What is CSE style used for?

CSE (Council of Science Editors) style is a citation system used in life sciences (like biology, zoology, botany) and other physical sciences. It is based on the *Scientific Style and Format* manual, 8th edition.

What are the three CSE citation systems?

CSE is unique because it offers three systems: 1. Citation-Sequence: Sources are numbered by the order they appear in the text (like AMA or IEEE). 2. Citation-Name: The reference list is alphabetized, *then* numbered. You use those numbers in the text. 3. Name-Year: Uses (Author Year) parenthetical citations, similar to APA.

How do I abbreviate journal titles in CSE?

CSE style requires journal titles to be abbreviated according to the NLM (National Library of Medicine) or CASSI (Chemical Abstracts Service Source Index) standards. For example, *The New England Journal of Medicine* becomes *N Engl J Med*. Always use the official abbreviation.

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A Guide to CSE Style (Council of Science Editors)

Learn to format your science paper using the 3 CSE systems: Citation-Sequence, Citation-Name, and Name-Year.

Get CSE Formatting Help

You’re writing a biology lab report or a paper for a life sciences class, and your professor asks for “CSE style.” This can be confusing, as CSE is not one style, but three.

CSE (Council of Science Editors) style is the standard for scientific writing, especially in biology and life sciences. It is a flexible system with three ways to cite sources, outlined in the *Scientific Style and Format* manual.

This guide is your resource for CSE 8th edition. We will cover the three systems and how to format your citations and reference list.

What is CSE Style?

CSE Style is the citation and formatting guide from the Council of Science Editors. It is used in life sciences (biology, botany, zoology) and other natural sciences. It is designed for clarity and precision in scientific communication.

CSE vs. Other Styles (AMA, APA)

CSE is unique because it offers three systems, while APA is strictly author-date and AMA is strictly citation-sequence.

The 3 CSE Citation Systems

This is the most important concept in CSE. Check your assignment prompt or journal guidelines to know which system to use. Do not mix them.

System	In-Text Citation	Reference List Order
1. Citation-Sequence	Superscript number (e.g., …was found.¹)	Numerical: By order of appearance in the text.
2. Citation-Name	Superscript number (e.g., …was found.¹)	Alphabetical: By author’s last name (and then numbered).
3. Name-Year	Parenthetical (e.g., (Smith 2024))	Alphabetical: By author’s last name (no numbers).

Citation-Sequence is common in life sciences. We will use it for most examples in this guide.

How to Format In-Text Citations

Citation-Sequence/Name: Use superscript numbers, placed *after* commas and periods.
- Example (single): …as shown in a recent study.¹
- Example (multiple): …was found in several species.²˒³⁻⁶
Name-Year: Use (Author Year). It is similar to Chicago Author-Date.
- Example (single): …as shown in a recent study (Smith 2024).
- Example (multiple): (Smith 2024; Jones and Lee 2023).

General Paper Formatting (CSE 8th Ed.)

As this guide from the University of Wisconsin outlines, CSE format is straightforward.

Font: Use a standard, readable 12pt font (e.g., Times New Roman).
Margins: 1-inch margins on all sides.
Spacing: Double-space the entire paper, including the abstract, body text, and references.
Page Numbers: Page numbers go in the top-right header.
Title Page: Create a separate title page with the paper’s title, author name(s), and affiliations.
Abstract: An abstract (a 1-paragraph summary) is almost always required for a scientific paper.

How to Format the “References” List

The “References” list format depends on the system you chose.

Core Formatting Rules

Title: Start on a new page. The title “References” is centered or flush-left at the top.
Order (Citation-Sequence): A numbered list in the order of appearance (1, 2, 3…).
Order (Citation-Name): An alphabetized list that is then numbered (1, 2, 3…).
Order (Name-Year): An alphabetized list, not numbered.
Indentation (Numbered): No indent. The number is flush-left.
Indentation (Name-Year): Use a hanging indent (0.5 inches).
Author Format: Use author last names and first/middle initials. No periods or spaces between initials (e.g., Smith JK).
Journal Titles: All journal titles are abbreviated according to NLM or CASSI standards (e.g., *N Engl J Med* for *New England Journal of Medicine*).
Article Titles: Use sentence case. Do not use quotation marks.

Common CSE Reference Examples

These examples use the Citation-Sequence system, which is most common.

Journal Article (with DOI)

Format:
1. Author AA, Author BB. Article title. *Abbrev J Title*. Year;Volume(Issue):pages. doi:…

Example:
1. Wang L, Ma R, Liu C. A taxonomy and survey of retrieval-augmented generation. *Nat Comput Sci*. 2024;4:314–327. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43588-024-00634-2

Book

Format:
2. Author AA. *Title of Book*. Edition. Place of publication (State or Country): Publisher; Year.

Example:
2. Alberts B, Johnson A, Lewis J. *Molecular biology of the cell*. 6th ed. New York (NY): Garland Science; 2014.

Chapter in an Edited Book

Format:
3. Author AA. Title of chapter. In: *Title of Book*. Editor EE, editor. Place of publication: Publisher; Year. p. #-#.

Example:
3. Solensky R. Drug allergy. In: *Goldman-Cecil Medicine*. 26th ed. Goldman L, Schafer AI, editors. Philadelphia (PA): Elsevier; 2020. p. 1620–1626.

Website

Format:
4. Author or Organization. Title of webpage. [date updated; date accessed]. URL.

Example:
4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms of COVID-19. [updated 2024 Oct 28; accessed 2025 Nov 14]. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html.

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CSE Style FAQs

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This guide covers the CSE 8th edition. Following these rules, you can format your citations and References list correctly for your science paper.

If you’re still confused by the three systems or journal abbreviations, let our technical writing experts help. We can take your draft and return a perfectly formatted CSE paper.

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A Guide to CSE Style (Council of Science Editors)