Referencing is the process of giving credit to the original sources of information, ideas, images, or data that you use in your academic work. It shows your reader where your information came from and allows them to locate the sources if they want to explore further.
Referencing is an essential part of academic writing. It allows you to:
Acknowledge the sources of ideas, information, or data you have used.
Demonstrate the depth of your research.
Guide readers trace the original sources.
Avoid plagiarism by giving proper credit to authors.
Referencing Styles at BUiD
At BUiD, students are required to use specific referencing styles depending on their field of study:
APA 7th edition (American Psychological Association)
Used by the majority of programmes, including Education, Business, IT, and Engineering. APA follows the author–date citation style.
OSCOLA (Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities)
Used exclusively by Law students. OSCOLA is a footnote-based system designed for citing cases, legislation, and legal scholarship.