Universities in Kenya and Ghana do not share one referencing style. Kenya's Commission for University Education (CUE) and Ghana's Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) name none in the documents we read, so each university and department sets its own. APA is named most often, KNUST asks for Harvard, and law schools work in footnotes. EdCitation publishes this guide; each of its tools works from the publisher's record, and the thesis stays entirely yours.
We read the guidelines of ten universities and one affiliated college on 2 October 2026, each linked below. Kenyatta University's server refused every connection that day, so it is missing. The last section runs Kenyan and Ghanaian sources through EdCitation's free Cite a source and Verify references and quotes the answers exactly, faults included.
Which referencing style do Kenyan and Ghanaian universities use?
Whichever style your department's written guidelines set. Here is what each document we read says.
| University | Country | Style the document names | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Nairobi (UoN), Faculty of Arts | Kenya | MLA or APA; author-date or numbered | UoN Faculty of Arts (2012) |
| UoN, School of Engineering | Kenya | Numbered (IEEE belongs here) or author-date | UoN School of Engineering (2011) |
| Moi University | Kenya | APA | Moi University (n.d.) |
| Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) | Kenya | APA in the handbook; "either APA or Harvard" on the thesis format sheet | JKUAT (n.d., 2021) |
| University of Eldoret | Kenya | APA for all theses and reports | University of Eldoret (2014) |
| Kenya Methodist University (KeMU) | Kenya | APA; another style if the Board of Postgraduate Studies approves | KeMU (n.d.) |
| Kabarak University, law | Kenya | Its own legal citation guide, in footnotes | Kabarak University (2022) |
| University of Ghana (UG) | Ghana | The academic unit's filed format; footnotes, not endnotes | UG School of Graduate Studies (2024) |
| Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) | Ghana | Harvard, applied consistently | KNUST (2016) |
| University of Education, Winneba (UEW) | Ghana | APA, latest version; a department may choose another | UEW School of Graduate Studies (2025) |
| University of Cape Coast (UCC) | Ghana | A "UCC Referencing Style", not printed in its regulations | UCC School of Graduate Studies (2021) |
| Any of them | Both | Each entry checked against its record: Verify references, free | EdCitation |
Where one university's documents disagree
JKUAT's postgraduate handbook says the APA format "should be used"; its thesis format sheet allows "either APA or Harvard" (Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, n.d., 2021). Ask your supervisor which applies, then keep one style throughout. UG settles such clashes in writing: where a unit's style conflicts with the university's, the university's must be satisfied (University of Ghana School of Graduate Studies, 2024).
What is the UCC referencing style?
UCC's regulations name a "UCC Referencing Style" for programme reading lists without printing it, and we found no copy on UCC's pages. The CSIR College of Science and Technology, whose programmes UCC approves, calls its own style an adaptation of the UCC format "in line with the APA format" (CSIR College of Science and Technology, 2021). Ask your department for its copy.
What do CUE and GTEC require of a thesis reference list?
Neither names a style or a similarity figure in the documents we read. CUE's 2014 standards require each university to state a thesis's language, length and format, and to "institute mechanisms to curb plagiarism" in theses and projects (Commission for University Education, 2014). GTEC's publications page listed policies, joint-award guidelines and accreditation packs on 2 October 2026 (Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, n.d.); the joint-award guidelines, which we read in full, set neither.
Is the APA in your university's guide APA 7?
Often it is an older edition. Moi's guidelines recommend APA but print examples "Retrieved" between 1997 and 2000 (Moi University, n.d.). JKUAT's APA guide is dated 2014, and Eldoret's 2014 appendix shares whole lines with it (Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, 2014; University of Eldoret, 2014). Winneba says it outright: check the latest version, because APA is "frequently updated" (University of Education, Winneba School of Graduate Studies, 2025).
| Rule | What the older guides print | APA 7 |
|---|---|---|
| Three or more authors in the text | JKUAT: up to six names at the first citation, "et al." afterwards | First author and "et al." from the first citation |
| Two authors in brackets | "&" at JKUAT and Eldoret; "and" in Winneba's examples | "&" in brackets, "and" in the sentence |
| A book's publisher | London: Routledge | The publisher only |
| An online source | "Retrieved September 6, 1997 from" (Moi) | No "Retrieved from" before a DOI or URL |
The APA 7 column is from the American Psychological Association (2019, 2020, 2022). If your guide says only "APA", ask whether APA 7 is meant; our guide to et al. across APA editions covers the changes.
How does KNUST Harvard differ from other Harvard?
In punctuation and access dates. KNUST's thesis guide says Harvard "shall be used", accepts that adapted forms exist, and asks above all for consistency (Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, 2016). Its examples put a full stop after the bracketed year, join the last two authors with "and", use "et al." in the text from three authors but name them all in the bibliography, and end an online article with "Available:", the address and [Accessed 30/07/2015].
