UNISA's library teaches Augmented Harvard, the version its College of Economic and Management Sciences (CEMS) and Graduate School of Business Leadership (SBL) publish: surname, year and page in your sentence, as in (Palmer, 2010:12), and an alphabetical reference list with the year unbracketed after the author. A UNISA study guide is referenced as a published book. Your lecturer or supervisor has the final word.
Every rule below was read on 2 October 2026 in UNISA's public LibGuides. EdCitation is not affiliated with the University of South Africa; this follows its public library guide, checked on 2 October 2026.
EdCitation, which publishes this guide, offers two free tools for the job: Cite a source builds each entry from the publisher's record, and Verify references checks a finished list. Their results on UNISA's own examples are quoted below.
Which referencing style does UNISA use?
Harvard, unless your module or supervisor names another. The CEMS guide says UNISA uses the "Augmented Harvard Reference Style" and leaves the choice to "the promoter/ supervisor" (University of South Africa Library, 2026f). A 2020 presentation from UNISA's Midlands regional centre tells students the same, leaving the choice to the lecturer or module coordinator (University of South Africa, 2020).
| Library page | College or school | Style it names |
|---|---|---|
| CEMS Harvard guide | Economic and Management Sciences | Augmented Harvard |
| CEMS APA 7th guide | Economic and Management Sciences | APA 7th |
| SBL Harvard guide | Graduate School of Business Leadership | Harvard, with the CEMS examples |
| Law LibGuide | School of Law | OSCOLA, in Tutorial Letter 302 |
| Law LibGuide | School of Criminal Justice | Harvard, in Tutorial Letter 301 |
| Psychology LibGuide | Psychology | Its only style links are to APA 7th |
| Postgraduate LibGuide | Postgraduate students and supervisors | Links to Chicago 17th, Harvard, IEEE, MLA and Vancouver |
| EdCitation | Any of its six styles | Cite a source, free |
The law rows come from University of South Africa Library (2026l), psychology from 2026m and postgraduate from 2026k. The law page adds: confirm the style with the staff member in charge, since Harvard has variants.
EdCitation builds six styles: APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 18 author-date, Harvard (Cite Them Right), IEEE and Vancouver. OSCOLA and Chicago 17th-edition notes are not among them; write those by hand. For other universities, see referencing at South African universities.
How do in-text citations work in UNISA Harvard?
Surname, comma, year, and for a quotation a colon and the page. The CEMS rules page (University of South Africa Library, 2026e) sets these cases:
- Two authors: "and" in your sentence, "&" in brackets, (Dent & Jones, 1994:12).
- No date: n.d., (Jones, n.d.:10).
- No page numbers online: leave the page out.
- Government: country, then department, (South Africa. Statistics South Africa, 2019: ii–iv).
- Video or podcast: a video by its title, a podcast by its presenter.
When does et al. start? Three UNISA pages, three answers
- The CEMS rules page (guide updated 4 August 2026): three or more authors all named the first time, (Cooper, Codd & Smith, 1998:43–44), then (Cooper et al., 1998:43–44).
- The SBL page and the 2022 CEMS PDF: three to five named the first time; six or more take et al. from the start; no comma before et al. (University of South Africa Library, 2022, 2026n).
- The Midlands presentation: all surnames first, then et al., and no comma before the year, (Botha 2002:10).
The CEMS journal page itself cites its six-author example as (Busch et al., 2024:780). Spacing varies even within one page: the SBL page prints both 2021:34-40 and 2021: 34-35. Pick one and keep to it.
Citing ChatGPT at UNISA
CEMS warns that generative AI cannot reliably reference its own sources: verify what it says, disclose and cite it, and include screenshots of your prompts and its answers (University of South Africa Library, 2026i). In the text, According to ChatGPT (OpenAI, 2023). In the list, the guide's example:
ChatGPT. 2023. OpenAI. Text partially obtained from ChatGPT. Prompt (dated 24 March 2023): "Is copying and pasting an answer directly from ChatGPT considered plagiarism or cheating?"
See also citing ChatGPT and AI tools.
How do you set out a UNISA Harvard reference list?
