The Right Thing to Do
Citing sources is an important part of academic culture -- you're building on the contributions of others while seeking new discoveries, knowledge, and understanding.
- Always cite sources when you use someone else's ideas or work
- Failure to do so constitutes plagiarism, a violation of UHCL's Academic Honesty Policy, even if done unintentionally
- Citation: A (Very) Brief Introduction(1:54) Clarifies the purpose and types of citations, major styles, and useful tools. North Carolina State Univ. Libraries
- Web of Science This link opens in a new window
This link opens in a new window
Multidisciplinary research database in which results can by sorted by times cited; use Cited Reference search to find works that cite an earlier article or publication
Citation Management Software
EndNote citation management software is a great resource to help you save and organize your sources, and also allows you to easily create bibliographies with the Microsoft Word plugin. Students, faculty, and staff who wish to install the program at home can do so from the EndNote Download guide link provided below. The guide includes:
- detailed instructions for Windows, Mac, and iPad
- tutorials and help
- information about free EndNote Web
- and more
For additional training resources, visit the EndNote website.
Zotero [zoh-TAIR-oh] is a free, open-source citation management software that uses a web browser extension to save screenshots, full-text PDFs, and citation information from websites, databases, library catalogs, and other search tools with a single click.
With Zotero you can:
- Save citation information, screenshots, and available full-text
- Access your library online and sync to multiple devices
- Use folders and tags to organize your research
- Create group libraries for collaborative projects
- Generate citations and bibliographies in Word, Google Docs, and LibreOffice
Always verify output with the latest edition of official style manuals.
- NoodleBib (now NoodleTools) Express was among the most accurate of free citation builders tested in 2011 by H. F. Chang, Oklahoma State Univ. Library
- Mendeley is a free, downloadable citation management program that offers storage, organizational, and sharing options
- Both support APA, MLA, and Chicago/Turabian styles
- NoodleTools ExpressRequires several preliminary steps to reach citation template
- MendeleyFrom Elsevier
Do you need to cite a source but lack complete information or aren't sure where you found something? Try searching all you do have (author? title? a source name?) in Google Scholar. If that doesn't help, contact us.