One article in Cite Them Right Harvard and in KNUST's pattern
| Element | Harvard from EdCitation (Cite Them Right) | KNUST pattern |
|---|---|---|
| Year | (2024) with no full stop | (2024). |
| Article title | In single quotation marks, then a comma | Plain, then a full stop |
| Volume, issue, pages | 23(3), pp. 67–80. | 23 (3), 67-80. |
| Address | Available at: https://doi.org/10.4314/jagst.v23i3.5. | Available: https://doi.org/10.4314/jagst.v23i3.5. [Accessed 02/10/2026] |
In full, in KNUST's pattern:
Kamweru, E. and Musyoka, E. (2024). Analysis of power distribution transformers’ failure in rural electrification projects in Kenya. Journal of Agriculture, Science and Technology, 23 (3), 67-80. Available: https://doi.org/10.4314/jagst.v23i3.5. [Accessed 02/10/2026]
KNUST's samples need care: one chapter is dated 2011 in its entry and 2014 in its citation, and the printed-journal example leaves its pages as dots. Follow the pattern; take each detail from the record.
How do you cite Kenyan and Ghanaian laws, cases and the Gazette?
In footnotes, by your law school's own guide. Kabarak University's legal citation guide, a draft of 5 October 2022 published for consultation, is the most detailed Kenyan one we found (Kabarak University, 2022):
- An Act: name, number and year in brackets, then the section: Political Parties Act (No. 21 of 2016), section 54.
- A case from Kenya Law's online reports: parties, case number, decision and court, the year in brackets, then eKLR.
- The Kenya Gazette: volume, number in brackets, date and notice number: Kenya Gazette, XCIX (29) 30 May 1997, 2834.
It also asks for no endnotes, "and" in place of "&", and no Latin such as "et al.". For Ghana we found no university guide on citing an Act or a case; UG theses use footnotes, and UG's law journal asks its authors for OSCOLA (University of Ghana Law Journal, n.d.). EdCitation builds six styles (APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 18 author-date, Harvard, IEEE and Vancouver), not OSCOLA or Kabarak's footnotes, so legal footnotes are written by hand.
Outside law, government material is cited like any other work: Moi's samples enter a district development plan under the issuing office, and KNUST's a map under the Town and Country Planning Department.
Which styles do engineering and the humanities use?
UoN's School of Engineering allows numbered citations in square brackets, the method IEEE belongs to, or author and year; its samples print surnames in capitals, and it wants web sources from reputable institutions (University of Nairobi School of Engineering, 2011). UoN's Faculty of Arts keeps MLA and APA style sheets in the library reserve (University of Nairobi Faculty of Arts, 2012). KeMU and Winneba let a department use another style, KeMU with its Board's approval. We found no university guide naming Vancouver; in medicine, ask your school.
What do Kenyan and Ghanaian universities say about plagiarism?
The rules differ in wording and in force, and only UG, of those we read, publishes figures:
- UG: an overall similarity index of at most 20%, at most 2% from one source, and no matching string over 10 words; the index is "for guidance only" (University of Ghana, 2016). Confirmed plagiarism means the thesis is rejected and the candidate fails (University of Ghana School of Graduate Studies, 2024).
- Winneba: plagiarism proven at examination fails the thesis and ends the candidature; source wording without quotation marks counts even when the source is named.
- KNUST: copying a whole paragraph can be plagiarism despite acknowledgement, and sources not read "should not be quoted".
- UCC and Eldoret: reusing your own earlier work without acknowledgement counts.
A matching score shows overlap with other texts, not intent. For how to read such figures, see our guide to similarity percentages.
How do you reference a thesis in Kenya or Ghana, step by step?
- Find the written thesis guidelines for your department, noting the style, the edition and who approves a change.
- If they say APA, ask whether APA 7 is meant; if Harvard, which version.
- Create each entry in EdCitation's Cite a source from the DOI, ISBN or page address, then reshape it by hand for KNUST Harvard or an older APA.
- Check every author's name against the article's own page.
- Write legal footnotes by hand from your law school's guide.
- Run the finished list through Verify references and settle each "Check this" before you submit.
- Paste the thesis instructions into Check your paper for a checklist of the style, limits and source rules.
What did EdCitation return on Kenyan and Ghanaian sources?
