Kate Turabian's A Manual for Writers is the student-focused version of Chicago style. Both Notes-Bibliography and Author-Date systems are covered here, plus Turabian-specific paper formatting — title pages, headings, margins, and pagination.
Turabian style comes from A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, first published by Kate L. Turabian in 1937 and now in its 9th edition (2018). It is published by the University of Chicago Press and is explicitly a student adaptation of the Chicago Manual of Style.
The citation formats in Turabian and Chicago are identical. What Turabian adds is detailed guidance specifically for student papers: how to format a title page, how to handle margins and line spacing, how to number pages, and how to format headings. It is the standard required for student theses and dissertations at many US and international universities.
Like Chicago, Turabian has two citation systems. You must use one consistently throughout your paper:
| Feature | Chicago Manual of Style | Turabian 9th Ed. |
|---|---|---|
| Primary audience | Publishers, professional authors | Students, thesis writers |
| Title page format | Not specified | Detailed requirements provided |
| Margins | Not specified | 1 inch all sides (1.25 left if binding) |
| Font requirements | Not specified | 12pt serif (Times New Roman recommended) |
| Line spacing | Not specified | Double body; single footnotes |
| Heading system | Not prescribed for students | 5-level system defined |
| Citation format | Identical | Identical to Chicago |
These layout rules apply regardless of whether you use NB or AD:
The Turabian title page is centred both vertically and horizontally on the page. No decorative elements or all-caps unless your institution specifies otherwise.
Some programmes require additional elements — department name, student ID, degree programme. Always check your institution's thesis or assignment handbook before finalising the title page layout.
Footnotes are numbered consecutively from 1 and appear at the bottom of each page. A Bibliography listing all sources alphabetically by author appears at the end of the paper.
Key formatting difference: footnote entries list the author in normal order (First Last); bibliography entries invert the first author (Last, First) for alphabetical sorting.
Our dissertation specialists handle NB and AD systems, paper formatting, and full bibliography management.
Ibid.: when citing the same source in two consecutive footnotes, you may write "Ibid." for the second (followed by a different page if applicable). Many committees now prefer shortened notes instead — "Said, Orientalism, 150." Confirm which your institution prefers.
In-text citations appear in parentheses — (Author Year) or (Author Year, page) — and a Reference List sorted alphabetically appears at the end.
Chicago AD vs APA: No comma between author and year: (Said 1978) not (Said, 1978). For page numbers: (Smith 2022, 45) not (Smith, 2022, p. 45). These differences trip up students who learned APA first.
| Scenario | In-Text Format |
|---|---|
| One author | (Smith 2022) |
| Two authors | (Smith and Jones 2022) |
| Three or more | (Smith et al. 2022) |
| With page number | (Smith 2022, 45) |
| Author named in sentence | Smith (2022) argues that… |
| Two works in one citation | (Smith 2022; Jones 2023) |
Use only as many heading levels as your paper genuinely needs. A short paper may need only one level. Do not use all five unless you have multiple nested sub-sections.
| Level | Format | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Centred, bold, title case | Literature Review |
| 2 | Centred, bold italic, title case | Theoretical Framework |
| 3 | Left-aligned, bold, title case | Quantitative Methods |
| 4 | Left-aligned, bold italic, title case | Sample Selection |
| 5 | Run-in paragraph, bold, ends with period | Data sources. Text begins immediately… |
For citation format, yes — the two are identical. Turabian adds student-specific formatting requirements (margins, title page, heading levels, footnote spacing) that the Chicago Manual does not specify. If your instructor says "Chicago style," Turabian 9th edition is a safe implementation that covers all the citation formatting plus gives you a structured paper layout.
Both are acceptable in the NB system. Footnotes appear at the bottom of each page and are more traditional and reader-friendly. Endnotes collect at the end of the paper before the Bibliography, making the body text cleaner to read. Most student papers use footnotes. Check with your instructor or check your institution's thesis guidelines.
Centred vertically on the page — upper third: paper title (may be bold); middle: your name; lower third: course name, instructor, institution, date. 12pt in the same serif font as the rest of the paper. No decorative borders. Page 1 in the count but no number displayed.
In NB: use the title in the footnote (shortened for subsequent citations); in the Bibliography, file by title alphabetically. In AD: use a short title in parentheses — (Condition of Education Report 2023). In the Reference List, file under the first significant word of the title.
Use the Author-Date (AD) system — it is functionally equivalent to APA or Harvard and is the Turabian/Chicago system designed for empirical disciplines. If your committee has not specified NB or AD, Author-Date is the correct default for nursing, business, education, and social science dissertations. NB (footnotes) is reserved for history and humanities. When in doubt, check your dissertation handbook before submitting.