Alphabetically by surname, unnumbered, with a hanging indent. Each rule comes from the CEMS page named.
| Rule | What UNISA's page says | Page |
|---|---|---|
| Year | Straight after the author, no brackets | General rules |
| Titles | Capital on the first word only; books in italics; articles neither italic nor in quotation marks | General rules, Introduction |
| Journal names | Italics, main words capitalised, never abbreviated | Journal articles |
| Volume, issue, pages | No spaces: 5(2):338–347 | Journal articles |
| DOI | Included, in lower case, not hyperlinked; then no URL | Journal articles |
| Online sources | Available at: URL [Accessed: 2 February 2024] | Internet sources |
| Missing details | n.d. (N.d. in examples), s.l. for no place, Anon. | General rules |
| Edition | In full, 2nd edition; a first edition never named | General rules |
| Corporate author | Abbreviation, then name: Unisa (University of South Africa). 2022. | Study guides |
| Author also publisher | The name is not repeated | In-text citations |
| Building the entry | Cite a source in Harvard, then the changes below | EdCitation |
Where the pages contradict themselves
The rules page says to use the title when there is no author, then says "Anon." (University of South Africa Library, 2026c). It asks for en-dash page ranges, 78–80, while the journal page's Hamouche example prints 29(5): 799-814 (University of South Africa Library, 2026g). The Crail and Watts web example has no year (University of South Africa Library, 2026d). The 2022 PDF itself warns that its examples do "not necessarily refer to actual published texts" (University of South Africa Library, 2022). Copy the pattern; take the details from the publisher's record.
How do you reference a UNISA study guide or tutorial letter?
As a published book: the CEMS and SBL pages state that "Unisa study guides are published works" (University of South Africa Library, 2026j). With an author:
Mamaregane, F. 2022. Accounting for managers: Study guide for PBA4807. Midrand: University of South Africa.
With none, the university is the author, abbreviation first:
Unisa (University of South Africa). 2022. Value-based management: Study guide for MBA5901. Midrand: Graduate School of Business Leadership.
The module code sits in the italic title. Lecture notes take: Surname, initials. Year. Title. Lecture notes. Course name and code. University, delivered date.
In CEMS APA 7th
The APA guide puts the course in the title's place and the form in brackets, and names no publisher: Wolfaardt, J. B., Viviers, A. M., de Wit, E. J., Tustin, C. M., Vosloo, S. E., & Von der Ohe, H. (1990). Research methodology and psychological measurement (Study Guide I for IPS201-C) (University of South Africa Library, 2026b).
Tutorial letters and myUnisa
No library page we read gives a template for either; the Midlands presentation lists "Study guides, Tutorial Letters and myUnisa" as sources without a format. Ask your lecturer; in our view the study-guide form is the nearest pattern.
What does a UNISA Harvard reference list look like?
Like this, set by the 2026 CEMS pages. In the text: Zweni, Yan and Mabugu (2024) first, then (Zweni et al., 2024); (Busch et al., 2024); (South African Government, n.d.); (Mamaregane, 2022).
Busch, T., Barnett, M.L., Burritt, R.L., Cashore, B.W., Freeman, R.E., Henriques, I., Husted, B.W., Panwar, R., Pinkse, J., Schaltegger, S. & York, J. 2024. Moving beyond “the” business case: how to make corporate sustainability work. Business Strategy and the Environment, 33(2):776–787. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3514
Mamaregane, F. 2022. Accounting for managers: Study guide for PBA4807. Midrand: University of South Africa.
South African Government. N.d. Economy and finance. Available at: https://www.gov.za/about-sa/economy [Accessed: 2 October 2026].
Zweni, A., Yan, B. & Mabugu, R.E. 2024. The impact of new public management on the financial performance of category B municipalities in South Africa. African Journal of Public Administration and Environmental Studies, 3(3):213–244. https://doi.org/10.31920/2753-3182/2024/v3n3a11
What each entry shows
- Busch: all eleven authors and issue 2, from the publisher's record (Busch et al., 2024); CEMS prints six names and issue 6, and gives no rule for shortening a list.
- South African Government: no author or date on the page, so the organisation and N.d.; as site owner too, its name is not repeated.
