How to Write a Cover Page in APA Style

Many college-level instructors require that students use the American Psychological Association (APA) manual of style when writing research papers. APA style is used in many fields, such as nursing and social sciences as a way of citing and formatting information in the paper. There are many rules and requirements when applying APA style, and including a cover page with a research paper is one of them. APA does not have definitive rules for creating a cover page, but does require that certain pieces of information be included.

Instructions

1. Add the title of the paper near the middle of the cover page. The title should be centered. Format the title in title case--capitalize only the first letter of each main word in the title. Do not italicize, bold or put the title in quotation marks.

2. Include information about the paper's author and the course for which the author is writing the paper. Center this information, and put it as close to the bottom of the cover page as possible. The following information about the author and course should be included: the name of the paper's author, the course name, the instructor's name and the paper's due date. Each item should be placed on a separate line.

3. Write a shortened version of the title and enter it in the upper-right corner of the cover page. Use only three to five words when writing a shortened version of the title. It should basically summarize the title and what the paper is about. This title should be aligned at the right margin.

4. Place a page number to the right of the shortened title. Like the shortened title, it should be in the upper-right corner and aligned at the right margin. Lowercase Roman numerals must be used for the page number of the title page.

Resources

• Diana Hacker Handbooks: Sample APA Title Page