You found a useful DNP scholarly project in your university repository, and you do not know whether to call it a dissertation, where the university goes or what to do with the repository name. Citing it like a journal article is the common error. This guide gives the APA 7 pattern and a worked example first, then covers unpublished copies and how to use these sources with care.
APA supplies the labels "Doctoral dissertation" and "Master's thesis". It has no separate label for a DNP scholarly project or capstone, so describe the work accurately, using your program's own term ("Doctoral scholarly project", "DNP capstone project"). If your program names a preferred label, use it.
About the examples. Authors, titles, universities and links are fictional placeholders and no such works exist. Take the details from the work you consulted, and follow your program's guidance where it differs.
Where you found the work decides how the reference ends. The bracketed description names the kind of work and the degree-granting university; what follows depends on the source.
| Where you found it | Ending of the reference |
|---|---|
| A commercial database such as ProQuest | Publication number after the title, then the database name |
| A university's open repository | Repository name, then the URL |
| A department or author website | Site name if it differs from the university, then the URL |
| A copy not available to the public | [Unpublished ...] in brackets and the university as publisher |
Ask for earlier theses and projects to be found, evaluated and cited. You see the price before you pay, and revisions are free for 14 days after delivery.
If your dissertation builds on your master's thesis or a DNP project, cite the earlier work like any other, as a repository item or as unpublished work. Citing it does not give you permission to reuse its text. Your program may allow limited reuse, may require approval, or may prohibit it, so ask before you copy anything. The plagiarism guide covers self-plagiarism in more detail.
Numbered styles differ between institutions in how they label a project that is not strictly a dissertation. Follow your handbook, and see the AMA and Vancouver guides for the surrounding rules.
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| Treating a dissertation like a journal article | Use the dissertation pattern, and cite the published article instead when one exists |
| Leaving out the degree-granting university | Put it in the bracket |
| Calling a DNP project a "dissertation" | Label it with your program's term |
| Listing the repository but not the URL | Add the link when the copy is open access |
| Reusing a section of an earlier project without permission | Get approval first, and cite the earlier work |
Academic integrity. Cite prior projects for every idea, method or passage you draw from them, and observe your institution's academic-integrity policy. Official examples are on the APA Style website.
Cite the article if you are relying on its findings, since it has been through peer review. Cite the dissertation for details the article omits, such as full methods or instruments.
Cite only what you have read. If you saw only an abstract, say so in your text, or find the full work through your library.
Only with the author's permission and your instructor's approval, and it should be cited as unpublished work.
Yes. The bracket names the type of work and the degree-granting institution; the repository name follows the bracket.