# Dhaka University referencing style: APA 7, APA 6th, thesis rules

**Which referencing style does the University of Dhaka use?** The University of Dhaka sets no single referencing style, and its Library publishes no referencing guide. Departments decide. The Department of Marketing prefers APA 7 for BBA and MBA reports, and the Department of Clinical Psychology asks for APA 6th edition in MS, MPhil and PhD theses. The university's plagiarism rules make a citation essential once 10 words are taken together.

Published 2026-10-02 by EdCitation. https://edcitation.com/newsletter/referencing-at-the-university-of-dhaka

The University of Dhaka has no single referencing style, and the Dhaka University Library's pages offer catalogues, databases and an anti-plagiarism tool but no referencing guide (University of Dhaka Library, n.d.). Departments decide: Marketing prefers APA 7 for BBA and MBA reports, and Clinical Psychology asks for APA 6th edition in MS, MPhil and PhD theses. Everyone works under the university's plagiarism rules, which say when a citation is essential.

EdCitation is not affiliated with the University of Dhaka; this follows its public documents, checked on 2 October 2026. Each was read today and is linked under References. EdCitation publishes this guide; near the end, its free [Cite a source](https://edcitation.com/cite) and [Verify references](https://edcitation.com/verify-references) are run on Bangladeshi sources, with the answers quoted.

## Which referencing style does the University of Dhaka use?

The one your department names; if none is named, ask your supervisor in writing. These are the DU documents we could read today.

| Who | Style | Document | Page |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Everyone, Bachelor's to PhD | None named; when a citation is essential | Rules for the Prevention of Plagiarism | ss. 2, 5, 7 |
| PhD candidates | None named; "literary presentation" | PhD regulations, printed in the Sociology prospectus | p. 20 |
| Marketing, BBA and MBA reports (Faculty of Business Studies) | APA 7 preferred | BBA and MBA Internship Guidelines, 2026 | p. 1 |
| Clinical Psychology theses (Faculty of Biological Sciences) | APA 6th edition | Curriculum, 2020, Appendix 10 | p. 153 |
| Psychology, BS course PSY 306 | Taught: the APA publication manual | BS syllabus, 2020–2021 onwards | PDF p. 48 |
| English, Eng. 201 and MA Eng. 514 | Taught: MLA and APA; MLA format in the MA research course | Undergraduate handbook; MA handbook | PDF p. 41; PDF p. 36 |
| Political Science, PS 702 | Taught: APA, Harvard, Chicago | Curriculum, 2024–25 to 2026–27 | PDF p. 71 |
| Building the entry | [Cite a source](https://edcitation.com/cite), free | EdCitation | Online |

### Taught is not the same as required

Only Marketing's and Clinical Psychology's documents set a style for work you hand in; the rest teach styles in research-methods courses. The Sociology prospectus asks only that ideas be acknowledged with "footnotes or citations" (University of Dhaka Department of Sociology, n.d., p. 13), and the PhD regulations it prints ask for satisfactory "literary presentation" (p. 20).

### What we could not read

A thesis-writing format that search results place in a Physical Chemistry Section, at duap.du.ac.bd, refused our connection, so it is not used. Writing services' "DU thesis format" pages are not the university's.

## What do the Dhaka University plagiarism rules say about citing?

A citation is essential once 10 words are taken together from an established work, and copied text reaching 40 words in total goes in quotation marks (University of Dhaka, 2023, s. 5.1). The rules cover every thesis, report, monograph and term paper from Bachelor's to PhD. Our scanned copy, linked from a university news post of 4 July 2024, opens with the Academic Council's minute of 23 January 2023 accepting them in principle; they take effect on the Syndicate's approval (s. 3), a date we could not confirm.