- Zweni: sentence case keeps the capital in "category B" (Zweni et al., 2024).
- Mamaregane: UNISA's example as printed; study guides sit behind the student login, so we could not check it.
Which EdCitation style is closest to UNISA Harvard, and what do you change?
Harvard. EdCitation's Harvard style follows Cite Them Right, which differs from Augmented Harvard mostly in punctuation. CEMS says only RefWorks carries its official template (University of South Africa Library, 2026h). Our changes on 2 October 2026:
| EdCitation printed | Change to, for UNISA |
|---|---|
| Busch, T. et al. (2024) | Every author, & before the last, 2024. unbracketed |
| Zweni, A., Yan, B. and Mabugu, R.E. | & for "and" |
| ‘The Impact of New Public Management …’ | No quotation marks, sentence case |
| , Journal, 33(2), pp. 776–787. | . Journal, 33(2):776–787. |
| Available at: https://doi.org/… | The DOI alone |
| article number 101132 | :101132 after the issue |
| (no date) … (Accessed: 2 October 2026). | N.d. … [Accessed: 2 October 2026]. |
| (Zweni, Yan and Mabugu, 2024) | (Zweni, Yan & Mabugu, 2024) |
For CEMS APA 7th, start in EdCitation's APA 7, which follows the manual. CEMS's APA examples differ in three details: the volume number is never italic, most page ranges take a hyphen, and some DOIs end in a full stop (University of South Africa Library, 2026a). Ask which your lecturer marks. Our APA run also lowered "Category B" to "category b"; restore the capital.
What did Cite a source and Verify references return on UNISA sources?
EdCitation is the right place to start a UNISA list because it looks each source up and never composes one: for Busch and colleagues, Cite a source took eleven names and issue 2 from Crossref, where UNISA's example has six and issue 6. It sets six styles, screens for retraction, and needs no account or payment. EdCitation never writes any part of an assignment or dissertation: it finds, cites and checks sources, and every sentence you hand in stays yours.
Cite a source on three articles and a gov.za page
For 10.1002/bse.3514, Harvard returned, with no retraction reported:
Busch, T. et al. (2024) ‘Moving beyond “the” business case: How to make corporate sustainability work’, Business Strategy and the Environment, 33(2), pp. 776–787. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3514.
For 10.31920/2753-3182/2024/v3n3a11:
Zweni, A., Yan, B. and Mabugu, R.E. (2024) ‘The Impact of New Public Management on the Financial Performance of Category B Municipalities in South Africa’, African Journal of Public Administration and Environmental Studies, 3(3), pp. 213–244. Available at: https://doi.org/10.31920/2753-3182/2024/v3n3a11.
For 10.1016/j.hrmr.2025.101132, listed by CEMS as in press with no year, it gave "Delery, J.E. and Shi, L. (2026)", 36(2), "article number 101132", with the journal's name lowered inside the title, as the record has it: restore the capitals.
For https://www.gov.za/about-sa/economy it read a title but no author or date: "Economy and finance (no date). Available at: https://www.gov.za/about-sa/economy (Accessed: 2 October 2026)." With South African Government entered as author in the form, it opened "South African Government (no date) Economy and finance."
Verify references on five of UNISA's own examples
We pasted five entries word for word as the CEMS pages print them into Verify references:
- Busch: "check this", "The publisher's record also names Husted, Panwar, Pinkse, Schaltegger and York, who are not in your entry. Check the authors."
- Zweni: verified, "The DOI resolves to this record and the title matches."
- Delery and Shi, no year, in press: verified in the same words, the missing year not raised.
- Hamouche, print form, no DOI: verified, "Title, year and first author match a published record."
- The Financial Sector Laws Amendment Act page: verified, "The page is at this address, and its title matches." UNISA's access date, 9 January 2021, is earlier than the 28 January 2022 in the page's own address: fix such dates yourself.
None came back "not found"; an unreadable page is reported as "could not check", never as missing. To check a whole paper from the file, Pro ($8 a month) adds References from a file; see pricing.
How do you build a UNISA reference list, step by step?
