Whether you’re working on a school project, or presenting to all the members on your board, one thing is certain: you want to give credit to your sources.
Failing to do so in a classroom setting can result in project failure, or plagiarism accusations. Failure to do so in a professional setting will just leave your colleagues or executives wondering where you got your information from, and whether it’s to be trusted.
In short, proper reference management is invaluable.
How to cite a PowerPoint in MLA format
You’ll cite the PowerPoint in agreement with the method in which you found it. If you saw the PowerPoint during a lecture, you’ll include “lecture” in the citation. If you are citing a PowerPoint from your own device, you’ll use “PowerPoint file” in the citation.
It’s easy, and I’m going to explain just how easy.
PowerPoints are cited differently depending on how you found them. There is a format for PowerPoints viewed during a lecture or conference as part of the curriculum, and PowerPoints viewed on your personal devices. Let’s discuss both.
PowerPoints found during a lecture
Professors and speakers often use PowerPoints as a visual aid to increase audience or student engagement. If you’re hoping to cite a presentation your professor or a public speaker showed, the proper format is as follows:
Author last, first. “Lecture title.” Location of lecture, date, lecture |
An example of this type of citation from an academic lecture would be formatted as follows:
Smith, John. “The History of Russia.” San Jacinto College. 10 June 2019. Lecture. |
Smith, John. “The History of Russia.” Technology Connect, Hilton Hotel. Chicago, IL. 10 June 2019. Keynote address. |
An example of this type of citation from a keynote speaker would be formatted as follows:
PowerPoints viewed on your computer
Say your professor or a colleague sends you the PowerPoint file and you view it on a personal device. If you want to cite this type of presentation, you’d use the following format:
Author last, first. “PowerPoint title.” creation date, Microsoft PowerPoint file |
An example of this type of citation from your personal device would be formatted as follows:
Smith, John. “The History of Russia.” 10 June 2019, PowerPoint file |
You get the point
While it can feel confusing to cite unique sources, it’s really a simple matter of learning the formula and sticking to it. Follow the formats mentioned above and you’re at least sure to ace the citation format of your end of semester project.
PowerPoint isn’t the only type of unique data source. Read this article to learn how to cite a YouTube video.