Citation Guides for Engineers

The #1 way to avoid plagiarism is to cite or attribute the resources you use. 

Each scholarly discipline has a preferred standard for crediting materials, so it is important to understand the basic rules of each. The most common styles used in engineering are:

• American Psychological Association (APA)
• American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
• Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE, pronounced "Eye-triple-E")

If you are unsure which style to use, check your syllabus. Your instructor has most likely already chosen a style they want you to use. If your syllabus does not designate a specific type, ask you professor what their preference is. 

What's the actual difference between citing a source or attributing it? The simple answer is that citation is more formal and follows specific styles and guidelines, while attribution is best used when there is not a standard for the type of resource you are using, such as artificial intelligence. 

When you need/want to attribute a resource, remember TASL:

• T = Title
• A = Author (tell re-users who to give credit to)
• S = Source (give re-users a link to the resource)
• L = License (link to the CC license deed)

When providing attribution, the goal is to mark the work with full TASL information. When you don’t have some of the TASL information about a work, do the best you can and include as much detail as possible.