Cybrary - Aspen Style Guide

Format and Organizational Requirements for Papers in Aspen University Courses

APA FORMATTING

Students must be able to write essays and reports that are clear, concise, and well supported. Student research papers and essay question responses must follow APA format. Points will be deducted for failure to follow APA formatting guidelines or repeated use of improper formatting. The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2001, 5th ed.), hereinafter referred to as APA's manual, is the primary source for the rules set forth in this guide.

This paper is produced using the guides set forth in APA's manual. You may use this paper as a model for your work: Sample Paper

See also:

• APA style guide table
• APA sample template

Aspen University strongly recommends that you purchase the following texts directly from the APA website:

Mastering APA Style: Student's Workbook and Training Guide
Editors: Harold Gelfand, PhD and Charles J. Walker, PhD
World Wide Web  [WWW document]. URL http://books.apa.org/books.cfm?id=4210030

For additional help with APA style guidelines:

American Psychological Association (APA)
World Wide Web  [WWW document]. URL http://apastyle.apa.org/

The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)
World Wide Web  [WWW document]. URL http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

American Psychological Association (APA) How to Cite Information From the Internet and the World Wide Web  [WWW document]. URL http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html

Citation Machine is an interactive web tool designed to assist high school, college, and university students, their teachers, and independent researchers in their effort to respect other people's intellectual properties. http://citationmachine.net/

ACADEMIC HONESTY

All assignments submitted must represent the individual effort of the student. Any cases of suspected cheating would be promptly dealt with through formal Aspen University processes. In general, student performance is governed by the Academic Honesty Policy in the Aspen University Catalog.

PLAGIARISM

Your work must be original, yet you are expected to use numerous references to develop your paper. In so doing, you must give appropriate credit for all sources of information.  Guides on documenting references are given below. Using the words, facts, and ideas of others without proper reference is considered plagiarism.

USE OF REFERENCE SOURCES

Your papers should be based on authoritative information gathered from various sources. You must cite your references so that readers can follow up, should they desire. Your sources will add strength to your position. You should use recent publications and ones that will provide credibility to your thesis. Books, periodicals and the Aspen University ProQuest Library will likely be your main resources for gathering information for research reports. Many organizations have libraries and research tools, and you are encouraged to use them if permitted by company policy.

ORGANIZATION

Length

The body of your paper will vary in length depending on the class for which the paper is being prepared. The Study Guide for your course will inform you of the length requirement. As indicated below, the paper is to be double-spaced. A table of references, diagrams, and appendices are in addition to the length guide.

Format

The paper must be  well organized. A portion of the grade will be based on this aspect. Use section headings. Start with an abstract and conclude with a summary. As a guide for preparation of your paper, use the following:

1. Margins: Top, bottom, left, and right should be one inch.

2. Double space: Use double spacing at all times.

3. Title page: Title of paper, your name, course name, date.

4. Table of contents: A separate page.

5. Page numbering: Number every page (upper right-hand corner). Page number one is the page after the Table of Contents.

6. Headings: The hierarchy of  headings Aspen recommends are: Section, Subsections, and Sub-subsections. Not all three levels are required.

Section headings should be centered and underlined or in bold.
Subsection headings should be left-justified, underlined, or bold and on a separate line.
Sub-subsections should be left-justified, not underlined, and on the same line as the text, and followed by a colon.

Note. APA's manual lists up to five levels.

7. Typed: Papers must be typed. Erasures are not acceptable. For this and other reasons, you are urged to use electronic processing.

8. Spelling and grammar: Inaccuracies will be deducted from the grade of the paper.  Therefore, you are urged to use a spell checker and carefully edit your English grammar or use a grammar checker.

Reference of sources of information:  All references (e.g., books, periodicals, reference manuals, newspaper articles, internal company publications, online sources such as Dialog, Internet, CD-ROMs, and interviews) must be  documented. Failure to include references when using information from one of these sources is considered plagiarism. Rules for citations in the body of the paper and the reference list at the end of the paper are given later in this guide.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

There are many sources of information for your research study. The Internet is an appropriate source. Consider the resources listed in Aspen's Cybrary. In addition, many books and periodicals are available that may be appropriate.

You must cite the information sources that you use on the Internet and elsewhere.  

You are welcome to use a topic related to your employment. If so, you may use company documentation as references.  However, this must not be your only source. You must use public sources such as those mentioned above. 

If you interview individuals for your research, they may be quoted or paraphrased.

CITATIONS IN THE BODY

According to the APA styleguide, you should cite your source in the text where the referenced information appears, and place an entry in the Reference section of your document for any citation in the text. Likewise, any entry in the list of references should be cited in the text. The following examples illustrate the method for citing references in a body of text.

According to Thomas Able (1999), the . . .

In Able's (1999) landmark text, we find evidence . . .

The hypothesis is supported by Baker's (1999, p. 9) quote, "xxxxxxxx."

Further weight is added to this argument when the author (Baker, 1999) argues that . . . "The evidence shows . . . " (p. 10).

Information gathered in personal interviews or by listening to a speaker should be given in the text as shown below:

...in speaking to the CEO, Jane Doe (1999), it was concluded that 70% of telecommunications . . .

I spoke to several employees. The situation was described as . . . (Johnson, et. al., 1999).

Citing a Website

To cite an entire Website (but not a specific document on the site), it's sufficient to give the address of the site in the text. For example, Kidspsych is a wonderful interactive Web site for children (http://www.kidspsych.org). No reference entry is needed.

Tables and Illustrations

Tables and illustrations should be included at the end of the paper. Tables should be numbered consecutively and should have a suitable caption. All notes and references within tables should be included with the tables, separately from the main text. All table columns should have appropriate headings. Example 1 shows the basic elements of a table.

Illustrations should follow the same guides but should be referred to as figures. The difference is that the title for figures is listed at the bottom whereas the title for tables is listed at the top.

Footnotes and Endnotes

Footnotes in text are of two kinds: content footnotes and copyright permission footnotes. Endnotes are used the same as footnotes accept they are listed at the end of the document. APA's manual does not recommend the use of endnotes. Footnotes or endnotes should be numbered chronologically throughout the paper.

FORMAT OF REFERENCE LIST

All references should be grouped together in a section at the end of the paper in alphabetical order and should be single-spaced. Each line of reference should be left justified.

Sample of a Book Reference

Able, T. S. (1994). History of technology. Dallas, TX: Smith Publishing.

Sample of a Periodical Reference

Baker, J. J. (1994, September 15). Management techniques. Modern Management Journal, p 33-44.

(If the periodical is daily or weekly, put day in addition to month and year.)

SOURCE OF CITING INTERNET REFERENCE

American Psychological Association (APA) (n.d/1998) How to Cite Information From the Internet and the World Wide Web  [WWW document]. URL http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html

REFERENCE

Author. (2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.