> F
F -- "Use ampersand (&) before the final author." --> H
H -- "Full stop before the year." --> I
I -- "Use ampersand (&) before the final author." --> J
J -- "Full stop before the year." --> K
5. Internet source format
Name of organisation. (Year of publication). Title of page. Retrieved from url
graph TD A[Complete name of organisation, with parent name if necessary, followed by a comma.] --> B[Census and Statistics Department, The Government of the Hong Kong Administrative Region.] C[Title of the webpage in italics, followed by a full stop.] --> D[Population and vital events statistics in Hong Kong - births, deaths, marriages and domestic households.] E[Date of the webpage in round brackets, followed by a full stop.] --> F[(2012).] G[URL of the website. When the URL is long, break it across two lines **before** a slash (/) or other punctuation. Do not underline URLs because this hides underscores. There should be no full stop at the end.] --> H[http://www.censtatd.gov.hk/hong_kong_statistics/statistics_by_subject/index.jsp]B -- "Second and subsequent lines of reference indented by five spaces." --> G
D -- "Second and subsequent lines of reference indented by five spaces." --> G
F -- "Second and subsequent lines of reference indented by five spaces." --> G
Frequently asked questions
1. How do I cite two or three authors?
When there are two or three authors for a reference, include all their family names in the in-text reference, in the same order that they are listed in the original source. For example:
- According to Choi, Fang, and Lee(2012), students in Asia are more studious than their North American counterparts.
- Wong and Morrison (2011) strongly support the use of technology in the classroom.
- Asian students devoted on average 16 hours per week to out-of-class study compared to 10 hours for North American students (Choi, Fang, & Lee, 2012).
2. How do I cite when there are many authors?
If there are six or more authors, you should only use the first author's family name in the in-text reference followed by the abbreviation “et al.”. For example:
- This is supported by Wilson et al. (2011) in their educational change study.
For subsequent citations, you should use “et al.” for references with three or more authors.
3. In the reference list what should I do when there are many authors?
If there are two authors: List by their last names and initials. Use the ampersand “&” instead of “and”.
Chow, R. K., & Ping, S. M. (2004). Mood management in university students. Journal of Asian Psychology, 45(3), 1034-1048.
If there are three to seven authors: List by their last names and initials; commas separate author’s names, while the last author’s name is preceded again by ampersand.
Luk, W. K., Chan, Y. K., Sing, A. N., Burton, H., Heart, L., & Burns, H. U. (2009). The Chinese student: A study. Journal of East Asian Psychology, 32(5), 1190-1204.
If there are more than seven authors: Include the first six authors’ names, then insert “...” and add the last author’s name.
Ming, J. Y., Chan, E. L., Law, M. Z., Wheelock, C. A., Stammars, P. E., Thompson, E. T., ... Rogers, K. R. (2011). eLearning and the luddites. Technical Communication, 57(23), 323-335.
4. How do I cite when there is no author and/or no date?
When no person is mentioned, include the title of the source or the authoring/sponsoring organisation in place of the author.
For example:
- The centre aims to improve students' communication skills to enable them to attain excellent results in their academic and professional lives (English Language Centre, 2012).
- Oral presentations, like written assessment tasks, should contain an introduction, body, and conclusion (“Making the most of oral presentations,” 2011).
When no year of publication is given, use the abbreviation “n.d.” which stands for ‘no date’ in place of a year, or give an approximate date preceded by “ca.” which stands for 'circa'.
However, be cautious about using sources without dates. A source with no date might not be reliable.
5. How do I cite information from one author (Author 1) which I have found in a book or journal article by another author (Author 2)?
Sometimes you will need to refer to authors whose work you encounter secondhand (i.e. mentioned in other people's work) rather than firsthand. You should mention both authors (Author 1 and Author 2) in your in-text reference, but would only list the actual item you read (Author 2) in your reference list.
For example, if you read an idea by Choy (Author 1, published in 2005) in a source by Martins (Author 2, published in 2010) you would need to mention both authors in your in-text reference. For example:
- One scholar (Choy, as cited in Martins, 2010) argues that ...
- Choy (as cited in Martins, 2010) believes that ...
However, in the reference list you should only list Martins (Author 2, the source you read) and not Choy (whose idea you read about in Martins).
