Write to Excellence Center: APA Style

Per the 5th Edition of the Little Seagull Handbook:

Formatting:

Page numbers: The page numbers should go in the upper right-hand corner. Number consecutively throughout, starting with the title page. 

Name, Course, Title: APA generally requires a title page. Center the full title of the paper in bold in the top half of the page. Center your name, the name of your department and school, the course number and name, the instructor's name, and the due date on separate lines below the title. Leave one line between the title and your name. 

Typeface: Use a legible font that will be accessible to everyone. Times New Roman is the most common, but any serif or sans serif typeface is acceptable. The same font should be used within figure images. 

Spacing, Margins, and Indentions: The paper should be double-spaced, including any notes and your list of references. The only exception is text within tables and images where spacing may vary, and any footnotes at the bottom of a page, which should be single spaced. Leave one-inch margins at the top, bottom, and sides of your text and do not justify the text. The first line of each paragraph should be indented one-half inch from the left margin. Include one space after end-of-sentence periods. 

Headings: Headings are not required in APA style essays, but they can help readers follow the text. The first level of heading should be bold and centered, the second level should be bold and flush with the left margin, and the first level of heading should be bold, italicized, and flush with the left margin. Capitalize all headings as you would any other title within the text. 

Abstract: (If applicable) your abstract should be on the second page, with the word "Abstract" centered and in bold at the top.

Long Quotations: Indent quotations of forty or more words one-half inch from the left margin. Do not use quotation marks and place the page number(s) or documentation information in paratheses after the end punctuation. If there are paragraphs in the quotation, indent the first line of each paragraph another one-half inch. 

List of References: Start your list of references on a new page after the text, but before any endnotes. In the center of the page in bold, title the page "References". Double-space the entire list. Each entry should begin at the left margin, and subsequent lines should be indented one-half inch. Alphabetize the list by authors' last names (or by editors' names if appropriate). Works with no author or editor should be alphabetized by title, disregarding "A," "An," and "The." No not include sources that you consulted but did not cite. 

Tables and Figures: Above each table and/or figure, provide a title (ie. Table, Figure, etc.) in bold and flush left, followed by its correlating number (ie. Table 1, Table 2, etc.). On the following line, give a descriptive title, flush left and italicized. Below the table or figure, include a note with any necessary explanation and source information. Number tables and figures separately and be sure to discuss them in your text so that readers know how they relate. 

In-text citations:

Use the past tense for verbs in signal phrases or the present perfect if referring to an ongoing action that started in the past or didn't occur at a specific time: McCullough (2001) argued

If the author is introduced within the sentence, then date goes after the author's last name and is in parenthesis: McCullough (2001) 

Unless the date is mentioned in the sentence: In 2001, McCullough

The page numbers from the literature you are citing should also be included in parenthesis, and all parenthetical documentation should be the end of the sentence, after any quotation marks, but before the period: John Adams had "the hands of a man accustomed to pruning his own trees, cutting his own hay, and splitting his own firewood" (McCullough, 2001, p. 18).

Reference List:

To document a source in APA style, you need to provide information about the author, the date, the title of the work you re citing, and the source itself (who published it; volume, issue, and page numbers; any DOI or URL).

Reference List entry for a book: Author's last name, Initials. (Year of publication). Title. Publisher. DOI or URL.

Reference List entry for an article: Author's last name, Initials. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume (issue), page(s) or Article number. DOI or URL. 

Reference List entry for a webpage: Author's last name, Initials. (Year, Month Day). Title of work. Title of site. URL.