APA Citation Guide

How to Cite Theses or Reports in APA Style

Citing theses or reports

Students should leverage unpublished theses and reports when writing their own academic papers. These can be found in student libraries and must be properly referenced to safeguard students from accusations of plagiarism.

To cite an unpublished thesis or report, it is important you include the following:

  1. Author
  2. Year of publication
  3. Title
  4. Level of Thesis
  5. University

Based on the APA style guide, we recommend you use the following structure.

APA Report or Thesis citation format:

Last name, initial. (Year published).Title. [Thesis Level]. University.

Examples:

  • Delor, P. (2015). Technology, Consumerism and Development: a study of collaborative consumerism and market relations in developing countries [MPhil Thesis]. Oxford University.
  • Robak, M. (2016). Practicing What We’re Taught: An Analysis of Pre-Clinical and Clinical Medical Education of Compassionate Care at Harvard Medical School [Doctor of Medicine Thesis]. Harvard University.
  • Kyei-Nimakoh, M. (2017). Management and referral of obstetric complications: a study in the upper east region of Ghana [PhD Thesis]. Victoria University.