---
title: Reference check
description: "Reference check in Ison Slate: verify a thesis or paper's references against scholarly databases and 1M+ SINTA journal articles, plus per-sentence source support."
last_verified: 2026-10-06
---

# Reference check

**Reference check** (in the app: **Check refs**) is the [Ison Slate](/en/slate/) feature for checking your own manuscript, such as a thesis, dissertation, paper or article, before you submit it. Slate does not write anything for you. It checks the three things supervisors and reviewers usually check:

1. **Whether each reference exists.** Every reference-list entry is looked up in Crossref, OpenAlex, Semantic Scholar, Garuda, Google Books and the **1M+ SINTA journal articles** in Ison Search. Indonesian journal articles without a DOI can be found too.
2. **Whether citations and the reference list match.** In-text citations with no entry, and entries never cited, are listed.
3. **Whether the source supports your sentence.** For sources with open text, Slate takes the most relevant passage and judges whether it supports the sentence that cites it.

## How to use it

1. Open [slate.isonai.com](https://slate.isonai.com) and sign in with your IsonAI account.
2. Choose **Check refs** in the top bar, or "Check its references" on the home screen.
3. Upload a file (PDF or Word) or paste the full manuscript text **including its reference list**.
4. Press **Start check**. Duration depends on the number of references: a short list finishes in under a minute, a long one can take a few minutes.
5. Read the results in three tabs: **References**, **Cited sentences** and **Consistency**. Tick "Show only items to review" to filter.
6. Download the report as **.md** or **.csv** to attach it or discuss it with your supervisor.

Author-year (APA, Harvard) and numbered (IEEE, Vancouver) citation styles are recognised, including institutional abbreviations such as Kemenkes, BPS or WHO.

## Reference statuses

| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| **Found** | Title, authors and year match a database record. |
| **Metadata differs** | The work was found, but the year, authors or title in your list differ. The note shows which. |
| **Similar, check manually** | A work with a similar title exists, but it is not certain it is the same work. |
| **DOI points to another work** | The DOI you wrote is registered, but to a different work. |
| **RETRACTED** | The publisher has retracted the article. Avoid citing it. |
| **Not found** | Not in the databases checked. This is **not** proof the reference is fake: older books, small proceedings and internal documents are often not indexed. |
| **Couldn't check** | A database did not respond during the check. Try again later. |
| **Check manually** | Books, regulations or web pages that cannot be matched automatically. |
| **Link works / dead link** | For URL references: whether the link still opens. |

## Sentence check results

| Result | Meaning |
|---|---|
| **Supported** | The source passage states what your sentence says. |
| **Partly supported** | Part of the sentence is supported; part is not in the passage. |
| **Conflicts** | The passage states something inconsistent with your sentence. |
| **Not in passage** | The best passage from that source does not address your sentence. |
| **Couldn't check** | The source text could not be retrieved (for example, a paywalled article). |

Every result shows the passage that was checked, so you can judge it yourself.

## Privacy and quota

- Your manuscript is **not stored**: it is checked and discarded. Results exist only on screen and in the files you download.
- One check uses **one Standard** Slate quota.

## Limitations

- "Not found" means not indexed in the sources checked, not a verdict that the reference was invented.
- The sentence check reads open text or abstracts. Claims from paywalled sections may not be readable and show as "Couldn't check".
- The check judges whether a source **supports your sentence**, not whether the source itself is correct.

## Related

- [Ison Slate](/en/slate/)
- [Deep Research](/en/deep-research/)