Please Note: The following APA guide for paper formatting & required elements is geared toward student papers, not professional papers being submitted for publication. For specific formatting guidelines for professional papers, please see Chapter 2: Paper Elements and Format, Section 2.1, starting on pg. 29 for Professional Paper Required Elements.
Student Paper Required Elements (see Section 2.2 in APA manual)
Student papers typically will not include a running head, author note, or abstract. Professors may request these elements in papers periodically, so follow guidelines requested by the course instructor.
Title page setup is covered in Section 2.3 of the APA Publication Manual, Seventh Edition. Include the items below on the page.
Author names (the byline)
Author affiliation
Course number and name
Instructor name
Assignment due date
Page number
The page header appears within the top margin of every page of the paper.
Follow these guidelines to include page numbers in both student and professional APA Style papers:
Margins: Use 1-in. margins on every side of the page for an APA Style paper. More details about margins can be found here.
Font: A variety of fonts are permitted in APA Style papers. Font options include the following:
We recommend these fonts because they are legible and widely available and because they include special characters such as math symbols and Greek letters. For more details about font click here.
Line spacing: In general, double-space all parts of an APA Style paper, including the abstract; text; block quotations; table and figure numbers, titles, and notes; and reference list (including between and within entries). Do not add extra space before or after paragraphs. See exceptions and more details about line spacing here.
Paragraph Alignment & Indentation: Align text to the left. All new paragraphs in the body of the paper should receive an indention of 0.5 in. You may use the tab key after starting each new paragraph for consistency. For more details on paragraph alignment and indentation, click here.
Headings are covered in Sections 2.26 and 2.27 of the APA Publication Manual, Seventh Edition The following table demonstrates how to format headings in APA Style.
|
Level |
Format |
|---|---|
|
1 |
Centered, Bold, Title Case Heading Text begins as a new paragraph.
|
|
2 |
Flush Left, Bold, Title Case Heading Text begins as a new paragraph.
|
|
3 |
Flush Left, Bold Italic, Title Case Heading Text begins as a new paragraph.
|
|
4 |
Indented, Bold, Title Case Heading, Ending With a Period. Text begins on the same line and continues as a regular paragraph.
|
|
5 |
Indented, Bold Italic, Title Case Heading, Ending With a Period. Text begins on the same line and continues as a regular paragraph.
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