No tool we know of checks a Kenyan or Ghanaian reference list more reliably than EdCitation, because it matches each entry it builds or checks to a publisher's, registry's or library's record: the kind that dates one of KNUST's own samples a year later than its guide, below. No chatbot can do that, since a chatbot composes a reference instead of looking one up. Give Cite a source a DOI, a title, a PubMed ID, an ISBN or a web address and it returns the entry in any of its six styles, with the work screened for retraction. Both tools are free and need no account. EdCitation builds and checks the references; every word of the thesis is yours.
Cite a source on two DOIs and two government pages
For 10.4314/jagst.v23i3.5, in JKUAT's own journal, APA came back correct to the record (Kamweru & Musyoka, 2024):
Kamweru, E., & Musyoka, E. (2024). Analysis of power distribution transformers’ failure in rural electrification projects in Kenya. Journal of Agriculture, Science and Technology, 23(3), 67–80. https://doi.org/10.4314/jagst.v23i3.5
Its IEEE entry shortened the journal to "J. Agriculture, Sci. Technol.", leaving "Agriculture" whole; check it by hand.
For 10.4314/gmj.v58i1.4, by Adda et al. (2024) in the Ghana Medical Journal, the fifth author came back "C Aryeetey, G." in APA and "C Aryeetey G" in Vancouver. The journal's page names Genevieve C Aryeetey: the record put the middle initial into the surname. Correct it to Aryeetey, G. C.
For the Universities Act on Kenya Law (new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/act/2012/42) it answered: "That page could not be read. Some sites block automated readers. If it is a journal article, paste its DOI or its title instead." Cite an Act by your law guide's pattern.
For GTEC's joint-awards page, APA came back with no author:
Guidelines for joint awards. (2026, September 3). GTEC. https://gtec.edu.gh/book/guidelines-for-joint-awards/
A web page's details can be corrected before the entry is built; with Ghana Tertiary Education Commission as author, it returned:
Ghana Tertiary Education Commission. (2026, September 3). Guidelines for joint awards. https://gtec.edu.gh/book/guidelines-for-joint-awards/
Verify references on six entries
Six entries went into Verify references, four copied from KNUST's and Moi's samples as printed. The answers:
- Kamweru and Musyoka, with its DOI: verified, "The DOI resolves to this record and the title matches."
- Adda and colleagues with four of five authors: "Check this", "The publisher's record also names C Aryeetey, who is not in your entry. Check the authors."
- KNUST's Cobbinah sample, with its dx.doi.org address: verified.
- KNUST's Poku-Boansi and Adarkwa (2013): "Check this", "The work was published in 2014, not 2013; the record has no date in 2013." The record holds only an online date, 20 May 2014; we could not confirm the printed issue's year.
- Moi's sample thesis by Walaba (1998): "Could not check", "The library catalogue did not answer in time. Check this one again in a minute." A rerun a minute later said the same; it was never reported "Not found".
- Moi's sample Kitui District Development Plan 1997-2000: "Not found", "No publisher's or registry's record matches this reference." Such plans may sit in no index; we could not confirm whether any library holds it. Keep a copy or a link.
With the finished thesis as a Word document or PDF, References from a file, part of Pro at $8 a month, looks up every reference and pairs each in-text citation with its entry (prices on the pricing page).
Quick questions
What referencing style does KNUST use?
Harvard. KNUST's 2016 thesis guide asks for consistency, with "Available:" and an accessed date for online articles.
Does the University of Nairobi use APA or Harvard?
It depends on the faculty: Arts points to MLA and APA, Engineering allows numbered or author-date citations. We found no university-wide guide.
What referencing style does the University of Ghana use for theses?
The format the academic unit has filed with the School of Graduate Studies, with footnotes rather than endnotes and British English.
What similarity index does the University of Ghana accept?
At most 20% overall, 2% from one source and 10 words in an unbroken string, under its 2016 guidelines, which call the figure guidance only.
Can EdCitation build OSCOLA or Kabarak's legal citations?
No. The six styles in EdCitation's Cite a source are APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 18 author-date, Harvard, IEEE and Vancouver, so legal footnotes are written by hand.
