Citing a PowerPoint presentation is one of those aspects of academic learning that most college students face. When one wishes to cite a speech in APA or some art object done in MLA, things often become problematic. A challenging part of working with presentations is knowing how to design your slides, avoid plagiarism, and keep things unique. Therefore, learning how to cite a Powerpoint in MLA is essential for giving credit where it’s due! To ensure we do it correctly, let's refer to this guide for step-by-step instructions.
How to сite a PowerPoint presentation in MLA format
When you plan to cite a PowerPoint presentation in MLA style format, the citation rules will depend on the presentation type. As you learn how to cite a PowerPoint in MLA, another criterion is how you accessed it. For example, once you've chosen a PowerPoint topic and created the presentation, the citation will resemble a website format when the slides you cite can be seen online. In such a case, you must provide the author's name and the presentation title. After, add the website's name, date, and URL in italics. Dealing with the in-text citation, specify the slide's number to make this clear to your audience.
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MLA Format Template |
Author's Last Name, First Name. "Presentation Title." Website Name, Day Month Year, URL. |
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Works Cited Page Citation |
Oncha, Kamil. "Dolphins." Slideshare, 22 Aug. 2016, https://www.slideshare.net/kamiloncha/dolphins-65216877. |
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In-text Citation |
(Oncha, slide 5) |
Citing a PowerPoint presentation viewed in person
When viewing a PowerPoint presentation, the rules change since you cannot provide an online link to access the information. You must specify the course's name and the date a presentation or lecture has been given. As you master the art of how to cite a Powerpoint in MLA, remember to note the location and the presentation’s name. Adding a "PowerPoint presentation" label is helpful for the sake of clarity. See the examples below.
MLA Format PowerPoint Citation Template
Author's Last Name, First Name. "Presentation Title." Course Name, Day Month Year, Name, City. PowerPoint presentation.
Works Cited Page Citation
Stipe, Michael. "Living as a rock star in Athens, Georgia." Musicology Studies, 19 Jun. 2011, Berlin Institute of Music and Arts, Berlin. PowerPoint presentation.
In-text citation
(Stipe, slide 14)
Lecture PowerPoint citation MLA style
There is also MLA citation for PowerPoint cases when your college professor has provided a lecture in a PowerPoint format during the class, which makes citing this case a little bit different. When you start with your citation, use your professor's or lecturer's last name, first name, the lecture's title, course name, lecture date, location, and the "Lecture" tag.
MLA Format PowerPoint Citation Template
Instructor's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Lecture." Title of Course, Date of lecture, Location. Lecture.
MLA Works Cited Page
Holmes, Nicholas. "Dealing With Workplace Bullying: Why Females Do Not Report The Harassment?" Social Sciences 201, 17 February 2022, Arizona State University. Lecture.
In-text citation
(Holmes)
How to cite a non-lecture PowerPoint presentation?
When the presentation you want to cite does not represent a lecture, you will have to include the instructor’s name, the lecture’s title, the course title, the date when the lecture occurred, the location or the venue, and the presentation type (since it's a non-lecture type). Here are the template and MLA PowerPoint citation sample:
MLA Format PowerPoint Citation Template
Instructor's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Your PowerPoint Presentation." Title of Course, Date of PowerPoint presentation, Location of presentation, or venue's name. Type of PowerPoint presentation.
Works Cited Page
Fox, Megan. "The Passion and the Beauty in Hollywood." Fashion Studies 34. 17 April 2020. New York Arts Institute. Prezi PowerPoint presentation.
In-text citation
(Fox)
Citing content reproduced in a PowerPoint
Sometimes, we may cite something reproduced in a PowerPoint format. It can be an image or a quote from some famous person (not the one who created the slide in a presentation). In such a case, your best bet would be to cite the original source. If the source is unavailable, feel free to contact the lecturer. Still, you might treat the information as a source within a source. Start with the original source and then add presentation details, mentioning the slide where related quoted data appears. Here's an example:
MLA Format Template
Author's Last Name, First Name. Artwork Title. Presentation Name, taught by Presenter's First Name Last Name, Day Month Year, University's Name, City. Slide number.
Works Cited Page
Knight, Gabriel. Voodoo's Dark Heritage. 1994. Introduction to New Orleans Black History, taught by Andrew Johnson, 29 Apr. 2022, Cape Town U, Cape Town, RSA. Slide 11.
In-text citation
(Knight, slide 11)
Creating an MLA Works Cited PowerPoint Slide
When you present a PowerPoint presentation that serves the role of serious research with external quotes and information being used, the MLA Works Cited Powerpoint page is essential. It should be present, as well as in-text citations. Learning how to cite a PowePoint presentation in MLA for slides works the same way as it would work with the typical paper where you add the Works Cited page in MLA format. You must list only those sources you reference directly during your presentation, as the complete bibliography is unnecessary!
Your citations will depend on the source type. If you used some books, cite them as outlined in the MLA style rules. If there is an interview, follow the relevant rules for citing an interview in MLA. The same rules work when you learn how to cite a website in a Powerpoint MLA style presentation.
Works Cited
El Alaoui Ismaili, Zakaria, et al. “A Comparison of Frequency Synthesizers up to 25 GHz for 130 Nm CMOS Implementation.” 2019 17th IEEE International New Circuits and Systems Conference (NEWCAS), 2019, https://doi.org/10.1109/newcas44328.2019.8961242.
Manassewitsch, Vadim. Frequency Synthesizers: Theory and Design. Wiley, 2005.
Solida, Scot. “The 10 Greatest Synthesizers of All Time.” MusicRadar, MusicRadar, 24 May 2022, https://www.musicradar.com/news/the-10-greatest-synthesizers-of-all-time-the-machines-that-changed-music.
