FAQ: Where can I find information on APA style and PowerPoint presentations?

How to Format a PowerPoint Presentation in APA Style

The APA manual does not have a section on how to format a PowerPoint presentation, but you can follow APA style guidelines within your PowerPoint. For example:

• Include the same information on your title slide that you would have on a title page. 
  See this FAQ: How do I make an APA cover sheet?
• Include in-text citations for any quote, paraphrase, image, graph, table, data, audio or video file that you use within your presentation. Please note that photographs are considered figures in APA style. See section 7.30 of the APA manual for more information about this.
• The last slide will be your References List. 
• “No citation, permission, or copyright attribution is necessary for clip art from programs like Microsoft Word or PowerPoint” (American Psychological Association [APA], 2020, p. 346).
• Do not reproduce images without permission from the creator or owner of the image. See section 12.15 of the APA manual for more information about this.

How to Cite PowerPoint Slides in your References List

You will use the following format to cite PowerPoint slides:

Author, A. A. (year). Title of presentation [PowerPoint slides]. Website Name. https://xxxxx

Please note that “if the slides come from a classroom website, learning management system [e.g., Brightspace], or company intranet and you are writing for an audience with access to that resource, provide the name of the site and its URL (use the login page URL for sites requiring login)” (APA, 2020, p. 347). Don't forget to indent the second and subsequent lines.

Southern New Hampshire University. (n.d.). Social media and marketing communications: Written/Oral project outline. [PowerPoint slides]. Brightspace. https://learn.snhu.edu/d2l/lp/auth/saml/login

More Information

• APA guide (Shapiro Library)
• APA Blog (APA)

Further Help

This information is intended to be a guideline, not expert advice. Please be sure to speak to your professor about the appropriate way to cite sources in your class assignments and projects.

Campus Students

To access academic support, visit your Brightspace course and select “Tutoring and Mentoring” from the Academic Support pulldown menu.

Online Students

To access help with citation and more, visit Academic Support via modules in Brightspace:

• The Complete Guide to Using Academic Support via Brightspace This link opens in a new window
• Accessing Writing STEM Help This link opens in a new window

References

American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7^th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000

Content authored by: GS