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Prompt: Check Citations and References

A prompt for checking a reference list against in-text citations for consistency and format, flagging mismatches instead of silently fixing them.

Students ChatGPTClaude
Updated Sep 2026 PIS score 89
The prompt
Open in Studio 
You are an academic editor reviewing a student's citations and reference list for consistency.

Objective: Review the in-text citations against the reference list below for the citation style: {{CITATION STYLE — e.g. Harvard, APA, MLA}}, and produce a specific list of mismatches.

Context: In-text citations as they appear in the essay: {{PASTE IN-TEXT CITATIONS HERE}}. Reference list: {{PASTE REFERENCE LIST HERE}}.

Constraints:
- Flag every in-text citation with no matching reference list entry, and every reference list entry never cited in the text
- Check each reference list entry's format against the given citation style's conventions and flag specific formatting errors, for example: a missing year such as (2019), wrong punctuation, or authors listed in the wrong order
- Do not invent missing publication details (year, publisher, page numbers) — flag them as missing instead
- Do not rewrite the whole reference list; list only the specific issues found, at most 10 items

Example: a citation "(Grant, 2018)" with a reference entry that shows no year at all is a specific, nameable mismatch — report it exactly like that, not as "some references have issues".

Output format: Return three sections: "Citations with no reference", "References never cited", and "Formatting issues" (each entry with the specific problem named).

Before finishing, check that every flagged issue names the specific entry and the specific problem, not a general comment.

Example

Input

CITATION STYLE — e.g. Harvard, APA, MLA: Harvard
PASTE IN-TEXT CITATIONS HERE: (Smith, 2019), (Okafor and Lee, 2021), (Grant, 2018)
PASTE REFERENCE LIST HERE:
  Smith, J. (2019) Understanding Climate Policy. London: Green Press.
  Okafor, T. and Lee, H. (2021) 'Carbon Markets Revisited', Journal of Environmental Economics, 12(3), pp. 45-60.
  Grant, P. Urban Planning and Sustainability. Manchester: Civic Books.

Output

Citations with no reference: None found — all three in-text citations have a matching entry in the reference list.

References never cited: None found.

Formatting issues:
- Grant, P. — missing publication year. Harvard style requires (Year) directly after the author name; the entry currently reads "Grant, P. Urban Planning..." with no year shown. This also means the in-text citation "(Grant, 2018)" cannot be verified against the reference list, since the reference itself shows no year — check the original source for the correct year.

No other formatting issues found: the Smith, J. and Okafor, T. and Lee, H. entries both follow the Harvard author, year, title, publication-details order. Italics can't be confirmed from plain text, so check the book and journal titles are italicised in the final document.

Why it works

  • Cross-checking in-text citations against the reference list catches the common error of a citation with no corresponding source, which examiners penalise heavily.
  • Banning invented publication details keeps the check honest — a missing year gets flagged, not silently guessed.
  • Naming the specific entry and specific problem for each issue makes the fix list something the student can act on directly.

Why the basic version fails

“Check my references” without clear rules usually produces a vague comment like “looks mostly fine” or, worse, a model that quietly rewrites the whole reference list and fills in a plausible-looking year or publisher for a source that’s genuinely missing one — introducing an error rather than catching one.

What this prompt fixes

Cross-checking every in-text citation against the reference list catches the specific, high-penalty error of a citation with no source behind it, which markers check for closely. Banning invented publication details keeps the check honest: a missing year is flagged as missing, not silently guessed at and presented as fact. Naming the specific entry and specific problem for each issue turns the check into a direct action list rather than a vague impression.

Tips per model

  • ChatGPT is thorough at spotting punctuation and ordering differences against a named citation style’s conventions.
  • Claude tends to flag missing details rather than fill them in, which is exactly the behaviour needed here to avoid introducing a fabricated reference.
  • Paste the reference list exactly as written, including any typos — the check can only catch what’s actually there, not a tidied-up version.