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APA 7th edition - Citations: Theses & Dissertations

APA 7th edition

Theses & Dissertations

Published vs. unpublished

Citations for dissertations and theses reorganize elements depending on whether they are published or unpublished.

Published
  • A dissertation or thesis is considered published when it is available through a database, institutional repository, or archive
  • Label the type of document and institution name in square brackets after the title 
    • e.g. [Master's thesis, University of British Columbia] or [Doctoral dissertation, Simon Fraser University]
  • Include the URL if the URL will work for readers, or else end the citation with the name of the database, repository, or archive 
General format - published

Reference List 

AuthorLastName, A. A. (Date). Title of dissertation or thesis (Publication No. ## - if available) [Document type, institution name]. Publisher. http://www.website.com/webpage

In-Text

(AuthorLastName, Year)

Unpublished
  • An unpublished dissertation or thesis includes the name of the university as the source.
  • A URL is generally not included as an unpublished document is assumed to be in print or a digital document unavailable publicly.
  • If available in a database or repository/archive, treat as published.
General format - unpublished

Reference List 

AuthorLastName, A. A. (Date). Title of dissertation or thesis (Publication No. ## - if available) [Unpublished document type]. Institution Name. http://www.website.com/webpage

In-Text

(AuthorLastName, Year)

1. Published

Example 1

Reference List 

Hossain, M. A. (2018). What do police recruits identify as strategies to deal with their triggers/biases to deliver fair and impartial policing? [Capstone Project, Justice Institute of British Columbia]. The Vault. https://jibc.arcabc.ca/islandora/object/jibc%3A2380?solr_nav%5Bid%5D=16b067104b80bcb271bb&solr_nav%5Bpage%5D=0&solr_nav%5Boffset%5D=0

In-Text

(Hossain, 2018)

Example 2

Reference List 

Ferguson, J. (2010). Queer Japanese cinema: A rich and diverse cultural history's challenge to hegemonic ideologies of gender and sexuality (Publication No. MR82331) [Master's thesis, University of British Columbia]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

In-Text

(Ferguson, 2010)

Note: Example 2 is from a database, where the link will not open for most readers. In this situation, list the database name in the source element and omit the URL.

2. Unpublished

Reference List 

Smith, I. (2020). Effects of library instruction on college students' citation practices [Unpublished undergraduate thesis]. Okanagan College.

In-Text

(Smith, 2020)