| Rule | What it says | Section, page |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Definition | Unacknowledged or non-cited use of another's ideas, text or work | s. 5, p. 2 |
| 10 words | Taken together from an established work, they need a citation | s. 5.1(b), p. 2 |
| 40 words | Copied text reaching 40 words in total goes in quotation marks | s. 5.1(b), p. 2 |
| Paraphrase, ideas, theories, methods | Each needs acknowledgement or citation | s. 5.1(d)–(f), p. 2 |
| Your own earlier work | Reused without referencing it, it is self-plagiarism | s. 5.1(h), p. 2 |
| Laws and religious texts | Verbatim, with the section or verse referenced, it is not plagiarism | s. 5.2(c), p. 3 |
| Similarity levels | Acceptable up to 20%, with no more than 2% from one source | s. 7(a), p. 4 |
| Left out of the check | Reference lists, attributed quotations, common knowledge up to 14 consecutive words | s. 7(b), p. 4 |

### Ten words or fourteen?

Cite from 10: the 14-word allowance is what the similarity software ignores, not when you owe a citation. Marketing sets its own 20% limit for AI and plagiarism checks, in its table below.

## What does the Department of Marketing ask for in BBA and MBA reports?

APA 7, preferred, in one consistent style throughout, for both the internship report and the research-based report (University of Dhaka Department of Marketing, 2026).

| Rule | Marketing's guidelines, in short | Page |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Style | Consistent throughout; APA 7 preferred | p. 1 |
| List | A detailed list at the end, alphabetical, beside the in-text references | p. 1 |
| Spacing | 1.5 for text; single spacing allowed for references | p. 1 |
| Tables and figures | Source cited below each; "Author's construct" for your own | p. 1 |
| Checks | Done in the computer laboratory; AI and plagiarism below 20%, two submissions at most | p. 4 |

"Author's construct" is the department's wording, not APA's; follow the department.

## What are the Clinical Psychology MPhil and PhD thesis guidelines?

The APA formatting guideline, 6th edition, in English, for MS, MPhil and PhD theses alike. Appendix 10 of the 2020 curriculum adds double spacing on one side of A4, a left margin of at least 1.2 inches and 1 inch elsewhere, a 12-point font, and References after the Conclusion and before the Appendices (University of Dhaka Department of Clinical Psychology, 2020, pp. 153–154). Theses run 12,000 to 20,000 words (MS), 20,000 to 40,000 (MPhil) and 40,000 to 70,000 (PhD).

### Sixth or seventh edition?

Ask the department in writing: APA left the switch to each institution, and advised finishing a paper begun in the sixth edition in the sixth (Lee, 2019). If the sixth stands, APA's current pages confirm what changed: publisher locations, dropped from book references (Adams, 2019); DOI forms and "Retrieved from" before links (American Psychological Association, 2022); and et al. from the first citation of three or more authors, with up to 20 authors listed (McAdoo, 2019). Our guide to [rules that changed between editions](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/et-al-and-other-rules-that-changed-between-editions) gives the older forms.

## What does a finished DU reference list look like?

Two short lists in APA 7, built from the publisher's record and corrected by hand as described below.

### APA 7, for a Marketing internship report on mobile banking

> Himel et al. (2021) surveyed attitudes to mobile financial services in Bangladesh, and Aziz and Naima (2021) examine digital financial inclusion there. Bangladesh Bank (n.d.) posts a monthly comparative statement for the services.

Under References, alphabetical:

> Aziz, A., & Naima, U. (2021). Rethinking digital financial inclusion: Evidence from Bangladesh. *Technology in Society*, *64*, Article 101509. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2020.101509
>
> Bangladesh Bank. (n.d.). *Mobile financial services*. Retrieved October 2, 2026, from https://www.bb.org.bd/en/index.php/financialactivity/mfsdata
>
> Himel, M. T. A., Ashraf, S., Bappy, T. A., Abir, M. T., Morshed, M. K., & Hossain, M. N. (2021). Users’ attitude and intention to use mobile financial services in Bangladesh: An empirical study. *South Asian Journal of Marketing*, *2*(1), 72–96. https://doi.org/10.1108/sajm-02-2021-0015

The page is undated and its figures change at the same address as months are posted, so APA's retrieval date fits (American Psychological Association, 2026); with the bank as author, the site name is not repeated.

