How to Cite a PhD

Writers must correctly cite references they use in their document, including doctoral dissertations, whether they are published or unpublished. Guidelines for citing dissertations vary depending on the style guide you use. However, every dissertation citation requires some basic information, including the author's name, dissertation title, year and degree-granting institution. Format that information according to your style guide, whether it's American Psychological Association style, Modern Language Association style or the Chicago Manual of Style.

Instructions

  1. American Psychological Association Style

    • 1

      List the author's last name and then first and middle initials, separated by a comma. Include periods after the initials.

    • 2

      Include the year the author wrote the dissertation in parenthesis. Add a period outside the closed parenthesis.

    • 3

      Write the title of the dissertation. Use sentence-case capitalization, meaning you capitalize only the first letter of the title and any proper nouns. End the title with a period.

    • 4

      Include the words "Doctoral dissertation" in parenthesis for a published dissertation. Write "Unpublished doctoral dissertation," also in parenthesis, for those dissertations that remain unpublished. Include a period outside of the closed parenthesis.

    • 5

      Write "Retrieved from" followed by the name of the database for a published dissertation, followed by a period. Include the accession or order number in parenthesis, with a period outside of the closed parenthesis. For an unpublished dissertation, list the name of the university and its location separated by a colon. Add a period after the location.

    Modern Language Association Style

    • 6

      List the author's last name and first name, separated by a comma. Add a period after the first name.

    • 7

      Write the dissertation title in italics for a published dissertation. Use title-case capitalization, meaning you initial cap all words but articles and small prepositions. Add a period at the end of the title. For an unpublished dissertation, place the title in quotation marks instead of italics.

    • 8

      Write the word "Dissertation" followed by a comma, and provide the name of the university for a published dissertation. An unpublished dissertation uses the abbreviation "Diss." followed by the school name, a comma and the year of publication.

    • 9

      List the city the school is located in followed by a colon for a published dissertation. Provide the database from which you accessed the dissertation, a comma and then the year of publication, followed by a period. Place the publication or order number in parenthesis, followed by a period.

    Chicago Manual of Style

    • 10

      List the author's last name and first name, separated by a comma and ending in a period.

    • 11

      Provide the year of publication for the dissertation, followed by a period.

    • 12

      List the dissertation title in italics followed by a period for a published dissertation. Use title-case capitalization. Place an unpublished dissertation title in quotation marks instead of italics.

    • 13

      List the degree, PhD, followed by "Dissertation," followed by a comma. List the school, followed by a period.

    • 14

      Write the school's city followed by a colon. Provide the database from which you accessed the dissertation. Place the publication or order number in parenthesis, followed by a period. Omit this information for an unpublished dissertation.

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