How to Make a Cover Page for a College Paper

You can create a cover page for your college paper.

To make a paper written for a college course look professional, it is a good idea to include a cover sheet. Most instructors will provide guidelines for format and what should be included with the paper, so it is important to follow those requirements. Papers written in Modern Language Association (MLA) format do not require a title page, but cover pages should be included with papers written in the American Psychological Association (APA) style and the Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) formats. If you are unsure which style you should use, include a cover page just to be safe.

Instructions

APA Cover Page

1. Place the title of the paper in the middle of the page. The title should be in title case, with only the first letter of each main word capitalized. Do not include any italics, quotation marks or boldface. Center the title on the page.

2. Place the following information as close to the bottom of the page as possible: the name of the paper’s author, the course name, the instructor’s name and the paper’s due date. This information should be centered, with one item per line.

3. Place a shortened version of the title in the upper-right corner of the paper. The shortened version of the title should be three to five words that sum up the title. Align the shortened title at the right margin.

4. Place a page number next to the shortened title in the upper-right corner. Use lowercase Roman numerals for the cover page’s page number. The page number should be aligned on the right margin with the shortened title.

CMS Cover Page

1. Place the title of the paper about 10 lines down from the top of the page. The title should be in title case, meaning that only the first letter of each main word is capitalized. Do not use boldface, italics or quotation marks. Center the title.

2. Place the name of the author of the paper about five lines down from the title. Be sure to include the first and last name. The author’s name should be centered.

3. Place the following as close to the bottom of the page as possible: course name, instructor’s name and the paper’s due date. Each item should be on a separate line and centered.

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• DocStoc: Sample APA Title Page