Citing a master's thesis in APA

Reviewed by Benjamin Lohrer, editor at corrected.eu · Updated: 15 August 2026

Citing a master's thesis

When you cite an existing master's thesis in APA, the publication status comes first. The status tells you which pattern to follow: author, year, title, thesis type, university and, where relevant, database, archive or URL.

Citing a master's thesis

When you cite a master's thesis that already exists, its publication status is decisive. The APA guide of the Online Writing Lab at Excelsior University distinguishes between an unpublished master's thesis and a thesis published in a database, an archive or online. After that, author, year of submission, title, thesis type, university and, where relevant, the location or URL are put in order according to the APA pattern concerned.

Determine the publication status first

If you want to cite an existing master's thesis using an APA example from the Excelsior OWL guide, first clarify its publication status: unpublished, or published in a database, a university archive or online. The guide shows different APA examples for each case. These details are not a general citation standard for every university.

The APA example for an unpublished master's thesis names the author, the year of submission, the title in italics, the label as an unpublished master's thesis and the university. For a published thesis, the example also contains author, year of submission and title; the thesis type and the university go in square brackets. Database or archive follow. For a thesis published online, the guide also shows a URL.

Check the document and where you found it to establish its status and the details that are visible. Then choose the matching APA example and assign its components accordingly.

Published or unpublished?

Location and status are what count. If the thesis cannot be found as a published version in a database, a university archive or online, the guide shows an APA example for an unpublished master's thesis. This example comprises author, year of submission, title in italics, the label as an unpublished master's thesis and the university.

If a thesis is held in a database or an archive, the guide uses a separate APA example: here the type of work and the university go in square brackets, followed by the database or archive. For texts published online, the guide also gives a URL. So you should know the exact location before you choose an APA example.

The examples come from the Excelsior University APA guide. They are not a universally valid standard. A source reference is required; whether you cite in the text or work with footnotes depends on the citation style and the rules of your university. The guide does not establish a DOI rule or an access-date rule, nor any particular short-reference or footnote format.

Pattern for an unpublished master's thesis

For unpublished master's theses, the APA guide sets out this sequence: author, year of submission, title in italics, the label as an unpublished master's thesis and the university. Together these points form a complete source reference. The thesis type is given in square brackets.

As a structure you can record the details like this: Surname, Initials. (Year). Title of the master's thesis [Unpublished master's thesis]. University. The English thesis type is part of the APA example from the guide. A translation or an additional label in another language should be used only if your university's requirements ask for it and you have checked those requirements.

The individual components matter. The author is given with surname and initials. Next comes the year in which the thesis was submitted. The title is set in italics. The thesis is then labelled as an unpublished master's thesis. The sequence shown in the guide ends with the name of the university.

Do not automatically carry this structure over to a thesis you found in a database, an archive or online. First check whether the actual location calls for a published variant. If details on the document or at the location are not clearly recognisable, run a concrete check on the document and the location instead of filling in a missing detail.

Pattern for a published master's thesis

For published master's theses, the APA guide starts with author, year of submission and title. In square brackets come the thesis type and the university. Database or archive follow. For an online publication, the guide also shows a URL, provided the actual location is online.

The structure can be presented editorially like this: Surname, Initials. (Year of submission). Title of the master's thesis [Master's thesis, University]. Database or archive. For an online publication: URL. This line is a pattern for orientation based on the APA guide mentioned. Replace the components with the details of the actual document and the actual location.

Check the order of the components against the actual document and location: after author, year of submission and title come the thesis type and university in square brackets, then database or archive. If the thesis is published online, check the matching URL at the actual online location.

Such format details are not laid down explicitly in every source. The direct APA guide does not support these additional rules for the reference treated here. If your university asks for other components, check its requirements and arrange the reference accordingly.

An editorial example with a fictional thesis

This example is purely editorial and invented, and is not taken from a real source. It shows an unpublished master's thesis. First the status is made clear: this is not an entry in a database, a university archive or on a website. Then follow author, year, title, thesis type and university in the prescribed order.

The name "Anna Miller" is arranged as "Miller, A." for this editorial presentation. The year is entered as the year of submission. The title is marked in italics. The square bracket labels the work as an unpublished master's thesis, and the invented university follows. All components are written out in full. This is not a quotation of text and not a statement about a document that actually exists.

If the same editorial thesis were instead published in a database or an archive, that different status would have to be established first. Author, year, title, thesis type and university in square brackets and then the database or archive would have to be arranged. For an online publication, the actual location and, where relevant, the URL checked there would be added. This example does not present the published variant as a statement of fact.

What this APA pattern does not settle

The format used comes from a direct APA guide of the Online Writing Lab at Excelsior University. It should therefore be labelled as the APA pattern of that guide. It must not be passed off as a universal standard for every university, every subject or every academic paper.

For the reference treated here, the guide supports no DOI requirement and no requirement to include an access date. Nor is any specific short-reference or footnote format derived from it. These elements should therefore not be presented as necessary components on the basis of this guide alone.

Check your university's rules first. Find the binding guidance in your university's official documents and compare it with the APA pattern before you submit the reference. If the documents ask for a different order or additional details, do not use the example shown here unchecked. Our APA 7 guide covers the wider rules of the style.

The publication status must not be inferred from the mere existence of a title either. Check whether the actual location shows a database, a university archive or an online publication. If a decisive indicator is missing, carry out this check on the document and the location.

Quick check before submission

Check the reference against the actual document and the actual location. Start with the publication status: is the master's thesis unpublished, recorded in a database or a university archive, or published online? This decision determines which of the two APA patterns you check.

• Check the publication status on the document and at the location.
• Compare author and initials with the actual document.
• Compare the year with the year of submission or the year shown at the location.
• Take over the title in full and check the italics in the APA example.
• Establish the thesis type and, for the published variant, check the square brackets.
• Check the university on the actual document or at the location.
• Include a database or archive only if the actual location supports it.
• For an online publication, check the URL at the actual online location.
• Check your own university's requirements in its official documents.

Afterwards compare the finished reference once more with the matching structure. For the unpublished variant, author, year of submission, title in italics, the label as an unpublished master's thesis and the university must be recognisable in source order. For the published variant, author, year of submission, title, thesis type and university in square brackets, as well as database or archive and, where relevant, URL must have been checked at the actual location.

If a detail is missing or the status is not clearly recognisable, do not add a guess. Find the information on the actual document, at the actual location and in your own university's official requirements. When you are done, a citation check can confirm that your in-text references and bibliography still match.

Sources and status

• Source: owl.excelsior.edu (status: 2026-08-15)

Frequently asked questions about citing a master's thesis