Puzzling graduate, following fish (8)
I believe the answer is:
baffling
'puzzling' is the definition.
('baffle' can be a synonym of 'puzzle')
'graduate following fish' is the wordplay.
'graduate' becomes 'BA' (someone with a Bachelor of Arts degree).
'following' becomes 'ff' (abbreviation used in citations).
'fish' becomes 'ling' (ling is a kind of fish).
'ba'+'ff'+'ling'='BAFFLING'
(Other definitions for baffling that I've seen before include "Mysterious" , "Perplexing, bewildering" , "Mystifying" , "Hard to understand" , "Perplexing, puzzling" .)