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APA Guidelines Cheat Sheet
The Four Major Sections of an APA Paper
Section #1: Title Page
• The title page should contain the title of your paper, the author’s name, and the
institution with which the author of the paper is affiliated.
• All of this information should be centered and placed in the top third of the title page.
• At the top of your title page (and all other pages in your APA paper), there should appear
a page header (See “Page Header” section below).
Section #2: Abstract
• The Abstract is a brief, one-paragraph concise description of the key parts of your
paper. It should contain information about your research topic and any other relevant
information about how you obtained data to support your research.
• Your abstract should be double-spaced and should contain between 150–250 words.
• Optional: At the bottom of your Abstract, make a brief list of keywords that will help
other people locate your paper in databases.
Section #3: Main Body
• The Main Body is the meat of your paper. This is where you will present your findings,
argue your point of view, describe the logic behind your findings, present supporting
information, and enlist the reader to join you in discovering new ideas and connections.
• As such, make sure that you are presenting each now piece of information with
the proper supporting details. In order to prove your point, you will need to borrow
information from outside sources. APA formatting prescribes a rigid and detailed set of
guidelines regarding the citation of your sources (outlined on the next page).
Main Body Stylistic Guidelines:
• Paper Size:
Print all of your APA essays on standard, 8.5” × 11” letter-sized paper.
• Font and Size:
Type all APA essays and reports using 10–12 point, Times New
Roman font, or a font that is similar to Times New Roman.
• Margins and Spacing:
All lines of text throughout the essay should be double-
spaced. Margins on all sides should be set to 1”.
The default setting for Microsoft
Word is 1.25”, so this needs to be adjusted in
File > Page Setup > Margins.
Page Header:
• A page header should appear on every page.
• Your paper title should appear in the upper left hand corner of each page
• Page numbers should appear in the upper right hand corner of each page.
In Microsoft Word, you can edit your page header through
View > Header and Footer.
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APA Guidelines Cheat Sheet
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