Biomedical Science

Citing (aka Referencing) is acknowledging the information sources used in student assignments. This is essential to avoid plagiarism and maintain academic integrity. Always check with your School or supervisor as there may be an in-house style requirement or a specific version of the Harvard style required for your dissertation or assignment.

A Citation/in-text citation: this appears in the main body of your assignment and is called an 'in-text citation'. It ‘refers’ to the list of references or bibliography at the end of your paper.  It may be a direct quote or summary/paraphrase of the information. The citation will usually include the author and the date in the body of your writing e.g. (Smith, 2024)

A Reference: is a detailed entry in your list of references or bibliography at the end of your paper.

A Reference List: is an alphabetical list of items you referred to in your assignment with additional details provided to identify each source. The following details should be included:

• Author(s) or editor(s) or the full name or the organisation responsible
• Title of the journal article
• Title of the book or journal or website 
• Edition (for a book)
• Publisher’s name and place of publication (for a book)
• Year of publication
• Volume or issue details (for a journal)
• Page numbers (for a book) or doi number (for a journal article) or url for a website

A Bibliography: is the list of items you referred to in your assignment and also the items you used for your research but didn’t cite in your reference list. Reference list and bibliography are terms that are often used interchangeably.

A Citation Style: A variety of citation styles are used in different subjects e.g. AMA, RSC, APA, Chicago, Harvard and Vancouver.

If you're new to the Harvard referencing style use these getting started videos:

• Harvard Referencing - the basics
• Harvard Referencing - using in-text citations
• Harvard Referencing - creating a reference list

Reference Managers

Reference manager freeware can be used to manage, store and cite your citations in your style of choice using a MS Word plugin

Referencing an AI source generally follows the same principles as referencing any other source; a citation is still needed for each idea that is not your own.   Any direct use of AI-generated content, either in quotes, as paraphrase, or image-generation, must be cited and referenced according to the guidelines of the referencing style you are using. 

In general, your citations will need to include: 

• Developer of the tool + year (GenAI tools are not authors)

• The model and version 

• Description of the tool (eg. large language model) and/or description of the prompt/content

• The tool URL or publicly available URL of the generated content

• Follow disclosure of usage and archiving of interactions of your supervisor / School and referencing style 

Below is some best practice advice that applies to all referencing styles: 

• Disclose use: Describe all use of AI tools in a prominent section of your work. This maybe in your  Research Methods or Literature Review section. 
• Describe your usage: Explain the prompt you used, and how the AI’s output was incorporated
• Save version details: Note the date and exact version at time of use alongside each transcript you generate. AI models update frequently 
• Check for updates: As the use of AI in research is rapidly changing and developing, always check for the latest updates on the official website of whichever referencing style you are using. 
• Archive / Provide transcripts: Check with your lecturer / supervisor whether you need to archive your AI usage (ie. provide a record of all prompts and outputs, often in Appendices or supplemental material at the end of your work). Some referencing styles recommend making use of online archiving sites that create shareable, publicly accessible URLs of AI prompt-output interactions (eg. aiarchives.org)
• Check with your lecturer / tutor / supervisor: Discuss your planned use of AI with your academic supervisor, who will make you aware of any specific guidance, requirements or limits on the usage of AI in your School or programme. 

Journal Abbreviations

Abbreviated journal titles may be required in your list of references depending on the citation style used. Some useful tools which 'translate' the full journal title into the abbreviated version are:

1. Web of Science Journals
2. CASSI
3. All that JAS