A style guide is a document or book that sets standards for writing within a particular setting or discipline. (A discipline is just a field of study, such as sociology or biology.)
You'll use style guides during your college years and even beyond, since various professions and businesses rely on them.
Many style guides exist, but you are most likely to use one of the style guides below as an MCC student. (Use the tabs to navigate between the five guides.)
The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) is commonly used in the social sciences. It provides two different format styles, one for students and one for professionals. Confirm which style you should use with your instructor.
Use your APA manual or the links below to learn more about APA requirements.
The Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) is commonly used in the humanities. It provides the option of two different documentation styles, so ask whether your instructor requires the author-date style or the notes-bibliography style.
Use your CMS manual or the links below to learn more about CMS requirements.
The Modern Language Association (MLA) Handbook is commonly used in the humanities. It is particularly popular for English courses, but confirm with your instructor before using it.
Use your MLA manual or the links below to learn more about MLA requirements.
A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (called Turabian style) is a modified form of the Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) and is commonly used for student work in the humanities. Confirm with your instructor before using it.
Use your Turabian manual or the links below to learn more about Turabian requirements.
Style guides include rules for writing, formatting, and citing sources. They help you understand which information to include, how to write it, and how to arrange it on the page. Read on for some specifics.
Most academic fields have a preferred style guide. As examples:
However, the final choice is up to your instructor, so check your assignment prompt or consult with your instructor to determine the required style guide for your assignment.
Style guides are occasionally updated, so make sure you are using the latest edition of your style guide, unless your instructor permits an older version. (The latter situation sometimes occurs if a new edition is issued in the middle of a semester.)
Occasionally, an instructor may adapt (alter) a style guide's rules. Use adapted rules as instructed by the specific instructor, but remember not to apply them in other classes.
All images on this page (except style guide images) are courtesy of Adobe Stock. Style guide images are courtesy of guide publishers.