References
- Adda, M., Amon, S., Nonvignon, J., Aikins, M., & Aryeetey, G. C. (2024). Economic cost of management of glaucoma in public and private health facilities in the Tema metropolis in Ghana. Ghana Medical Journal, 58(1), 17–25. https://doi.org/10.4314/gmj.v58i1.4
- American Psychological Association. (2019). Author–date citation system. APA Style. https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/citations/basic-principles/author-date
- American Psychological Association. (2020). Book/ebook references. APA Style. https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/examples/book-references
- American Psychological Association. (2022). DOIs and URLs. APA Style. https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/dois-urls
- Commission for University Education. (2014). Universities standards and guidelines, 2014 [PDF]. https://www.cue.or.ke/index.php?option=com_phocadownload&view=category&download=7%3Auniversity-standards-guidelines&id=8%3Auniversity-standards-guidelines&Itemid=238
- CSIR College of Science and Technology. (2021). Guidelines for preparing and presenting dissertation and thesis [PDF]. https://www.ccst.edu.gh/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Guidelines-for-Dissertation-and-Thesis.doc.pdf
- Ghana Tertiary Education Commission. (n.d.). Publications. Retrieved October 2, 2026, from https://gtec.edu.gh/publications/
- Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. (n.d.). Format of MSc. and Ph.D. final thesis [PDF]. https://www.jkuat.ac.ke/school/graduate/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Thesis-Format-Final.pdf
- Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. (2014). APA referencing style guide JKUAT 2014 [PDF]. https://www.jkuat.ac.ke/school/graduate/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/APA-Referencing-Style-Guide-JKUAT.pdf
- Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. (2021). A handbook for postgraduate students 2021–2025 [PDF]. Board of Postgraduate Studies. https://www.jkuat.ac.ke/school/graduate/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Graduate-Handbook-Content-1.pdf
- Kabarak University. (2022). Kabarak University legal citation guide (Primary draft for consultation) [PDF]. https://journals.kabarak.ac.ke/public/site/legal_citation_guide.pdf
- Kamweru, E., & Musyoka, E. (2024). Analysis of power distribution transformers’ failure in rural electrification projects in Kenya. Journal of Agriculture, Science and Technology, 23(3), 67–80. https://doi.org/10.4314/jagst.v23i3.5
- Kenya Methodist University. (n.d.). Postgraduate thesis guidelines: Thesis format standard specifications [PDF]. https://kemu.ac.ke/wp-content/uploads/assets/application%20forms/postgraduate/Postgraduate%20Thesis%20Guidelines.pdf
- Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. (2016). Guide for preparation and evaluation of higher degree research thesis [PDF]. https://treck.knust.edu.gh/sites/default/files/2019-11/GUIDE%20FOR%20PREPARATION%20AND%20EVALUATION%20OF%20GRADUATE%20THESIS.pdf
- Moi University. (n.d.). Guidelines for writing thesis [PDF]. Graduate Studies Research and Extension Committee. https://mu.ac.ke/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/new_guidelines__for_writing_thesis_compressed.pdf
- University of Cape Coast School of Graduate Studies. (2021). Academic policies and regulations for graduate studies (2021–2025) [PDF]. https://sgs.ucc.edu.gh/sites/default/files/2024-02/academic-policies-and-regulations-for-graduate-studies.pdf
- University of Education, Winneba School of Graduate Studies. (2025). Postgraduate students’ guide for thesis preparation [PDF]. https://www.uew.edu.gh/sites/default/files/2026-02/postgraduate_students_guide_for_thesis_preparation.pdf
- University of Eldoret. (2014). Guidelines for thesis and postgraduate special project report writing (Version 1.0) [PDF]. https://uoeld.ac.ke/sites/default/files/downloads/GUIDELINES_FOR_THESIS_WRITING-_APPROVED_26.11.2014%202%20(1).pdf
- University of Ghana. (2016). Guidelines for using the Turnitin software to determine plagiarism in University of Ghana (Special Reporter No. 855) [PDF]. https://www.ug.edu.gh/pad/sites/pad/files/2024-07/GUIDELINES%20FOR%20USING%20THE%20TURNITIN%20SOFTWARE%20TO%20DETERMINE%20PLAGIARISM%20IN%20UNIVERSITY%20OF%20GHANA.pdf
- University of Ghana Law Journal. (n.d.). Submissions. Retrieved October 2, 2026, from https://lawjournals.ug.edu.gh/index.php/uglj/about/submissions
- University of Ghana School of Graduate Studies. (2024). Handbook for doctoral studies and regulations governing graduate study, and university examinations [PDF]. https://sgs.ug.edu.gh/sites/sgs.ug.edu.gh/files/2025-02/LC-edted_UG%20PHD%20Regulations_Jan%2017%202025.pdf
- University of Nairobi Faculty of Arts. (2012). Research proposals, research papers and theses and projects: Format guidelines [PDF]. https://philosophy.uonbi.ac.ke/sites/default/files/chss/arts/philosophy/Guidelines%20to%20writing%20papers%20MARCH%202012_1.pdf
- University of Nairobi School of Engineering. (2011). Guidelines for admission to Doctor of Philosophy and masters programmes and research proposal format [PDF]. https://ebe.uonbi.ac.ke/sites/default/files/cae/engineering/ebe/GUIDELINES%20FOR%20ADMISSION%20TO%20POST%20GRADUATE%20STUDIES-Approved%20by%20SoE-Final.pdf