Referencing The Harvard System
Referencing - The Harvard System
Department of Lifelong Learning: Study Skills Series
Referencing - The Harvard System
(Download pdf version)
Introduction
As a student, it is important that you identify in your assessment when you are using the words or ideas of another author.
The most accepted way of acknowledging the work of another author is to use a referencing system. At the Department of
Lifelong Learning you are required to use the Harvard referencing system.
The following guide tells you why you need to use a referencing system, shows you how to insert references in the text of your assignments, and shows you how to compile a reference list. While there are many variations on the ‘Harvard’ system, the one presented in this guide is the most simple. It does away with most usages of ‘p’ and ‘pp’ to signify page numbers and it replaces some of the commas with colons. Also, this guide is by no means an exhaustive list of all the referencing conventions that you will require in your academic life.
Why you should use a referencing system
As a part of an academic community, it is important that you show the reader where you have used someone else’s ideas or words. Failure to properly reference using the Harvard system may make the reader think that you are cheating by claiming someone else’s work as your own. In the academic environment, we call this plagiarism and it is seen as a very serious offence. Please remember that plagiarism is not just when you directly copy words from another student’s or expert’s work.
Plagiarism also occurs when you re-word someone else’s ideas in your own work and you do not give credit to the original source. Plagiarism can have disastrous consequences for students. If you are suspected of plagiarism you may find that your assignment receives a grade of zero. In extreme or repeated cases, you may find that your enrolment at the university is reviewed. For further information, please consult section 3 of the
Department of Lifelong Learning: Study Skills Series
Referencing - The Harvard System
(Download pdf version)
Introduction
As a student, it is important that you identify in your assessment when you are using the words or ideas of another author.
The most accepted way of acknowledging the work of another author is to use a referencing system. At the Department of
Lifelong Learning you are required to use the Harvard referencing system.
The following guide tells you why you need to use a referencing system, shows you how to insert references in the text of your assignments, and shows you how to compile a reference list. While there are many variations on the ‘Harvard’ system, the one presented in this guide is the most simple. It does away with most usages of ‘p’ and ‘pp’ to signify page numbers and it replaces some of the commas with colons. Also, this guide is by no means an exhaustive list of all the referencing conventions that you will require in your academic life.
Why you should use a referencing system
As a part of an academic community, it is important that you show the reader where you have used someone else’s ideas or words. Failure to properly reference using the Harvard system may make the reader think that you are cheating by claiming someone else’s work as your own. In the academic environment, we call this plagiarism and it is seen as a very serious offence. Please remember that plagiarism is not just when you directly copy words from another student’s or expert’s work.
Plagiarism also occurs when you re-word someone else’s ideas in your own work and you do not give credit to the original source. Plagiarism can have disastrous consequences for students. If you are suspected of plagiarism you may find that your assignment receives a grade of zero. In extreme or repeated cases, you may find that your enrolment at the university is reviewed. For further information, please consult section 3 of the
References: Napier, A. (1993b) Survival at sea, Sydney: Allen and Unwin. Books with an anonymous or unknown author The University Encyclopedia (1985) London: Roydon. OR, IF THE AUTHOR IS UNKNOWN Department of Lifelong Learning (2001), CAE0001LWR Unit 5: Note taking skills from lectures Government publications Department for Education and Employment (DfEE), (2001) Skills for life: The national strategy OR, IF THE AUTHOR IS UNKNOWN ‘Tax-free savings push’, Sunday Mail (4 April 1999), p Johnston, R. (2001) Access courses for women, e-mail to NIACE Lifelong Learning Mailing List (lifelong-learning@niace.org.uk), 22 Aug