APA Title Page Essentials: Creating a Stellar First Impression
The formatting of an APA publication manual strictly requires a corresponding APA title page. The significance is that it highlights the APA style and sets it apart from other formatting standards. However, developing it is governed by strict laws. Hence, this article helps academic scholars know a proper APA title page format.
At the end of this content, you will:
- Understand how to create a title page in the 7th edition of the APA title format.
- Learn about the different formatting guidelines.
- Be able to choose a title and fill in its basic elements.
Follow closely to understand how to do the proper APA formatting in your next research paper.
APA Formatting Guidelines
Professional papers follow laid-down formats. The student title page has formatting guidelines that make it standard. Some people use writing services and may not be familiar with what has been done.
Here are the necessary factors to prioritize in your APA title format:
Font Size
The generally acceptable font size is 12. While some may favor font size 11, that does not apply to the title page. You can consider it while writing the research content. Using a smaller or bigger font can poorly represent your hard work.
Font Style
Times New Roman is the acceptable font style. Most academic materials instruct writers to employ font size 12 and Times New Roman rather than other styles and sizes.
Alignment
It is advisable to align the text in the body of your work against the left margin, while the right one appears ragged. Even if you have writing services to help you write a research paper, you can cross-check the alignment and other formatting guidelines.
Spacing
The double-spaced approach is the right format for an APA-style paper. This includes every part of the content. Remove extra space before and after paragraphs.
As a result, the next big question is, how do I choose a title?
There is always a topic to work with. The challenge could be that it doesn’t sound professional for an academic paper. A title should be concise yet informative about the entire research paper.
Here are some tips on how to choose the right title:
- Understand the topic sentence.
- Define the aim of the research.
- Create multiple titles for the same research.
- Select the most professional or seek your supervisor’s help.
Also, it is important to format the author names and institutional affiliations. If there are two authors, use ampersand (&) to separate their names. But, in the case of multiple authors, insert only the last name of the author. Follow it by “et al.” to imply other authors.
For institutional affiliations, identify where the author carried out their research. If there are multiple institutions, include dual affiliation. However, both institutions must have tangibly contributed to the research. If the affiliation changes at any point, ensure to include this in the author’s note.
Title Page Elements
An APA-style title page has major elements that you should follow.
Title of the Paper
You need a professional title page. Following the right formatting helps to achieve a good title and generally acceptable work.
Here are the major elements of APA-style papers:
- Page number.
- Paper title.
- Author (and their institution affiliation).
- Course instructor.
- Due Date.
These are examples of the APA 7 title page:
Author’s Name
As stated earlier, including your name is necessary in your APA format title page. It acknowledges your effort and helps readers to trace your publication easily. For unpublished works, you can have the course number and name on the front page of your APA style manual.
Running Head and Page Number
The numbering of the pages in APA style papers (7th ed.) coincides with numbering in other formatting styles. The title page is also included in the list of numbered pages. Page numbering should appear in the upper-right corner of the header using Arabic numerals. The rule for running head in an APA research paper is that the short version of the title should not exceed 50 characters.
In the 7th edition of the APA style guide, the use of a running head on the title page (and subsequent pages) depends on the type of paper you are writing:
Student Papers: For most student papers, a running head is not required. Only a page number is included in the header, in the top right corner of each page.
Professional Papers: For professional manuscripts intended for publication (like journal articles), a running head is still required. It appears in the top header of each page, aligned to the left, and is a shortened version of the paper’s title.
Institutional Affiliation
Institutional affiliation is essential when working on any academic paper. It is mandatory if you want to publish your manual. Include relevant details like;
- Department.
- University Name.
- Author name(s).
Course Information and Instructor Name
Including the course information helps readers to know what your subject of discourse is about. Course information should be short. Sometimes, your course information may include your department and university. Whichever way, it shouldn’t exceed 50 characters.
The instructor’s name is essential because you acknowledge their supervisory role during your work. More than the experience your instructor offered during your research, adding their name adds more credibility to your entire work.
Due Date
The due date refers to the fulfillment of your research work. It can be your submission date. However, it helps a reader know the duration of your project and compare it with related papers.
Note the following rules when you want to write the due date:
- Include the month, day, and year based on your country’s format
See example below
“September 23, 2023”
OR
“23 September 2023.”
Author Note
The author’s note should be at the bottom half of the APA title page. It should be below the title, authors, and affiliations. The author’s note details additional information about the author, data sharing, research paper types of study registration, conflicting statements, or any necessary disclaimer for the research paper.
Some notes include details about the funding or support they got during the research. It is necessary for a professional paper if you want to submit your work for publication.
Finishing on a High Note
Consistently, you will see the need to maintain proper APA format for your professional content. A title page plays a significant role in this. While your content is great, a perfect research paper contains basic information like the author’s name, institution affiliation, course information, due date, and author note.
Running head and page affiliation also help to complete your research paper. Being a great writer means following guidelines and proper formatting. Definitely, it will make you a good student, but it also takes you closer to having a published work. Take note that this content was based on the APA 7th edition.
