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How to cite a journal article in OSCOLA

Short answer

How do you cite a journal article in OSCOLA?

You need author(s), year, article title, journal name, volume, issue, page range, doi. The reference list entry looks like this:

Liz Thomas and Michael Hill, 'Belonging and Continuation Among First-Generation Undergraduates' (2024) 49 Studies in Higher Education 412-428

The matching in-text citation is n 1 (footnote).

Step by step

Building the reference

Do it automatically

  1. Gather the details

    You need: Author(s), Year, Article title, Journal name, Volume, Issue, Page range, DOI. Take them from the source itself, not from a database record, which is often incomplete.

  2. Order the elements

    OSCOLA is a footnote style, so the full citation appears in a note and again, reordered, in the bibliography. Follow the pattern in the example below exactly, including its punctuation.

  3. Add the in-text citation

    Every reference needs a matching in-text citation. In OSCOLA that is n 1 (footnote). Missing or mismatched in-text citations are penalised more often than formatting slips.

  4. Check against your own guide

    Institutional variants exist, particularly in Harvard. Where your department's published guide differs from any generator, the department's guide wins.

What you need

Details to collect

  • Author(s)
  • Year
  • Article title
  • Journal name
  • Volume
  • Issue
  • Page range
  • DOI

Watch out

Mistakes this pairing invites

  • Leaving out the DOI when the article has one — most styles now require it.
  • Citing the database (JSTOR, ProQuest) instead of the journal.
  • Confusing volume with issue, which changes the citation entirely.
  • No full stops in abbreviations — 'ibid' not 'ibid.'
  • Case names are italicised; the citation that follows is not.

Compare

The same journal article in all eight styles

  • Harvard

    Thomas, L. and Hill, M. (2024) 'Belonging and continuation among first-generation undergraduates', Studies in Higher Education, 49(3), pp. 412-428. doi: 10.1080/03075079.2024.2298471.

  • APA 7

    Thomas, L. & Hill, M. (2024). Belonging and continuation among first-generation undergraduates. Studies in Higher Education, 49(3), 412-428. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2024.2298471

  • MLA 9

    Thomas, Liz, and Michael Hill. "Belonging and Continuation Among First-Generation Undergraduates." Studies in Higher Education, vol. 49, no. 3, 2024, pp. 412-428. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2024.2298471.

  • Chicago 17

    Thomas, Liz, and Michael Hill. "Belonging and Continuation Among First-Generation Undergraduates." Studies in Higher Education 49, no. 3 (2024): 412-428. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2024.2298471.

  • Vancouver

    Thomas L, Hill M. Belonging and continuation among first-generation undergraduates. Studies in Higher Education. 2024;49(3):412-428. doi:10.1080/03075079.2024.2298471

  • OSCOLA

    This page

    Liz Thomas and Michael Hill, 'Belonging and Continuation Among First-Generation Undergraduates' (2024) 49 Studies in Higher Education 412-428

  • IEEE

    L. Thomas and M. Hill, "Belonging and continuation among first-generation undergraduates," Studies in Higher Education, vol. 49, no. 3, pp. 412-428, 2024, doi: 10.1080/03075079.2024.2298471.

  • AMA 11

    Thomas L, Hill M. Belonging and continuation among first-generation undergraduates. Studies in Higher Education. 2024;49(3):412-428. doi:10.1080/03075079.2024.2298471

Frequently asked questions

How do you cite a journal article in OSCOLA?
Liz Thomas and Michael Hill, 'Belonging and Continuation Among First-Generation Undergraduates' (2024) 49 Studies in Higher Education 412-428 — that is the reference list entry. The matching in-text citation is n 1 (footnote). You need author(s), year, article title, journal name, volume, issue, page range, doi.
What details do I need to cite a journal article?
Author(s), Year, Article title, Journal name, Volume, Issue, Page range, DOI. If a detail is genuinely unavailable, most styles have a defined substitute — for example 'n.d.' or 'no date' where no publication year exists — rather than simply omitting the element.
What is the in-text citation for a journal article in OSCOLA?
n 1 (footnote). The number refers to a footnote at the bottom of the page carrying the full citation on first use and a short form thereafter.