### APA 7, for a Clinical Psychology thesis chapter

> Depression and anxiety among university students in Bangladesh were surveyed online during the pandemic (Islam et al., 2020), and Alim et al. (2017) assessed first-year MBBS students at a public medical college.

> Alim, S. A. H. M., Rabbani, M. G., Karim, E., Mullick, M. S. I., Mamun, A. A., Fariduzzaman, & Khan, M. Z. R. (2017). Assessment of depression, anxiety and stress among first year MBBS students of a public medical college, Bangladesh. *Bangladesh Journal of Psychiatry*, *29*(1), 23–29. https://doi.org/10.3329/bjpsy.v29i1.32748
>
> Islam, M. A., Barna, S. D., Raihan, H., Khan, M. N. A., & Hossain, M. T. (2020). Depression and anxiety among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh: A web-based cross-sectional survey. *PLOS ONE*, *15*(8), Article e0238162. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0238162

Fariduzzaman has one name, so it stands without initials.

## Which EdCitation style is closest, and what do you change by hand?

APA 7, for both of DU's named styles. EdCitation builds six styles only: APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 18 author-date, Harvard, IEEE and Vancouver.

| DU asks for | Start in EdCitation's | Then fix by hand |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Marketing, APA 7 | [APA 7](https://edcitation.com/cite/apa) | "Md." to "M."; the year checked on the journal's own page; a web page's title and author corrected in the form |
| Clinical Psychology, APA 6th | [APA 7](https://edcitation.com/cite/apa) | Publisher locations, DOIs and links, et al. and long author lists, to the sixth edition's forms |
| English, MLA taught | [MLA 9](https://edcitation.com/cite/mla) | The MA handbook lists the MLA Handbook's 8th edition; ask which your teacher marks |
| Political Science, APA, Harvard or Chicago taught | APA 7, [Harvard](https://edcitation.com/cite/harvard) or [Chicago 18 author-date](https://edcitation.com/cite/chicago) | Chicago notes and bibliography are not built |
| Footnotes, as Sociology allows | Not built | Write them from your teacher's model |

### Six steps from a DU guideline to a finished list

1. Get your department's document. EdCitation's free [Check your paper](https://edcitation.com/check) reads a set of instructions into a checklist, citation style and spacing included, each rule beside its sentence.
2. Put each DOI, title, ISBN or web address into [Cite a source](https://edcitation.com/cite/apa) and choose APA 7.
3. For a web page, correct the title, author and date in the form before the entry is built.
4. Make the hand changes in the table above.
5. Paste the list into [Verify references](https://edcitation.com/verify-references) and settle every "check this" against the source.
6. Before the 20% check, find every run of 10 words you took from a source and cite it; [References from a file](https://edcitation.com/tools/references-from-a-file) then matches every citation to the list.

## How did EdCitation handle Bangladeshi sources?

[Cite a source](https://edcitation.com/cite) is the best way to start a DU list: each entry is looked up in the publisher's record, never composed from memory as a chatbot's references are, and below, Verify references caught a year two records disagree on. It works from a DOI, a title, a PubMed ID, an ISBN or a web address, sets six styles, screens for retraction, and is free with no account. EdCitation never writes any part of a report or thesis: it finds, cites and checks sources, and the reading, the argument and every sentence stay yours. We ran four DOIs and two Bangladeshi pages on 2 October 2026.

### What Cite a source returned

Aziz and Naima's entry came back exactly as above. Himel and colleagues came back with "Himel, Md. T. A." and "Hossain, Md. N.", and Islam and colleagues with three "Md." authors, yet "Md Golam", without a full stop, became "Rabbani, M. G.". APA gives surnames with initials (American Psychological Association, 2025), so write "M." for every "Md.".