6. How do I cite multiple sources by the same author published in the same year?
If an author has published more than one item in the same year, place a lower case letter of the alphabet next to the dates in your in-text referencing to distinguish between these separate publications. For example:
- Preston argues that a man paints with his brain, not his hands (2011a) and reiterates this elsewhere (2011b).
You must also include these lower case letters in your reference list entries as well. The order in which you attach the letters is determined by the alphabetical order of the titles of these sources.
7. What if there are two authors with the same family name?
Occasionally you will need to reference two different authors who share the same family name. To avoid ambiguity, include the author's first initial after their family name in the in-text references. For example:
- Urban deprivation in Hong Kong has been seen to increase in the first decade of this century (E. Chan, 2010). Whether this will affect the language skills of fresh graduates in Hong Kong is still disputed (C. Chan, 2010).
8. How do I present exact quotations?
Short quotations of fewer than thirty words should be enclosed in double quotation marks (" ... ") and be accompanied by an in-text reference including a page number (where possible).
For example:
- Research indicates that “studentss in Hong Kong devote on average 5 hours a week to their English studies from the age of four” (Leung, 2010, p.31).
Longer quotations of more than thirty words should be presented without quotation marks and indented (using Tab key) at the left. For example:
According to Obama (2006), America:
should be more modest in our belief that we can impose democracy on a country through military force. In the past, it has been movements for freedom from within tyrannical regimes that have led to flourishing democracies; movements that continue today. This does not mean abandoning our values and ideals; wherever we can, it’s in our interest to help foster democracy through the diplomatic and economic resources at our disposal. (para. 45)
9. Where exactly do I put the full stop when quoting and/or citing?
Full stops must always be placed at the very end of a sentence, after the quotation and/or in-text reference. For example:
- According to Mooney (2011), “exam pressure in Hong Kong has lessened slightly in the past decade” (p. 88).
- Research indicates that students in Hong Kong have had four mobile devices before their 18th birthday (Samson, 2012).
10. Can I cite two or more sources at the same time?
Yes. Use a semi-colon to separate the sources in the in-text reference, and list the items alphabetically according to their authors' family names. For example:
- Social networking has had a major impact on young people (Chan & Erickson, 2012; Lam & Mok, 2008).
If referencing multiple sources by the same author, present the items in chronological order (oldest to most recent) and separate them with commas. For example:
- Burns (2006, 2009, 2012) argues that there should be more universities in Hong Kong.
11. Can I paste the URL of a webpage into my essay as an in-text citation?
No. Follow the author-date in-text referencing conventions for all sources. If you are unsure how to reference a website because there is no author or date information, follow the guidelines provided for referencing sources without authors or dates.
12. How do I cite e-mail messages?
E-mail messages from individuals should be cited as personal communications. Because they do not provide recoverable data, personal communications are not included in the reference list. Cite personal communications in text only. Give the initials as well as the surname of the communicator, and provide as exact a date as possible. For example:
- E. Cartman (personal communication, June 28, 2015) reveals that ...
- ... (S. Marsh, personal communication, May 5, 2015).
13. How do I reference a speech?
You do not reference the speech itself. Instead, you should find an authoritative source for the text. Then you simply reference the book, video documentary, website, or other source for the quotation. The reference format you need will depend on the type of document you have used. For example, if you want to cite Martin Luther King’s speech, your reference would be as follows:
- Smith, J. (Ed.). (2009). Well said! Great speeches in American history. Washington, DC: E & K Publishing.
The in-text citation would include the surname of the author or editor of the source document and the year of publication. For example, your sentence might look like this:
- Dr. King declared, “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed” (Smith, 2009).
Another example is if you want to cite Barack Obama’s speech from a website, your reference would be as follows:
- The White House, Office of the Press Secretary. (2009, March 4). Remarks by the President on procurement. Retrieved from http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-procurement-3409
The in-text citation would include the author of the website and year of publication. For example, your sentence might look like this:
- President Obama announced that in Iraq too much money has been paid for services that were never performed ... (The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, 2009).
14. How do I cite images such as photographs from websites?
All images including graphs, charts, maps, drawings and photographs are referred to as figures. You need to label the image as a figure and place a caption (i.e. a brief explanation of the figure) directly below the image, which includes any acknowledgement that the image is reprinted/adapted from another source. For example:
- Figure 1. Flamingos standing and feeding in a pool near salt beds, Netherlands Antilles. Adapted from “National Geographic Found by natgeofound,” by V. K. Wentzel, 2015. Retrieved from http://natgeofound.tumblr.com/. Copyright 2015 by National Geographic Society.
