Personal communications – including notes you have taken during a lecture

Avoid citing a "personal communication" including notes from a lecture unless it provides essential information not available elsewhere.

If you decide to refer to a personal communication such as notes taken in a lecture, or the contents of an email, details of the communication should be provided in the text. The name of the person and date of communication should be cited in parentheses in the text. A citation number is not used and no details are included in your reference list.

Example:

The WAIMR team has identified numerous genes associated with diseases such as leukaemia, diabetes and cancer. (Professor John R Brown, lecture on research at UWA, 2018 May 11).

Important Note: Always check with your assignment marker or unit coordinator if it is acceptable to reference this type of material.