Where To Find Proper APA Essay Examples: A Quick Guide

When you are looking for APA essay examples you really need to make sure that the examples you are accessing really meet the current APA standards. At the time of writing this article the current edition is the 6th edition.

The best way to learn about APA is by looking at essays, but you don’t just need to know where to find the examples you need to make a quick check that they actually meet the APA standards.

Where to look:

• Ask your tutor for a few examples of APA essays. It is a good idea look at more than just one example. Your tutor should be able to provide you with a few examples. Ideally the examples need to be annotated so you are clear about what is expected.
• Go to the school Library. The librarians should be able to find you several examples. Make sure that you stipulate that you need the most current edition. This is really important. At the Library they should be family with the system so as they can help you.

Online

• When you look online you will find that there are several useful sites that can provide you with examples. Ideally (as mentioned earlier) you want to find examples that have been annotated. This is the best way to learn.
• If possible look for examples of essays that are not just perfectly referenced but they also have examples of essays that are poor examples. Again these need to be annotated. You need to be able to see where the author has not just made a mistake but also what the mistake is.

Also online

• When you start looking at some of the websites that can provide you with examples you will also find that some also have video-casts. Most of these are tutorials that will talk you through an essay example.
• There are other sites that also have videos that have been produced by students who are willing to share their experience of using APA, this could also be a good resource.

APA is the most commonly used referencing style. Ideally you will need to have some knowledge of the referencing system and style before you start looking for examples. You don’t want to start becoming familiar with the referencing system through a hotchpotch mix of several referencing systems. Make sure that before you start that you have a rough idea the requirements of APA, such as the major paper sections, use of heading and footnotes etc.