- Find the style in your study guide or tutorial letter. EdCitation's free Check your paper reads assignment instructions into a checklist, each rule beside its sentence.
- Look up each source in Cite a source by DOI, title or address.
- Make the table's changes: bare year, "&", no quotation marks, colon before pages, [Accessed: date].
- Write study guides and lecture notes by hand.
- Run the list through Verify references and settle every "check this".
Quick questions
Does UNISA use Harvard or APA?
Mostly Harvard. CEMS and the SBL teach Augmented Harvard, CEMS also has an APA 7th guide, and your lecturer or supervisor chooses.
How do I reference a UNISA study guide in Harvard?
As a book: author or Unisa (University of South Africa), year, the italic title with "Study guide for" and the module code, then Midrand and the publisher.
When does et al. start in UNISA Harvard?
The CEMS rules page names three or more authors in full the first time; the SBL page uses et al. from the start for six or more.
Can EdCitation build UNISA Harvard references?
EdCitation's Cite a source builds Cite Them Right Harvard from the record; a few changes by hand make it Augmented Harvard.
Does UNISA law use Harvard?
The School of Law uses OSCOLA (Tutorial Letter 302) and Criminal Justice uses Harvard (Tutorial Letter 301). EdCitation does not build OSCOLA.
References
- Busch, T., Barnett, M. L., Burritt, R. L., Cashore, B. W., Freeman, R. E., Henriques, I., Husted, B. W., Panwar, R., Pinkse, J., Schaltegger, S., & York, J. (2024). Moving beyond "the" business case: How to make corporate sustainability work. Business Strategy and the Environment, 33(2), 776–787. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3514
- University of South Africa. (2020). How to use sources in assignment writing [Presentation, PDF]. Midlands Regional Centre. https://www.unisa.ac.za/static/myunisa/Content/Learner%20support%20&%20regions/Regional%20centre/Midlands/Documents/How%20to%20use%20sources%20in%20academic%20writing-2020%20no%204%20-%20Copy.pdf
- University of South Africa Library. (2022). Guidelines for using the Harvard referencing style [PDF]. College of Economic and Management Sciences. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/ld.php?content_id=67065664
- University of South Africa Library. (2026a). CEMS APA 7th edition referencing style guide: Journal articles. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=1307587&p=9610348
- University of South Africa Library. (2026b). CEMS APA 7th edition referencing style guide: Unisa study guides and lecture notes. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=1307587&p=9610356
- University of South Africa Library. (2026c). CEMS Harvard referencing style: General rules for the list of references. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=763056&p=11546584
- University of South Africa Library. (2026d). CEMS Harvard referencing style: Internet sources. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=763056&p=5641286
- University of South Africa Library. (2026e). CEMS Harvard referencing style: In-text citations. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=763056&p=5641086
- University of South Africa Library. (2026f). CEMS Harvard referencing style: Introduction to referencing and plagiarism. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/CEMSHarvard
- University of South Africa Library. (2026g). CEMS Harvard referencing style: Journal articles. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=763056&p=5641112
- University of South Africa Library. (2026h). CEMS Harvard referencing style: Reference management tools. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=763056&p=9174785
- University of South Africa Library. (2026i). CEMS Harvard referencing style: The use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=763056&p=11546541
- University of South Africa Library. (2026j). CEMS Harvard referencing style: Unisa study guides and lecture notes. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=763056&p=8249921
- University of South Africa Library. (2026k). CGS: Postgraduate library support for supervisors and students: Referencing & plagiarism. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=355657&p=2399183
- University of South Africa Library. (2026l). Law: Referencing. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=355552&p=2400154
- University of South Africa Library. (2026m). Psychology: Referencing. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=355534&p=3872011
- University of South Africa Library. (2026n). SBL Harvard referencing style: Introduction to in-text citations. LibGuides. https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/c.php?g=1260430&p=9238457
- Zweni, A., Yan, B., & Mabugu, R. E. (2024). The impact of new public management on the financial performance of category B municipalities in South Africa. African Journal of Public Administration and Environmental Studies, 3(3), 213–244. https://doi.org/10.31920/2753-3182/2024/v3n3a11