You must always carefully cite the sources you are using in your papers, essays and theses. That is why it is of the utmost importance that you note down precisely which sources you are using, right from the start of your research. Note down the exact title description and page number of the source you are using.  You must also indicate when you are using a particular passage literally (citation) and when your are refrasing a passage in your own words (paraphrasing). 

Every university student is expected to be able to manage their literature independently; this is an academic skill.

You can manage your literature in various ways: 

- Make a list of all publications you have used for your paper, essay or thesis in a Word document or a Google Docs document 

- Save physical sources, such as print-outs of journal articles 

- Use special software to save references to the literature, such as RefWorks, Endnote, Mendeley or Zotero

Did you know there are computer programs to assist you with organizing and processing your literature and literature references? At the university of Groningen we have a full license for EndNote and RefWorks. We don't have a licence for Mendeley, but it is popular and has a free version. Zotero is a popular free, open source reference manager.