APA is the most popular reference style at CBS and we receive quite a lot of questions on the do´s and don´ts of referencing.
Changes in APA 7th
Just over a year ago, APA was updated from the 6th to the 7th edition and some of the changes that were implemented might be relevant for your own work and for that of your students writing their assignments.
- For books, you no longer need to list the publication location.
- E-books should be cited exactly as print books. Do not include a database.
- If a journal article does not have a DOI, you can wrap up the citation after the page number. There is no longer a requirement to include the URL of the journal website.
- In-text citations with three or more authors should only include the name of the first author followed by et al. This is also the case the first time you use the source.
- List up to 20 authors for a source in the references list. This is up from eight in the 6th edition. For works with more than 20 authors, list the first 19, insert an ellipsis, and go on to list the name of the last author.
- When referencing webpages, you are free to use a URL shortener like tinyurl or bit.ly, if you so wish.
If in doubt – use our guide
Check out our new APA 7th guide at https://libguides.cbs.dk/APA7th (replaces the APA 6th guide).
If you are interested in all APA changes and not only those that specifically pertain to referencing, you may find this blog post from APA worth your while.
Questions about choice of style
When students reach out to us for help with their referencing, we always ask them to consult the guidelines of their study programme. Not all CBS programmes dictate a specific style, but nearly all the programmes that do, ask their student to use APA. This is why CBS Library always recommends APA when students ask for inputs, if their programmes and/or supervisors leave it up to them to decide.