The in-text citation would be like this:
- Figure 1 shows that ...
Your reference would be as follows:
- Wentzel, V. K. (2015). Flamingos standing and feeding in a pool near salt beds, Netherlands Antilles [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://natgeofound.tumblr.com/
Part 2 Referencing guide
| Type of source | In-text references | Reference list |
|---|---|---|
| Books | Surname of author, year of publication Example: Wong (2009) points out that ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). Title. City of publication: Publisher. Wong, B. K. (2009). *Fostering creativity*. Oxford: Blackwell. |
| Chapters in an edited book | Cite the author of the chapter in the text of your paper, not the author of the book, year of publication Example: Carter, Hughes, and McCarthy (1998) argue that ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In Initials. Surname of editor (Ed.), Title of book (pp. Page range of chapter). City of publication: Publisher. Carter, R., Hughes, R., & McCarthy, M. (1998). Telling tails: Grammar, the spoken language and materials development. In B. Tomlinson (Ed.), *Materials development in language teaching* (pp. 67-86). Cambridge: CUP. |
| Books with different editions | Surname of author, year of publication Example: Wong (2009) states that extensive reading is crucial ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). Title (Edition number). City of publication: Publisher. Wong, B. K. (2009). *Fostering creativity* (3rd ed.). Oxford: Blackwell. |
| Books with no date | Surname of author (n.d.) Example: Wong (n.d.) states that students need to read more widely and ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (n.d.). Title. City of publication: Publisher. Wong, B. K. (n.d.). *Fostering creativity*. Oxford: Blackwell. |
| ebooks and pdfs | Surname of author, year of publication Example: Tsang (2004) ascertains ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). Title. City of publication (if known): Publisher. Retrieved from URL Tsang, S. (2004). *A modern history of Hong Kong*. London: I. B. Tauris. Retrieved from http://books.google.com.hk/books |
| Journal articles (with author) | Surname of author, year of publication, (page number for direct quotations) Examples: Poon, Lee, Chan, Jones, and Smith (2003) argue that students should refer to sources properly ... Lam (2005) stresses that “students need to be mindful of the importance of referencing” (p. 91). |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). Title of article. *Name of journal*, Volume number(Issue number), Page range of article. Poon, L. S., Lee, J. C., Chan, A. B., Jones, J. E., & Smith, J. F. (2003). Re-evaluating the effects of computer games on young people. *Journal of Applied Social Psychology*, 12(3), 88-100. Lam, L. S. (2005). Referencing. *Journal of Applied Social Psychology*, 14(2), 19-26. |
| Journal articles (no author) | “Title of article (first few words),” year of publication Example: Many organisations already use this method (“Organisational change,” 2010). |
Title of article. (Year of publication). *Name of journal*, Volume number(Issue number), Page range of article. Organisational change in the 21st century. (2010). *Perspectives in Management*, 12(3), 28-29. |
| URLs and DOIs | If the article has a **DOI**, use it in your reference. If there is **no DOI**, include the **journal homepage URL** in your reference. Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). Title of article. *Name of journal*, Volume number(Issue number), Page range of article (if given). **doi:** # Anderson-Clark, T., Green, R., & Henley, T. (2008). The relationship between first names and teacher expectations for achievement motivation. *Journal of Language & Social Psychology*, 27, 94-99. doi: 10.1177/0261927X07309514 |
|
| Electronic journals | Surname of author, year of publication Example: ... and this has been formulated by Halonen et al. (2010) who ... (use *et al.* when citing 6 or more authors the first time; 3 or more authors the second time) |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). Title of article. *Name of journal*, Volume number(Issue number). Retrieved from url Halonen, S. J., Simpson, R. R., Jolly, D. G., Au, P. R., Bagot, F. P., & Chui, J. J. (2010). Computer games and personal development. *Family Forum*, 12(3). Retrieved from http://www.ff.comgamperdev.org |
| Internet sources (electronic only sources) | Name of organisation, year of publication, (paragraph number for direct quotations) Example: The Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA, 2011) maintains that “...” (para. 6). |
Name of organisation. (Year of publication). Title of article. Retrieved from URL The Hong Kong Housing Authority. (2011). Housing in figures. Retrieved from http://www.housingauthority.gov.hk/en/pdf/about-us/publications-and-statistics/HIF2011.pdf |
| Government/ Company reports | Name of department/company, year of publication Examples: The Equal Opportunities Commission (2010) has reported that ... The Coca-Cola Company (2015) announced ... |
