A style guide or style manual is a set of guidelines for how documents are to be written and designed. Several well-known style guides are commonly used by specific disciplines and journals.

Perhaps the most important function of an academic style guide is to support academic integrity; following guide standards appropriately will ensure that all sources are documented and credited consistently. Style guides also encourage coherent structure and formatting.

Several helpful style guide resources are available for loan, at both the Patrick Power Library and the Writing Centre. The Writing Centre, room 115 of the Burke Building, also has free style guide handouts designed for a number of SMU departments, prepared in partnership with Saint Mary's faculty and tailored to meet the expectations of particular disciplines of study. 

American Anthropology Association (AAA) Style Guide

• American Anthropology Association (AAA) Style Guide

• Saint Mary's Anthropology Department AAA Citation and Style Guide
  Includes a sample essay and how to do in-text citations

American Psychological Association (APA) Style Guide

• Purdue Online Writing Lab: A basic guide to writing research papers using APA guidelines

• Saint Mary's Writing Centre APA guides for Psychology, Sociology, International Development Studies, Political Science, Geography, and Business.

Modern Languages Association (MLA) Style Guide

• Saint Mary's University MLA Citation Guide for English Papers
  Contains a sample English paper, information on how to do in-text citations, and a work cited

• Concordia MLA Citation and Style Guide
  A basic guide to writing research papers using MLA guidelines. Topics include: gathering materials, taking notes, using outlines, working with quotations, formatting the paper, and preparing a work-cited page.

• MLA Handbook 2021
  Library Reference # LB2369 .M52 2021 REF

Chicago Manual of Style

• Saint Mary’s University Writing Centre Chicago Style Guide
  A basic guide to citing in Chicago format: information on how to do proper footnotes and bibliography, and a sample paper.

• The Chicago Manual of Style. 17th Edition
  Library Reference # Z 253 U69 2017 REF

• Chicago Manual of Style Online:
  Contents and Citation Quick Guide

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