The style recommended by the American Medical Association (AMA) is often used for scholarly writing about medicine or health-related topics, or about other subjects in the sciences. In the AMA style, references to a work or parts of a work inside the text of a paper take the form of numbered citations. Only the number appears in the text itself; the reference preceded by the same number is included in a reference list at the end of your paper.

AMA Citation Handout (PDF): A three-page quick guide to citing in AMA format

AMA also provides general formatting guidelines for writing your research paper and your reference page:

• Apply a commonly used font such as Times New Roman, in size 12.
• Add page numbers in the upper right corner of each page (starting with the title page).
• Use 1-inch margins and indent the first lines of paragraphs by ½ inch.
• Double-space the text.
• Use consistent styling (such as bolding, centering, or a different font) for each level of heading in the text.
• Spell out acronyms the first time they are used.

• OWL at Purdue AMA
• MyBib
• Citation Machine
• ZoteroBib

Cite as you go

Even if you're not sure whether you will use a source, it's much easier to note the citation information up front than to decide you need it later!