Personal communications

Learn how to cite personal communication in IEEE style. Follow correct in-text citation rules for emails, conversations, lectures and other private sources to reference sources accurately in your writing.

Books, ebooks and manuals Journal articles AI tools and software Course materials Data sets Sound and video Personal communications Thesis and conference papers Equations, figures, tables and images Websites, reports and social media Standards and patents Indigenous sources

Check with your teacher or lecturer before including personal communications as a reference source

Identify the communicator (seek approval for private communications) and date.

The following sources are considered to be personal communications:

Live lectures, presentations, performances, speeches, etc.
Private communications, such as letters, emails, conversations, personal interviews, or posts and comments on social media or other sites protected by privacy settings.
Class or lecture notes that were taken by yourself or other students, and material accessible only to students of the unit course or institution.

In-text citations

Citation format	Example
Paraphrasing	According to [1], it is due to...
Direct quote	...."we see that it caused a lot of stress" [3].

Reference list

Reference format	Example
Template	[#] J. K. Author, private communication, Abbrev. Month, Year.
Full reference	[1] E. Jensen, private communication, Dec. 2008.