Cite a PowerPoint Presentation in MLA

• Tomas Elliott (Ph.D.)
• Published on 10/15/2024
• Updated on04/12/2025

Citing a PowerPoint presentation in MLA format depends on whether the presentation is online or given in a classroom. This guide explains the specific formats utilized in each situation and how to create both Works Cited entries and in-text citations.

ONLINE POWERPOINT PRESENTATION

When you are referencing a PowerPoint presentation that you accessed and read through the internet, for instance, from a web page or a presentation-sharing platform such as SlideShare, include the following details in your reference: author name, title of the presentation and website title, publication date, and the URL.

KEY CITATION ELEMENTS

• Author: The author of the PowerPoint presentation is the entity or individual who prepared it. When an individual prepared the presentation, then his last name precedes his first name. When the author is an organization, such as a company, institution, or government department, the name of the organization is used in place of an individual’s name.
• Presentation Title: The title of the PowerPoint presentation is enclosed in quotation marks and written in sentence case. This means that only the first word and proper nouns will be in uppercase. It is a requirement as it is the specific content or topic of the presentation.
• Website Name: The name of the website or site upon which the PowerPoint presentation has been posted is in italics. This separates the source of the information from the author or title. Examples of websites upon which PowerPoint presentations might be posted include SlideShare, Prezi, or a specific academic or organizational website.
• Date: The date is the publication or upload date of the presentation. In MLA, the date appears in day-month-year format (24 Jan. 2020). It is essential to include the date because it informs readers when the information was up to date in a bid to view supportive data. This is especially vital when citing online material because websites update frequently.
• URL: The URL is the full web address upon which the PowerPoint presentation can be found. URLs must be provided without hyperlinks and not shortened in MLA style. Providing the full URL enables readers to easily access the presentation should they want to view it themselves. Ensure that the URL is correct and usable, as broken links can hinder readers from retrieving the source.

CITATION EXAMPLE FOR ONLINE POWERPOINT PRESENTATION

Citation	Bennett, Tony. “Digital Citizenship: Engaging Students in a Digital World.” SlideShare, 18 Apr. 2024, www.slideshare.net/TonyBennett/digital-citizenship-engaging-students-in-a-digital-world.
Structure	Author Surname, Author First Name. “Presentation Title.” Website Name, Day Month Year, URL.

IN-TEXT CITATION EXAMPLES

In-text citations for an online PowerPoint presentation must include the author’s last name or the name of the organization and the slide number. In MLA style, there are two in-text citation options: parenthetical or narrative.

Parenthetical citation:

Example	(Bennett, slide 5)
Structure	(Author, slide No.)

Narrative citation:

Example	Bennett (2024) discusses strategies for engaging students on slide 5
Structure	Author (Year) text on slide No.

POWERPOINT PRESENTATION DELIVERED IN A COURSE

When citing a PowerPoint presentation given in a lecture or course, the citation is slightly modified to indicate the exact details of the course and university where the presentation was given. You have to include the author’s name, title of presentation, title of course, date of presentation, name of university, and city.

KEY CITATION ELEMENTS FOR POWERPOINT PRESENTATION DELIVERED IN A COURSE

• Author: The author of the PowerPoint presentation is the individual who created or delivered the content. This can be a professor, instructor, or student. In MLA citations, the author’s last name should precede the first name. If the presentation is delivered by an organization or group rather than an individual, the name of the organization should be used in full rather than the individual’s name.
• Presentation Title: The title of the presentation should be in quotation marks and must be identical as it appears on the PowerPoint slide. According to MLA formatting guidelines, the title should be written in sentence case, i.e., only proper nouns and the first word of the title must be capitalized.
• Course Name: The course name is in italics and the title of the course under which the presentation was presented. This section provides background to the presentation by indicating the academic setting and topic area to which the presentation pertains. Including the full course title helps the reader realize the content and educational setting involved.
• Date: The date is the date on which the presentation was presented in class. This is written in day-month-year form (e.g., 15 Nov. 2018). Putting the date is important as it allows readers to assess the currency and relevance of the information contained.
• University Name and City: This component includes the name of the university or institution in which the course was taught, along with the city in which the institution is located. This information is important in providing background to the learning environment and making the citation more precise.
• Medium: The medium of the presentation is stated at the end of the citation so that one is aware of the type of source being cited. In this case, one has to state that the material is a “PowerPoint presentation.” This tells the reader about the source format, and this is particularly necessary in academic writing where several formats are used.

CITATION EXAMPLE FOR POWERPOINT PRESENTATION DELIVERED IN A COURSE

Citation	Kumar, Ritik. “The Impact of Social Media on Communication.” Communication Theory 101, 10 Sept. 2024, Harvard University, Cambridge. PowerPoint presentation.
Structure	Author Surname, Author First Name. “Presentation Title.” Course Name, Day Month Year, University Name, City. PowerPoint presentation.

IN-TEXT CITATION EXAMPLES

Use the surname of the author or the title of the organization, followed by a specific slide number used. You may either use a parenthetical or narrative citation type.

Parenthetical citation:

Example	(Kumar, slide 4)
Structure	(Author, slide No.)

Narrative citation:

Example	Kumar (2024) describes global warming impacts on slide 4.
Structure	Author (Year) text on slide No.

Group or Corporate Authors: If a PowerPoint presentation is developed by a group or organization as opposed to an individual, cite the organization as the author. This includes corporate presentations, government agencies, or research institutes. URL Accuracy: For online PowerPoint presentations, ensure the URL is correct and accessible. This will allow readers to access the presentation directly. Be sure the URL links directly to the same presentation without further broken links or extraneous parameters. Slide Numbers: Use slide numbers for in-text citations whenever possible. This identifies which part of the presentation is being cited so that it will be as exact as possible. Use the style of (Author, slide number). Sentence Case Titles: Use sentence case for titles in MLA presentations. Capitalize the first letter of the title, the first letter of the subtitle, if included, and proper nouns only, with the rest in lower case. Shortening Months: Cite months longer than four letters in abbreviated form with their first three letters and a period at the end (Jan., Feb., Sept.). May, June, and July are cited in full since they are shorter. This maintains uniformity and brevity in your citations. Consistency: Be consistent with your paper by following MLA citation guidelines all the time. This includes using sentence case on title words, following day-month-year format for dates, and italicizing website titles. Use proper in-text citations and Works Cited entries format.