Formatting
APA format for student essays (APA 7).
By the EssayMate team · Updated November 4, 2026
APA style, from the American Psychological Association, is used for essays in psychology, education, nursing, business and most social sciences. The 7th edition (2019) introduced a separate, simpler format for student papers, which is what most courses ask for.
This guide covers that student format: page setup, the title page, headings, citations and the References page. Professional papers for journals add a running head and an abstract; you only need those if your instructor asks.
Page setup
| Setting | APA 7 rule |
|---|---|
| Margins | 1 inch on all sides |
| Font | Any accessible font, used throughout: Calibri 11, Arial 11, Lucida Sans Unicode 10, Times New Roman 12, Georgia 11 or Computer Modern 10 |
| Spacing | Double-spaced throughout, including the title page and References, with no extra space between paragraphs |
| Indent | First line of each paragraph indented 0.5 inch |
| Alignment | Flush left, with a ragged right edge |
| Page numbers | Top right of every page, starting with 1 on the title page |
| Running head | Not used in student papers (only in professional papers) |
The title page
Put the title three or four lines down from the top, centred and bold, in title case. Leave one blank line, then add these lines, centred and not bold:
- Your name
- Your department and university (for example, Department of Nursing, University of Nairobi)
- The course number and name
- Your instructor's name
- The due date, written out (November 4, 2026)
1
Transformational Leadership and Nurse Retention in Public Hospitals
Ada Okafor
Department of Nursing, University of Nairobi
NURS 301: Leadership in Health Care
Dr. M. Kamau
November 4, 2026
The first page of text
Start the essay on a new page. Repeat the title at the top, centred and bold, then begin the introduction on the next line. Don't add a heading called "Introduction": the title does that job. Include an abstract only if your instructor asks for one; it goes on its own page after the title page.
The five heading levels
APA headings show the essay's structure. Most student essays need only levels 1 and 2. All headings use title case.
| Level | Format |
|---|---|
| 1 | Centred, bold. Text starts as a new paragraph. |
| 2 | Flush left, bold. Text starts as a new paragraph. |
| 3 | Flush left, bold italic. Text starts as a new paragraph. |
| 4 | Indented, bold, ending with a full stop. Text continues on the same line. |
| 5 | Indented, bold italic, ending with a full stop. Text continues on the same line. |
In-text citations
APA cites the author's surname and the year. Add a page number for direct quotations; a paraphrase needs the citation too (avoiding plagiarism).
| Source | Parenthetical | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| One author | (Austen, 2003) | Austen (2003) |
| Two authors | (Akbari & Kolokotsa, 2016) | Akbari and Kolokotsa (2016) |
| Three or more | (LeCun et al., 2015) | LeCun et al. (2015) |
| Group author | (World Health Organization [WHO], 2021), then (WHO, 2021) | World Health Organization (2021) |
| Direct quotation | (Austen, 2003, p. 112) | Austen (2003) wrote that "…" (p. 112). |
| No date | (Smith, n.d.) | Smith (n.d.) |
Quotations of 40 words or more go in a block: a new line, the whole block indented 0.5 inch, double-spaced, without quotation marks, with the citation after the final full stop.
The References page
- Start it on a new page, with the label References centred and bold at the top.
- Double-space, with a 0.5-inch hanging indent.
- Order entries alphabetically by the first author's surname.
- Use initials for first names, "&" before the last author, and sentence case for article and book titles.
- Italicise book titles and the journal name and volume; give DOIs as https://doi.org/ links.
Austen, J. (2003). Pride and prejudice. Penguin Books.
LeCun, Y., Bengio, Y., & Hinton, G. (2015). Deep learning. Nature, 521(7553), 436–444. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature14539
The free APA citation generator writes these entries, and both in-text forms, from a DOI, link, ISBN or title.
Tables and figures
Number tables and figures in the order they appear (Table 1, Figure 1). Above each, put the number in bold and, on the next line, a title in italic title case. Add a note below for sources or abbreviations, and refer to each one in the text before it appears.
APA format checklist
- 1-inch margins, one accessible font, double-spaced everywhere.
- Page numbers top right, from the title page; no running head.
- Title page: bold centred title, then name, department and university, course, instructor, date.
- Title repeated in bold on page one; no "Introduction" heading.
- Headings in the right levels, in title case.
- Citations as (Author, Year), with pages for quotations.
- References on a new page: bold centred label, alphabetical, hanging indent.
Example papers
Sample papers written with EssayMate, to read for structure and citations, not to copy.
Frequently asked questions
Do APA student papers need a running head?
No. APA 7 dropped the running head for student papers; you only need the page number, top right. Professional papers for publication still use one.
Do I need an abstract?
Only if your instructor asks for one. Student papers usually don't have one; professional papers do.
What font is APA 7?
APA 7 allows several accessible fonts, as long as you use one throughout: Calibri 11, Arial 11, Lucida Sans Unicode 10, Times New Roman 12, Georgia 11 or Computer Modern 10.
Is the References page double-spaced?
Yes, with a 0.5-inch hanging indent and no extra lines between entries.
How do I format the date on an APA title page?
Write it out in full, month day, year: November 4, 2026.
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