Scholarly/academic sources are books, chapters in books, or journal articles that conform to scholarly conventions (which you are now also expected to comply with) such as citing sources and providing evidence and argument to back up the author’s position. They are written by people who have some objective claim to be an authority on the subject. Generally, they are written by academics and published as either books or articles. Usually, journal articles that qualify are published in recognised scholarly journals where the articles are all refereed.) You should not have any trouble finding sources that meet this requirement. Almost all the non-fiction books on the university library website meet the requirement (that’s why they are there) and there are literally hundreds of relevant academic journals held by the library in electronic format. If you are not sure whether or not your sources meet the requirement you should check with your Tutor or the Unit Coordinator.

Please note that encyclopaedias do not meet this requirement, and this especially applies to Wikipedia. Do not use Wikipedia. Popular magazine articles, newspaper articles, and many of the writings you find on search engines like Google do not qualify as academic/scholarly sources. (Learn to discern!) This does not mean that you cannot use them; often they are very welcome additions to your essay, particularly if you want to use very new material. If you do use them, you must cite them in exactly the same way as you would if they were academic/scholarly sources.

Of course, just because a work complies with scholarly conventions does not mean it is an unquestionable authority. (Nothing is beyond question. But this does not mean that everything is of equal status or credibility). Moreover, something which does not comply with scholarly conventions, such as an opinion piece in a quality newspaper, can be of excellent quality (which is why we do not discourage you from using such sources). The point is that not all opinions have equal authority. Generally speaking, an article about some subject written by an academic authority (somebody recognised as an authority by his or her peers) and published in a reputable, peer-reviewed journal should be given more weight than a high school student’s essay on the same subject. (Both of which can be found on the internet). If you don’t already do so, you need to begin making these distinctions. An essential research skill is the application of discrimination and judgement to your internet searching (and to all other forms of searching for sources). If you have avoided or not been encouraged to research in this way, it is now time to step up and ditch your bad habits. Don’t try to manage any longer with poor techniques; they don’t belong at university.

There is no upper limit to the number of sources you may utilise, but more than 10 is well and truly above the level required to impress us with your diligence. Remember, far more important than the number of sources used is their quality and relevance, and even more important is how you use them.

As mentioned, apart from scholarly/academic sources you might wish to use other sources, such as newspaper and magazine articles, official sources, and television or radio reports. The latter are best found in the networks’ websites. The ABC has a particularly good website which includes transcripts of many interviews. Newspaper and magazine articles should be from appropriate newspapers and magazines, which devote considerable attention to international affairs, for instance the Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian rather than the Daily Telegraph. In other words, here too, you should select sources with authority.