How to arrange References in alphabetical order -2 automatic options

At the end of every academic work, it is expected that one should include his/her source of information which is known as REFERENCES/REFERENCING. The references are expected to be arranged chronologically (in ascending order: A-Z). When the list of references is much to deal with in terms of arranging them in alphabetical order, it becomes a problem and as a result, could lead to frustration and abandonment of such work at that stage of writing.

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Easy step on how to arrange References in alphabetical order

1. Highlight the entire reference text.
2. HOLD and PRESS Alt+A+S key. This brings out the SORT TEXT automatically.
3. PRESS the ENTER Key or OK on the SORT TEXT Dialogue Box.

Most referencing style/format does not require you to provide them the way they appeared in the text (in-text citations), hence for neatness and ease of access, re-arranging them to be in chronological order might be required. Outside the use of shortcut above, let us practically see how to arrange References in alphabetical order.

how to arrange References in alphabetical order -List of References

The image above shows a list of books but not in order by the authors’ surnames. How can we put the references/Bibliography in alphabetical order?

the first thing you do is to highlight all the text you want to alphabetize. After that, make sure that your screen is showing the Microsoft word HOME. Below the HOME Title Bar, you will see the FONT TYPE and FONT SIZE and same row, look out for the little button next to the paragraph mark as seen in the image below.

Highlighted List of References

Press the A-Z button. You’ll see a pop-up (dialogue box). See image below.

Sort Text Dialogue Box

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There are several options for ordering text, which can also be found in Excel. By default, it will resolve the text in ascending order (A-Z) but where you have a different arrangement (descending order – Z-A), you can change it accordingly. After selecting the ordering format/style click on OK. Below is the result of the arranged text in alphabetical order.

Reference List arranged in alphabetical order

Kindly note that you can revert your changes by using the UNDO button or Ctrl+Z if you notice something went wrong or some references split inappropriately.

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This is one of the ways you can maximize time when doing your papers, assignment or any research work.

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