If you are writing a final year project in a Nigerian social science, education, or management department, there is a strong chance your supervisor expects APA 7. Not MLA. Not Harvard with random commas. Not "whatever Google suggested at 2 a.m."
Citation style is not decoration. It is how you show where ideas came from, how readers can verify your sources, and how seriously you take academic integrity. Messy referencing can cost marks even when your arguments are solid.
This guide focuses on APA 7th edition as used in many Nigerian undergraduate theses. Always confirm with your departmental handbook. If your faculty uses MLA or Chicago, switch early. Our post on seminar paper vs final year project also warns about changing styles mid-draft.
Why APA 7 dominates Nigerian social science departments
APA, the American Psychological Association style, is common in psychology, education, business, public administration, mass communication, and related fields. Nigerian faculties often adopt it because journal articles in those disciplines already use APA, and supervisors want students aligned with publishable norms.
APA 7 updated several rules from APA 6. The most visible changes for undergraduates include:
- Up to 20 authors listed before et al. in the reference list
- DOI or URL formatted as a plain link without "Retrieved from" in most cases
- Publisher location no longer required for books
- Clearer guidance on website references and social media
You do not need to memorise the entire manual. You need repeatable habits for in-text citations, reference entries, and consistency across Chapter Two through Chapter Five.
Supervisor tip: I do not fail a project because one comma is missing. I do fail students who cite sources that do not exist, cite years that do not match the reference list, or copy paragraphs without attribution.
In-text citations: the basics
APA in-text citations point readers to the reference list. They usually include author surname and year. Page or paragraph numbers appear for direct quotes.
Narrative vs parenthetical citations
| Type | When to use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Parenthetical | Citation at end of sentence | Mobile money adoption has grown rapidly in Nigeria (Okafor, 2023). |
| Narrative | Author name in the sentence | Okafor (2023) argues that trust affects mobile money adoption. |
| Direct quote | Quote with page number | "Financial inclusion remains uneven" (Okafor, 2023, p. 14). |
One author, two authors, three or more
| Authors | In-text format (parenthetical) | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 author | (Surname, Year) | (Bello, 2021) |
| 2 authors | (Surname & Surname, Year) | (Adeyemi & Musa, 2020) |
| 3+ authors | (Surname et al., Year) | (Chukwu et al., 2024) |
In the reference list, APA 7 lists up to 20 authors before using an ellipsis and the final author.
Organisation as author
| Source type | In-text example |
|---|---|
| Government agency | (National Bureau of Statistics, 2022) |
| First citation with abbreviation | National Bureau of Statistics (NBS, 2022) |
| Later citations | (NBS, 2022) |
Multiple sources in one citation
When several studies support the same point, you can cite them in one parenthetical group. APA expects the works to appear in alphabetical order by author surname inside the brackets. Example pattern with three separate entries grouped together: (Bello, 2020), (Okafor, 2023), and (Yusuf, 2021) combined as one bracketed group per the APA manual. Check the latest APA handbook for the exact punctuation inside that group.
Roylithia note: Roylithia Scribe nudges APA-style in-text citations while you draft chapters. You should still verify author names, years, and page numbers against the original PDF.
Reference list rules
Your reference list appears at the end of your project, usually before appendices. Core rules:
- Start on a new page titled References
- Alphabetise by first author surname
- Use a hanging indent
- Double-spacing is standard in many faculty templates
- Every in-text citation must have a matching reference entry, and vice versa
Common elements by source type
| Source type | Typical reference elements |
|---|---|
| Journal article | Author, year, title, journal, volume(issue), pages, DOI or URL |
| Book | Author, year, title, publisher |
| Book chapter | Chapter author, year, chapter title, editor, book title, pages, publisher |
| Website | Author or organisation, year, title, site name, URL |
| Thesis | Author, year, title, type, institution, repository or URL |
Books and edited volumes
Print or electronic book
Reference list entry
Smith, R. A. (2019). Research methods for social sciences. University Press.
In-text
(Smith, 2019)
Edited book chapter
Reference list entry
Adewale, T. (2022). Small business finance in Lagos. In K. Ibrahim & P. Nwosu (Eds.), Entrepreneurship in West Africa (pp. 45–67). Academic House.
In-text
(Adewale, 2022)
Note: APA 7 does not require the publisher location.
Journal articles and DOIs
Journal articles are the backbone of literature reviews. Prefer articles with clear bibliographic data.
Journal article with DOI
| Element | Example |
|---|---|
| Authors | Yusuf, A., & Okon, B. |
| Year | (2023) |
| Article title | Digital learning adoption among Nigerian undergraduates |
| Journal | Journal of Educational Technology |
| Volume/issue | 12(2) |
| Pages | 88–102 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1000/xyz123 |
Full reference list entry
Yusuf, A., & Okon, B. (2023). Digital learning adoption among Nigerian undergraduates. Journal of Educational Technology, 12(2), 88–102. https://doi.org/10.1000/xyz123
In-text
(Yusuf & Okon, 2023)
Journal article without DOI, with URL
If there is no DOI and the article was read online from a journal website, include the URL:
Mba, C. (2021). Public health communication in rural Nigeria. African Health Review, 5(1), 12–19. https://www.examplejournal.org/ahr/v5/mba
Websites and grey literature
Websites are acceptable when they come from credible organisations: government ministries, central bank, statistics office, universities, established NGOs, and official company reports.
