The Student-Friendly Guide to Harvard Referencing

Referencing is nobody’s favourite part of an assignment. But get it wrong, or skip it, and it can cost you marks, raise plagiarism flags, or both. Here’s everything you need to know, without the headache.

What is harvard referencing?

Harvard referencing is an author-date system. Every time you use someone else’s idea or quote, you add the author’s surname and year of publication in the text. At the end of your assignment, you include a full reference list with the complete details of every source used.

It works in two parts:

Reference list vs bibliography: A reference list only includes sources you actually cited. A bibliography includes everything you read. Most Australian university assignments ask for a reference list but check your subject guide to be sure.

How to reference Harvard style for different sources

Books

Format: Author Last Name Initial/s Year, Title of book, Publisher, Place of Publication.
Example: Deegan C 2019, An introduction to accounting, Cengage Learning Australia, Southbank.

Journal Articles

Format: Author Last Name Initial/s Year, ‘Title of article’, Journal Name, vol. X, no. X, pp. XX–XX, doi:XXXXX.

Example: Kozulin A 1993, ‘Literature as a psychological tool’, Educational Psychologist, vol. 28, no. 3, pp. 253–265.

Websites

Format: Author/Organisation Year, Title of webpage, Website Name, accessed Day Month Year, URL.

Example: UNICEF Australia n.d., Early childhood development, UNICEF Australia, accessed 15 May 2025, https://www.unicef.org.au.

Book Chapters in Edited Books

Format: Chapter Author Year, ‘Chapter title’, in Editor Initial Last Name (ed.), Book Title, Publisher, City, pp. XX–XX.

Example: Curthoys A 1997, ‘History and identity’, in W Hudson & G Bolton (eds), Creating Australia, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, pp. 23–38.

Common mistakes to avoid in academic citations

Harvard referencing varies slightly between Australian universities, so always check your institution’s own style guide. UNSW has one of the most comprehensive, find it here.

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