Proceedings Citation Guide

How to Cite Conference and Workshop Papers in IEEE Style

IEEE style numbers every source in square brackets and lists initials before surnames. This page explains the conference-paper pattern with fictional examples and notes where venue rules override it.

Last updated 6 November 2026

On this page
  1. How IEEE references work
  2. The conference-paper pattern
  3. Abbreviations and “Proc.”
  4. Authors and the et al. rule
  5. DOIs, URLs and article numbers
  6. When your venue’s rules differ
  7. Common IEEE mistakes
  8. Frequently asked questions
  9. Sources and further reading
  10. Related topics

In brief

  • IEEE references are numbered in the order of first citation, and the number appears in square brackets.
  • Authors appear as initials followed by the surname, and the paper title sits in quotation marks.
  • A conference paper’s reference names the proceedings after “in”, often abbreviated as “Proc.”.
  • A venue’s own author instructions take priority over any general guide.

How IEEE references work

IEEE style is a numeric system. You mark each source in the text with a number in square brackets, and the reference list is ordered by those numbers rather than alphabetically. The first source you cite becomes [1], the next new one [2], and so on. Reusing a source reuses its number.

The style is common in engineering, computing and related fields. Many venues that use it supply a LaTeX class or a BibTeX style, and the CTAN package IEEEtran is the one most authors meet. Because a venue may adapt the rules, read its author instructions before you format anything. If they conflict with a general guide, follow the venue.

This page describes the general pattern in the IEEE Reference Guide. Details such as abbreviation lists change between editions, so check the current guide before you submit.

The conference-paper pattern

A reference to a paper in proceedings has these parts, in order:

  1. Author initials and surname.
  2. Paper title in quotation marks, ending with a comma inside the quotes.
  3. “in” followed by the proceedings title, often in the short form “Proc.” plus an abbreviated name.
  4. Publisher or place details, if the venue asks for them.
  5. Year, then “pp.” and the page range.
  6. The DOI, written as “doi:” followed by the number.

A fictional example in full form:

[1] J. Doe and R. Roe, “An example title of a fictional workshop paper,” in Proceedings of the Example Workshop on Citation Practice, Example City, 2023, pp. 1–8, doi: 10.0000/example.2023.1.

The paper title sits in quotation marks. IEEE reference lists capitalise only its first word, proper nouns and acronyms, much as APA 7 does, though the other fields differ a great deal. The IEEEtran style and many university guides set the proceedings title in italics. Confirm this in your venue’s template, because layouts vary. For a paper that was presented but not published in proceedings, the guide uses “presented at the …” instead of “in”.

Abbreviations and “Proc.”

The IEEE guide abbreviates common words in the proceedings title: “Proceedings” becomes “Proc.”, and words such as “Conference”, “International” and “Symposium” have standard short forms. The guide supplies the list, and you should copy it rather than guess.

A short-form fictional example:

[2] S. Sample, “A fictional paper about abbreviation,” in Proc. Sample Int. Symp. Ref. Pract., Sample City, Sample Country, Mar. 2022, pp. 21–25.

Two rules help here. First, abbreviate consistently within one document. Second, months in dates are abbreviated too, for example “Mar.” and “Oct.”, with the exceptions the guide lists. If you are unsure whether your venue wants abbreviations at all, ask the organisers or check their sample reference list.

Authors and the et al. rule

In the reference list, IEEE gives every author’s initials first. The guide asks you to name all authors up to six. When there are more than six, give the first author followed by “et al.”, with no comma before it. Check the edition your venue requires.

A fictional entry with three authors:

[3] J. Doe, R. Roe, and S. Sample, “A fictional paper with three authors,” in Proc. Example Workshop Citation Pract., Example City, 2023, pp. 9–16.

In the text, you refer to a source by its number only: “as shown in [3]”. Several sources are written [1], [3] or as a range such as [1]–[3]; the exact dash form depends on the edition and template. If you name an author in the sentence, the common convention is the surname plus et al. for three or more authors, followed by the number, as in “Doe et al. [3]”.

DOIs, URLs and article numbers

IEEE writes a DOI as “doi:” followed by the identifier, after a comma. Add it when the paper has one. A URL is a fallback when no DOI exists. For an online-only source without a DOI, give the URL at the end, and add an access date if your venue asks for it.

Some proceedings number papers rather than paginate them. For these, use “Art. no.” and the number in place of “pp.”:

[4] S. Sample and J. Doe, “A fictional paper with an article number,” in Proc. Sample Symp. Ref. Pract., Sample City, 2022, Art. no. 12.

See persistent identifiers for how to check that a DOI really leads to the paper.

When your venue’s rules differ

Venues that use IEEE style often add their own rules. A conference may ask you to drop the place, to spell out months or to include the publisher. Some provide a BibTeX style that applies these choices automatically. In that case you only need correct data in the entry, and the style does the formatting.

If the author instructions are silent, follow the IEEE Reference Guide and apply it consistently. If they conflict with a generic web guide, the instructions win. When you are unsure, look at a published paper from the same venue and copy its reference layout. Do this only for the layout, not for the content of its references.

For the BibTeX side of the same task, see BibTeX for proceedings.

Common IEEE mistakes

  • Alphabetical ordering. The list follows citation order, not the alphabet.
  • Surname first. IEEE puts initials before the surname.
  • Missing “in”. The proceedings title needs the word “in” before it.
  • Italics on the paper title. The paper title sits in quotation marks, and the proceedings title is the one that may be italic.
  • Inconsistent abbreviation. Mixing “Proc.” and “Proceedings” in one list looks careless.
  • Brackets with the year. The year goes in the reference body, not in the in-text marker.
  • Ignoring venue rules. A venue’s template or .bst file may change details.

Run the 12-point checklist before submission. The formatter offers an IEEE-shaped output, but it does not apply abbreviation lists or the et al. rule for you.

Frequently asked questions

Do IEEE references include editors?

The general conference pattern does not require editors. Add them only if your venue’s instructions ask for them.

When do I use et al.?

The IEEE guide names all authors up to six and uses “et al.” after the first author when there are more than six. Check the current edition.

Is the proceedings title abbreviated?

Often, yes, using “Proc.” and the guide’s standard short forms. Some venues want full titles, so follow their instructions.

How do I cite a paper with no DOI?

Give the reference without “doi:”. If the paper is online only, add a URL at the end.

Are numbers reused?

Yes. A source keeps the number it received at first citation, and you reuse it each time you cite the source.

Sources and further reading

  1. IEEE Author Center — IEEE Reference Guide
  2. IEEE — IEEE Author Center: Journals
  3. CTAN — IEEEtran: LaTeX class for IEEE transactions journals and conferences
  4. citationstyles.org — Citation Style Language
  5. International DOI Foundation — DOI Foundation
  6. San José State University Writing Center — IEEE Citation Guide (2025)