Webpage on an organisation site
Reference list entry
Central Bank of Nigeria. (2024, March 5). Payments system statistics. https://www.cbn.gov.ng/example
In-text
(Central Bank of Nigeria, 2024)
Include a retrieval date only if the content is designed to change over time and your faculty requires it. Many undergraduate templates now follow APA 7 and omit retrieval dates for stable reports.
Report PDF online
Reference list entry
National Universities Commission. (2022). Benchmark minimum academic standards for undergraduate programmes. https://www.nuc.edu.ng/example
In-text
(National Universities Commission, 2022)
Nigerian government documents and reports
Nigerian undergraduate projects often cite policy and statistical sources. Treat the organisation as author when no person is named.
| Document | Reference list example |
|---|---|
| NBS report | National Bureau of Statistics. (2023). Labor force statistics. https://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng/example |
| Federal ministry policy | Federal Ministry of Health. (2022). National health policy. https://www.health.gov.ng/example |
| State government publication | Lagos State Ministry of Education. (2021). Education sector performance review. |
In-text examples
(National Bureau of Statistics, 2023)
(Lagos State Ministry of Education, 2021)
When a document has no date, use n.d. in place of the year: (Federal Ministry of Youth, n.d.)
For local government or agency titles, spell names fully on first use if your supervisor prefers formal style.
Common APA mistakes in FYP submissions
Mismatched years. In-text says 2020 but reference list says 2019. Fix immediately.
Missing reference list entries. Every citation must appear in References.
Citing abstracts only. Read the full paper when possible. Your Chapter Two should reflect real engagement.
Using "Retrieved from" unnecessarily. APA 7 usually uses a plain DOI or URL link.
Italicising wrong parts. Book and journal titles are italicised. Article titles are not.
Broken URLs. Test links before printing. Use the canonical link from the publisher or agency site.
Secondary citation abuse. If you read about Maslow in a textbook by Bello, APA prefers finding Maslow's original work. If you must cite a source you only saw quoted in another work, use secondary citation format: (Maslow, 1943, as cited in Bello, 2022). Use this sparingly.
Wikipedia as a scholarly source. Wikipedia can orient you. It should not be your cited authority in a final year project.
Supervisor tip: Before binding, print your reference list and highlight every in-text citation in Chapter Two. Missing pairs show up fast.
Tools and habits for consistent citations
You do not need expensive software, but you need a system.
Reference managers such as Zotero, Mendeley, or EndNote save hours. Export to Word and clean formatting manually. No manager is perfect for Nigerian grey literature PDFs.
Cite while you write. Do not leave referencing for the night before binding.
One master list. Merge chapter drafts into a single reference file early.
Department template. Many faculties provide a thesis template with References heading style, margin rules, and numbering. Paste APA entries into that template instead of fighting default Word styles.
Pilot check with a senior project. Compare five references side by side with a high-scoring thesis from your department. Mimic structure, not content.
When you draft methodology instruments adapted from prior studies, cite the original instrument source in Chapter Three and include the full reference.
When your department wants something different
Some Nigerian faculties use Harvard, Chicago, or MLA. Others say APA but tolerate local variations in punctuation. Read your handbook.
Signs you are using the wrong style:
- Your supervisor keeps correcting author-date format
- Your bibliography is titled "Bibliography" but APA expects "References"
- Footnotes dominate when APA uses in-text citations
If you must switch styles, do it before you write Chapter Two. Converting fifty citations by hand near the deadline is how good projects turn stressful.
| Style | Typical in-text pattern | Common faculties |
|---|---|---|
| APA 7 | (Author, Year) | Social sciences, education, business |
| MLA 9 | (Author Page) | Some humanities programmes |
| Chicago Author-Date | (Author Year) | Some history and communication tracks |
| Harvard | (Author Year) | Varies by department naming |
When in doubt, ask your supervisor: "Should I use APA 7 for the entire thesis including in-text and reference list?"
Quick defence-ready citation checklist
- Reference list titled References and alphabetised
- Every in-text citation has a full entry
- Years match across in-text and reference list
- DOI or URL included where required
- Book and journal titles italicised correctly
- Direct quotes include page numbers
- Government and NBS sources credited to the organisation
- No fabricated references
Citation work is tedious, but it is also trainable. Students who master APA 7 early write faster in every later chapter because they stop fighting format panic at the end.
Roylithia note: Roylithia Scribe supports structured drafting with APA-style in-text citations and reference suggestions while you edit. Treat every entry as a draft until you confirm it against the original source and your departmental template.
For the broader research writing arc, continue with Chapter One, Chapter Two, and Chapter Three guides in this series.