APA 7th Edition Guide: General Formatting

Order of APA Style Student Paper

Arrange the paper in the following order:

• Title Page (page 1)
• Text of the paper (start on a new page after the title page)
• Reference page (start on a new page after the text of the paper)

Page Header (for Student Papers)

• For student papers, the page header on all pages, including the title page, consists only of the page number flush right. A running head is generally not required for student papers unless specifically requested by your instructor.  

• Do not type page numbers manually; instead, use the page numbering function provided by your word processing software to automatically insert page numbers.  

• The title of the paper or the author's name should not be included in the header.

Font

• Use the same font throughout the paper. APA recommends fonts that are legible and widely accessible. Preferred fonts include:  

• Sans Serif fonts:

  • Calibri (11-point)  

  • Arial (11-point) 

  • Lucida Sans Unicode (10-point)  

• Serif fonts:

  • Times New Roman (12-point)  

  • Georgia (11-point)

Line Spacing

• Double-space the entire paper, including the title page, abstract (if included), text, headings, block quotations, reference list, table and figure notes, and appendices. 

• On the title page, double-space the entire page. Add one extra double-spaced line between the paper title and the author's name(s).  

• Do not add extra spaces before or after paragraphs or around headings.  

Margins

• Use 1-inch margins on all sides (top, bottom, left, and right) throughout the paper.

• This is typically the default setting for most word processing software, including MS Word.

Paragraph Indention and Alignment

• Indent the first line of each paragraph 0.5 inches using the tab key. Ensure your tab key is set to the standard 0.5-inch indent.  

• All other lines of the paragraph should be left-aligned.  

• Use left alignment for the body text; do not use full justification. The right margin should be uneven, or "ragged right."  

• Do not manually divide words at the end of lines or use hyphenation functions to break words.  ​​​​​​​

For more information see Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association 7th edition - Chapter 2 Paper Elements and Format pages 43-46 (Available at the UNT Dallas Library)