For Alim and colleagues it returned 2017, the year in the publisher's record and in the journal's own "How to cite" box; the journal's page files the article in "Vol. 29 No. 1 (2015)", posted on 7 June 2017. The journal prints "SM Abu Hena Mostafa Alim", and both it and EdCitation reduce "SM" to one initial; check it on the article.

The Bangladesh Bank page gave only the site's name as its title:

> Bangladesh Bank. (n.d.). Retrieved October 2, 2026, from https://www.bb.org.bd/en/index.php/financialactivity/mfsdata

With the title and author corrected in the form, APA gave the entry above. A Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics page came back "That page could not be read. Some sites block automated readers."; write such an entry by hand.

### What Verify references found

We pasted four of our entries, Alim's with 2015, and two books from the Clinical Psychology reading lists, as printed apart from stray spaces. [Verify references](https://edcitation.com/verify-references) answered:

- Himel and colleagues and Islam and colleagues: verified, "The DOI resolves to this record and the title matches." The Bangladesh Bank page: verified, "The page is at this address, and its title matches."
- Alim and colleagues with 2015: "check this", "The DOI and title are right, but the work was published in 2017, not 2015." Use 2017, or 2015 if your supervisor wants the issue's year, and say which.
- Barker and colleagues (2002), printed with "New York: John Willey & Sons": verified, "Title, year and first author match a published record." The record names the publisher Wiley; correct "Willey" yourself.
- Comer and Kendall's handbook (2013): "check this", "The closest published record differs in its title." The record found is the handbook's first chapter, so confirm you mean the whole book.

With the whole report written, Pro's [References from a file](https://edcitation.com/tools/references-from-a-file) ($8 a month; see [pricing](https://edcitation.com/pricing)) checks every reference and matches every in-text citation to the list.

## Quick questions

### What referencing style does Dhaka University use?

No single style. Marketing prefers APA 7, Clinical Psychology asks for APA 6th edition in theses, and other departments teach APA, MLA, Harvard or Chicago without requiring one.

### Is there a DU thesis format for MPhil and PhD?

Not university-wide: the PhD regulations ask only for satisfactory "literary presentation". Clinical Psychology's Appendix 10 sets APA 6th edition, spacing, margins and word limits for its theses.

### When does copied text need a citation at the University of Dhaka?

Once 10 words are taken together from an established work, and quotation marks once copied text reaches 40 words. Ideas, paraphrases, theories and methods need citing whatever the word count.

### Does the University of Dhaka use APA 7th edition?

Marketing prefers it for BBA and MBA reports. Clinical Psychology's curriculum names the 6th edition, so ask whether the 7th is accepted.

### Can EdCitation build Dhaka University references?

Yes for APA 7, which EdCitation's [Cite a source](https://edcitation.com/cite/apa) builds from the publisher's record; change "Md." to "M." and check the year. EdCitation writes none of your report or thesis.