Name of department/company. (Year of publication). Title of article (Number of document - if given). City of publication: Publisher. Equal Opportunities Commission. (2010). Preventing and dealing with sexual harassment. Hong Kong: Equal Opportunities Commission. The Coca-Cola Company. (2015). 2014 Annual report [PDF file]. Retrieved from http://www.coca-colacompany.com/investors/annual-other-reports |
| DVDs or films | For a film or DVD, use the surname of the director and year of release. Example: Law (2010) captured the imagination of ... If there is no director, it is suggested that a non-integral reference should be used with the first few words of the title with year of release. Example: ... (“Great films from the 80s,” 2005). |
For a film the suggested elements should include: Surname of producer, Initials. (Producer), & Surname of director, Initials. (Director). (Year of release). Title of motion picture [Motion picture]. Country of origin: Studio or distributor. Law, A. (Director). (2010). Echoes of the rainbow [Motion picture]. Hong Kong: Mei Ah Entertainment. Full title of DVD or video. (Year of release). [Format of document]. Country of origin: Film studio or maker. (Other relevant details). Great films from the 80s: A selection of clips from Warner Brothers top films from the 1980s. (2005). [DVD]. New York: Warner Brothers. |
| YouTube videos | It is suggested that a non-integral reference should be used for YouTube sources. Example: ... celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2007 (HongKongPolyU, 2011). |
Screen name of contributor. (Year, Month Day of publication). Video title, Series title (if relevant) [Type of document]. Retrieved from URL HongKongPolyU. (2011, November 17). PolyU milestones [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XsfWmFyrNg |
| Newspaper articles (with author) | Surname of author, year of publication Example: Van der Kamp (2012) believes that ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Name of newspaper, p. Page number(s). Van der Kamp, J. (2012, April 1). Just leasing more land won't open up the property market. Sunday Morning Post, p. 15. |
| Newspaper articles (no author) | If no author is designated, cite the first few words of the title, and the year. Example: There should be more car free streets ("Put pedestrians first," 2012). (non-integral citation recommended) |
Title of article. (Year, Month Day of publication). Name of newspaper, p. Page number(s). Put pedestrians first, not cars. (2012, April 1). Sunday Morning Post, p. 14. |
| Online newspaper articles | Surname of author, year of publication Example: Cross (2013) opines that ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Name of newspaper. Retrieved from URL Cross, G. (2013, December 24). News of a children's commission will bring good cheer to Hong Kong. South China Morning Post. Retrieved from http://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1389081/news-childrens-commission-will-bring-good-cheer-hong-kong |
| Magazine articles | Surname of author, year of publication Example: Pringle (2011) illustrates that ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year, Month of publication). Title of article. Name of magazine, Volume number(Issue number), Page number(s). Pringle, H. (2011, April). Lofty ambitions of the Inca. National Geographic Magazine, 219(4), 34. |
| Online magazine articles | Surname of author, year of publication Example: Toobin (2013) comments that ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. *Name of magazine*. Retrieved from URL Toobin, J. (2013, December 24). Same-sex marriage, the legal deluge. *The New Yorker*. Retrieved from http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/comment/2013/12/same-sex-marriage-the-legal-deluge.html |
| Translated work | Surname of author, year of publication, (page number for direct quotations) Examples: Freud (1914) stated that ... Freud (1914) stated, “...” (p. 109). |
When quoting from a foreign language work in the main body of the text, the quote should be provided in English. Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). *Title*. (Initials. Surname of translator, Trans.). City of publication: Publisher. Freud, S. (1914). *The psychopathology of everyday life*. (A. A. Brill, Trans.). London: T. Fisher Unwin. |
| Chinese sources | Surname of author, year of publication, (page number for direct quotations) Examples: Xiao (2008) shows that ... According to Xiao (2008), “...” (p. 37). |
Do a romanisation of the author’s name and title of book/article. If readers cannot read Chinese, add a translation of the book/article’s title in square brackets. If there is no official translation, list the item at the end of the reference list alphabetically. Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). *Title* [Translation of book/article’s title]. City of Publication: Publisher. Xiao, L. (2008). *Zhongguo su miao yi shu* [The art of Chinese drawing]. Shanghai: Mei Shu Chu Ban She. |
