Skip to Main Content

Citation: APA Formatting Basics

A guide to citation resources

APA Paper Formatting Basics

For a more comprehensive formatting guide, please see the example paper on Purdue Owl.

  • The entire paper should have 1 inch margins on all sides (top, right, left, bottom)
  • The entire paper should be Times New Roman, 12-point font, double spaced
  • According to the new 7th edition, headings formally know as “running heads” are no longer required for student papers. Running heads should only be added at the request of the instructor.
  • The page number should be on the right side. Page numbers begin at 1.
  • The title page should include the title in upper and lowercase lettered centered in the upper half of your page.
    • Centered on the lower half of the page: the authors name (your name), institutional affiliation (the college), any author note (usually the name of your professor and/or course), and the due date (Month Day, Year).
  • The abstract page beings with the word “Abstract” centered on the page. Do not bold, underline, or italicize it. Begin writing a concise summary of your paper on the next line.
  • The body of your page should restate the title centered on the top, do not bold or underline or italicize.
  • Appendices are used to display charts, graphs, tables, etc. These come after the references page. Label each Appendix, starting with “A”, such as “Appendix A”, and also title them according to their content, such as “Charts & Graphs.”

Literature Review

  • Some APA papers are Literature Reviews. These papers are a critical summary of what existing research says about your topic/question.
  • Includes:
    • Title Page
    • Optional Abstract (depends upon professor)
    • Introduction
    • Body
    • References
    • Optional Appendices (if you have tables/charts to add to the paper)

Experimental Report

  • Some APA papers are Experimental Reports. These papers are lab reports, which show empirical research.
  • Includes:
    • Title Page
    • Abstract: 100 word summary of what the stuyd is about.
    • Introduction. Has three parts: The opening statement, literature review, and study overview.
      • Literature Review: discuss the literature/previous studies that have been done in relation to your topic. Discuss how your work will be different.
      • Study Overview: includes a hypothesis and a description of your methods.
    • Methods: over view of how you will go about conducting your research. Discuss your participants, the apparatus (equipment), materials (surveys, software,etc.), and procedure (the process you took, step-by-step, and your variables).
    • Results: the results of the experiment, written and with statistics. Discuss how they compare to your hypothesis.
    • Discussion: summarize the research and findings, and discuss the meanings of your results and how they will impact existing literature.

Section Headings

  • Used to improve readability
  • Example of way to distinguish between the different sections/headings:
    • Level 1: Centered, Bold, Titlecase
    • Level 2: Flush Left, Bold, Titlecase
    • Level 3: indented, bold, lowercase with a period.
    • Level 4: indented, bold, italicized, lowercase with a period.
    • Level 5: indented, italicized, lowercase heading with a period.