Referencing - BU Harvard 24-25 Full Guide: Welcome

From September 2025, Bournemouth University will be transitioning to APA as its default referencing style (see APA Style Guide). The BU Harvard Guide has not been updated for the 25-26 academic year and will be accessible until September 2026.

Which referencing style should I use?

Check your coursework brief. Most BU students will use the APA Referencing Style with the exception of the following programmes:

• Law OSCOLA guides Referencing – UK & EU Law and Referencing – International law.
• History Chicago Style.
• English students BU Harvard 

• Criminology with Law APA and OSCOLA referencing style guidance - UK & EU Law and International Law.  

For clarification on which referencing style to use, please speak to your tutor.

Why you need to reference?

• Anything you use from a source that is written or produced by another author should be cited in the main text of your work and referenced in a list at the end of your work.
• Consistency and accuracy of referencing is important to verify quotations, check a source's credibility and enable readers to follow up and read cited author’s arguments.
• Referencing helps develop your attention to detail skills.
• A consistent approach needs to be taken on how to present and format citing in the main text of your work and in the reference list at the end. Otherwise academics who mark and examine your work would have a greater, more time consuming challenge; distracted by each individual's interpretation of how to reference sources.  
• Depending on the assessment, a proportion of your marks can be dedicated to referencing (check the coursework brief, course handbook or ask unit lecturers for details). 
• Referencing correctly is part of demonstrating your academic integrity and it's necessary to avoid accusations of academic offences, particularly plagiarism which is a serious offence.

This online guide recommends how to cite and reference according to BU’s version of the Harvard style, which is Author Date:

• In the Harvard system all cited publications are referred to in the main body of text by giving the author’s surname/family name and the year of publication.
• Each cited publication must have a corresponding full reference in the list of references at the end of your work. The references are listed in alphabetical order by author surname / name of organisation.