| Foreign sources | Surname of author, year of publication Example: Kundera (1984) derides ... |
When quoting from a foreign language work in the main body of the text, the quote should be provided in English. Surname of author, Initials. (Year of publication). *Title* [Translation of book/article’s title]. City of Publication: Publisher. Kundera, M. (1984). *L’Insoutenable légèreté de l’être* [The unbearable lightness of being]. Paris: Gallimard. |
| Lecture notes | Surname of author, year Example: Jenkins (2010) implies that ... |
You are advised not to cite university lecture notes - to do so is often deemed unacceptable. You ought to locate, read and cite the sources and references provided in the Reading List or References in the lecture notes. However, the following guidelines may assist you should you need to cite lecture notes: Surname of lecturer/author, Initials. (Year). *Title of lecture notes* [Lecture notes]. Name of institution, Month Day of lecture. Jenkins, J. (2010). *Developments in computer-assisted learning* [Lecture notes]. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, October 12. |
| Online dissertations and theses | Surname of author, year Example: Yuen (2009) points out that ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year). *Title of doctoral dissertation or master's thesis* (Doctoral dissertation / Master's thesis, Name of Institution). Retrieved from URL Yuen, W. L. (2009). *An investigation of the politeness phenomena in hotel service encounters* (Doctoral dissertation, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University). Retrieved from http://theses.lib.polyu.edu.hk.ezproxy.lb.polyu.edu.hk/bitstream/handle/200/5346/b23429835.pdf?sequence=1 |
| Laws | When citing the Basic Law, use name of the law, article number and year of publication. Example: The Basic Law Art 27 (1997) affirms that ... |
Basic Law Art Article number, **The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China** (Year of publication). Basic Law Art 27, The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (1997). |
| When citing Hong Kong legislation, use name of the ordinance and year of edition. Example: As stipulated by the Employment Ordinance (2007), ... |
Name of ordinance, **Cap** Chapter number s Section number, **Laws of Hong Kong** (Year of edition). Employment Ordinance, Cap 57 s 14, Laws of Hong Kong (2007). |
| Conference papers available online | Surname of author, year of publication Example: Abdoli and Kahani (2009) discuss ... |
Surname of author, Initials. (Year, Month of publication). Title of paper. Paper presented at title of conference, Location of conference. Retrieved from URL Abdoli, F., & Kahani, M. (2009, October). Ontology-based distributed intrusion detection system. Paper presented at the 14th International CSI Computer Conference, Tehran, Iran. Retrieved from http://ieeexplore.ieee.org.ezproxy.lb.polyu.edu.hk/xpls/icp.jsp?arnumber=5349604 |
| Online forum, discussion group, or blog post | Surname of author, Initials. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of post [Description of form]. Retrieved from URL Gates, B. (2015, July 2). Setting targets to save lives [Web blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.gatesnotes.com/Health/The-Best-Investment-for-Improving-the-World |
|
| Speeches (See p. 10 for details) | Surname of author/editor of the source and year given as non-integral citation Examples: Dr. King declared, “...” (Smith, 2009). President Obama announced that ... (The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, 2009). |
Surname of author/editor, Initials. (Year of publication). Title of speech. City of publication: Publisher. Smith, J. (Ed.). (2009). Well said! Great speeches in American history. Washington, DC: E & K Publishing. Name of organisation. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of speech. Retrieved from URL The White House, Office of the Press Secretary. (2009, March 4). Remarks by the President on procurement. Retrieved from http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-procurement-3409 |
| Images from websites (See p. 10 for details) | All images are referred to as figures. Example: Figure 1 shows that ... |
Surname of author/artist, Initials. (Year of publication). Title of image [Format of document]. Retrieved from URL Wentzel, V. K. (2015). Flamingos standing and feeding in a pool near salt beds, Netherlands Antilles [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://natgeofound.tumblr.com/ |
| References with missing details | If there is no obvious publication date, aim to establish the earliest likely date, for example, 2010? = probable year c. 2010 = approximately 2010 201- = decade certain but not year 201? = probable decade If you cannot identify the name of an author, city or publisher, use the following terms: Anonymous = author is anonymous or unidentifiable s.l. = no city of publication (Latin: *sine loco*) s.n. = no named publisher (Latin: *sine nomine*) |