Running head: THE TITLE
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The Title
Firstname Lastname
St. Bonaventure University
THE TITLE
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The Title
Generally, you will begin your paper with an introduction to your topic. Be sure to cite
everything that you directly quote or that you paraphrase from another source.
Paragraphs are indented at the beginning. Double-space, but do not include an additional
space between paragraphs. Use one-inch margins. The preferred typeface is Times New Roman,
12 pt.
APA gives you general guidance on how your papers should be formatted, as well as how
your references should be constructed. Always follow the advice of your professor first,
however, even if what the professor asks for is different than what you find in the Publication
Manual of the American Psychological Association, or any other source.
APA formatting might look boring to you, when there is so much else that you can do
with your word processor. However, keep in mind that APA asks you to keep your formatting
simple, so resist the temptation to make your papers look fancy!
You can find sample papers to consult for formatting tips on pages 41-59 of the
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, as well as online at the Purdue
OWL Online Writing Lab. Consult the page at
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/ or use the link on the library’s home page.
You can find the sample paper approximately 3/4 of the way down the left hand side of the page.
To Use the Template File
To use this template, save a copy of it from the library’s website. Be sure to rename it for
your paper.
Insert your own title and name on the title page. Then click in the header section of the
title page and insert your title after “Running head.” When you get to the second page, put your
THE TITLE
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title at the top, where it says “The Title.” Also click in the header section of the second page and
insert your paper’s title in the appropriate place.
Headings
If you have distinct sections of your paper, use headings to organize your work. APA has
five levels of headings, but in your papers, you generally will need no more than one, or possibly
two levels. For a complete listing of headings, consult page 62 of the Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association.
When you look at this page, you will notice two level one headings—the “To Use the
Template File” and “Headings.” These are Level 1 headings, which should be centered and in
bold.
THE TITLE
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References
Your references list can easily be constructed using NoodleTools, the citation
management software provided through the library.
Your References list should always begin on a new page. Hint: To start a new page
without hitting “enter” numerous times, hold down the CTRL key and then press the ENTER
key. This is a more efficient way of creating a new page, so that you will not have to go back and
adjust the spacing as you edit your text.