Issues with references are among the most frequent errors made in academic writing. Students frequently have trouble switching from one referring style to another or struggle with referencing because they are not comfortable with a new style of writing.
Learning how to cite a thesis in MLA style is something that many students struggle with. Although many students are familiar with the APA style, MLA thesis citation has a few subtle nuances that take some time for the student to understand.
The common errors in an MLA thesis will be highlighted in this post, making it easier for you to fix your paper. https://us.dissertationteam.com/thesis-statement-help
How to cite a thesis paper MLA
1. Indents
When writing using the MLA thesis format, each new paragraph should be indented by half an inch. This can be easily done by pressing the tab button at the start of each new paragraph or by adjusting your indent on the paragraph tab.
2. Spell out numbers that are two words or fewer
When writing in MLA, numbers that are one or two words should be spelled out. Therefore, avoid spelling out large figures in a bid to cheat the word tally. Also worth noting is that numbers should be used alongside units, addresses, dates, or decimal fractions.
When writing large figures, the style also requires that you add a comma after every third digit except for addresses and years.
3. Contractions
Contractions are a common part of our slang and also a sneaky way for students to shorten papers. when writing a paper in MLA, however, steer clear of slang as this counts as a styling error, compromising your final score.
4. Running head
As opposed to APA, the running head in MLA only comprises your last name and the page number. This information should be added to your header tab and aligned right with a half-inch space from the top margin of your paper.
5. Works Cited
References in your MLA paper are added on a new page titled “works cited”. Like all pages in your paper, this section is double-spaced with the only difference being in the indentation where the first line starts to flash left and all other subsequent entries in your references are indented with a half-inch margin.
6. The usage of et.al.
Having too many entries in your in-text citations can make your paper untidy. Therefore, MLA dictates that you use the extension et.al. for any sources with more than two authors.
i.e., (Dennis and Zechariah 82).
However, this should only be the case in in-text citations and not for the works cited section.
7. Initials within in-text citations
Unlike APA, MLA citations do not include any initials or honorifics. Intext MLA citations of a thesis should only contain the author’s last name and the page number.
i.e., (Pascal and Eric 82)
8. Punctuation
When editing in MLA, avoid using apostrophes after years. Also, the word after a quote in a sentence can start with a lowercase letter if it completes your sentence.
If a quote comes at the end of a sentence, put the comma after the closing bracket of the citation as this is also part of the sentence. Also worth noting is that you can use ellipses to omit information in the middle of a sentence, highlighting only the essential information from a borrowed quote.
This will help you to support arguments in your paper without exceeding the prescribed word count.
9. Title Page
A title page is not necessary for an MLA paper unless when your tutor has instructed that you include this section. Your information should be added to the top left edge of the first page of your paper followed by the title of your paper.
10. Headings in MLA
When editing your paper in MLA, refrain from using the heading styles in the MS Word editor. Level one headings in your paper should be emboldened, level two headings styled in the normal font and level three headings italicized.
Also worth noting is that all headings should be flush left and have a line space above and below the heading for easy readability.
Final take
We hope that this article has addressed any issues you had regarding how to cite a thesis in MLA. Feel free to engage our experts for assistance with any challenges you could have in your academic writing journey.