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APA Format Basics and General Advice
1. No bolded text (except in the case of a few Greek characters used in reporting statistics).
font and size (including titles, headings, page numbers, etc.).
2. use a single font
3. Minimum 1â margins all around the text.
4. Do not âright justifyâ the text.
5. Page numbers go in the top rightâhand corner, flush with the right margin, half way between the
top of the page and the beginning of the text.
6. Indent paragraphs Âœâ or five spaces.
7. Double-space; no additional spaces between paragraphs, before headings, etc.
âą Do not use âbullets;â see âseriationâ in the APA manual.
9. Citations in text use the following format (Dolmage, 2005, p. 1) or (Clarke, 2005, pp. 1-2).
10. Quotations of 40 or more words should be in a âblock format.â Block quotations should be
left indented Âœâ (but not right indented) and (in student papers) should be single-spaced.
Additional Information
1. Underlining is the copy-editorâs mark that tells the typesetter, âput these words in italics.â Unless
you are using a typewriter, use italics, not underlining. It makes no sense to use both.
2. Names of parties in the titles of court cases (e.g., Dolmage v. Erskine; R. v. Jones, etc.), statute
titles (e.g., Education Act) and non-English words (e.g., ânolite te bastardes carborundorumâ) are
italicized.
3. Terminal punctuation usually goes inside âclosing quotation marks.â
Serif fonts (as opposed to san-serif fonts) are much more readable in text. San-serif fonts are
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better suited to headlines and advertising.
5. Use paper clips rather than staples; use document folders that grip, but do not bind, papers.
6. Always use the past tense when describing or discussing events that occurred in the past.
7. DO NOT use your university instructor as your proof-reader/copy-editor.