## References

- Adams, A. (2019, October 8). Book and book chapter references: No location required. *APA Style*. [https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/publisher-locations-in-book-references](https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/publisher-locations-in-book-references)
- Alim, S. A. H. M., Rabbani, M. G., Karim, E., Mullick, M. S. I., Mamun, A. A., Fariduzzaman, & Khan, M. Z. R. (2017). Assessment of depression, anxiety and stress among first year MBBS students of a public medical college, Bangladesh. *Bangladesh Journal of Psychiatry, 29*(1), 23–29. [https://doi.org/10.3329/bjpsy.v29i1.32748](https://doi.org/10.3329/bjpsy.v29i1.32748)
- American Psychological Association. (2022). *DOIs and URLs*. APA Style. [https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/dois-urls](https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/dois-urls)
- American Psychological Association. (2025). *Elements of reference list entries*. APA Style. [https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/elements-list-entry](https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/elements-list-entry)
- American Psychological Association. (2026). *Webpage on a website references*. APA Style. [https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/examples/webpage-website-references](https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/examples/webpage-website-references)
- Aziz, A., & Naima, U. (2021). Rethinking digital financial inclusion: Evidence from Bangladesh. *Technology in Society, 64*, Article 101509. [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2020.101509](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2020.101509)
- Bangladesh Bank. (n.d.). *Mobile financial services*. Retrieved October 2, 2026, from [https://www.bb.org.bd/en/index.php/financialactivity/mfsdata](https://www.bb.org.bd/en/index.php/financialactivity/mfsdata)
- Himel, M. T. A., Ashraf, S., Bappy, T. A., Abir, M. T., Morshed, M. K., & Hossain, M. N. (2021). Users’ attitude and intention to use mobile financial services in Bangladesh: An empirical study. *South Asian Journal of Marketing, 2*(1), 72–96. [https://doi.org/10.1108/sajm-02-2021-0015](https://doi.org/10.1108/sajm-02-2021-0015)
- Islam, M. A., Barna, S. D., Raihan, H., Khan, M. N. A., & Hossain, M. T. (2020). Depression and anxiety among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh: A web-based cross-sectional survey. *PLOS ONE, 15*(8), Article e0238162. [https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0238162](https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0238162)
- Lee, C. (2019, October 1). The transition to seventh edition APA Style. *APA Style*. [https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/transition-seventh-edition](https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/transition-seventh-edition)
- McAdoo, T. (2019, November 7). How many names to include in an APA Style reference. *APA Style*. [https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/more-than-20-authors](https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/more-than-20-authors)
- University of Dhaka. (2023). *The rules for the prevention of plagiarism, University of Dhaka* [Scanned PDF, with the Academic Council minute of 23 January 2023]. [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AxEloR7sGWmvTLVk8_U6Sq-vHq9n0xnt/view](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AxEloR7sGWmvTLVk8_U6Sq-vHq9n0xnt/view)
- University of Dhaka Department of Clinical Psychology. (2020). *Curriculum of the Department of Clinical Psychology* [PDF]. [https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1642312773SyllabusFinal-converted.pdf](https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1642312773SyllabusFinal-converted.pdf)
- University of Dhaka Department of English. (n.d.-a). *MA handbook* [PDF]. [https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1615178928MA_Syllabus.pdf](https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1615178928MA_Syllabus.pdf)
- University of Dhaka Department of English. (n.d.-b). *Undergraduate programme structure and rules (from session 2023-2024)* [PDF]. [https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1766980162UndergraduateHandbookFinalPDF-51-181_compressed%281%29-1-129.pdf](https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1766980162UndergraduateHandbookFinalPDF-51-181_compressed%281%29-1-129.pdf)
- University of Dhaka Department of Marketing. (2026). *BBA and MBA internship guidelines* [PDF]. Faculty of Business Studies. [https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/file/1778420463BBAandMBAInternshipGuidelines.pdf](https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/file/1778420463BBAandMBAInternshipGuidelines.pdf)
- University of Dhaka Department of Political Science. (n.d.). *Curriculum and syllabus: Undergraduate programme* [PDF]. [https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1756361104BSS-SyllabusandCurruicluam__DU.pdf](https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1756361104BSS-SyllabusandCurruicluam__DU.pdf)
- University of Dhaka Department of Psychology. (n.d.). *Syllabus of four-year Bachelor of Science (BS) Honors program* [PDF]. [https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/16764429451st-4thYear,Hons2020-2021andOnwards%282%29.pdf](https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/16764429451st-4thYear,Hons2020-2021andOnwards%282%29.pdf)
- University of Dhaka Department of Sociology. (n.d.). *Prospectus and syllabus* [PDF]. [https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1672896143SyllabusBSS-MSS-MPhil-PhD_Final_3.8.2022.pdf](https://ssl.du.ac.bd/storage/private/fontView/images/syllabus/1672896143SyllabusBSS-MSS-MPhil-PhD_Final_3.8.2022.pdf)
- University of Dhaka Library. (n.d.). *Dhaka University Library*. University of Dhaka. [https://www.du.ac.bd/offices/LIB](https://www.du.ac.bd/offices/LIB)