Formatting a College Essay — MLA Style
The length of your final MLA essay will rely heavily on the specifics of your instructor's assignment. Determine the required length of your composition by consulting with your instructor. Commonly assigned to freshmen in college, essays typically range between three and five pages. The average length of a standard 5-page thesis written in double space is around 1250 words.
Academic writing will either follow the MLA format or the APA writing style. The was developed by the American Psychological Association and is mainly used for social science essays. In-text citations include the year of publication, as well as the author’s name and page number.
It is not necessary to struggle through the process of creating a Works Cited page for a book. The following elements should be included in your book's citation: Initials, Surname, etc. Book Description. Place of Distribution, Publishing House, and Year of Publication.
Formatting an Essay in MLA Style
Please see the following for different kinds of signal phrases and parenthetical in-text citations, which correspond with the sample Works Cited page at the end. The Writing Center also has a handout on signal phrases with many different verb options.
Paragraph requirements for an MLA essay will vary depending on the requirements of your instructor. Instead, you should aim for a specific word count or a specific page count. Find out from your educator the minimum number of words or pages expected for the essay. freshmen are typically between three and five pages long, or about 1,250 to 1,500 words (2 to 3 paragraphs).
When citing a URL, insert the date the site was accessed inside your Works Cited list. You’ll also need to include a link for the URL. The date the site was accessed is necessary as webpage contents can easily change and be updated.
The conclusion paragraph should give your readers something to think or discuss about the points in the essay.Development Sentence: Occurs after the topic sentence in the body paragraph and provides a perspective on the topic that will allow for an understanding of the importance of the evidence that will follow–your opinion, thought, or idea regarding the topic.Evidence: All words, ideas, facts, or data from another source (other than the brain) that backs up the statements and opinions expressed–must be cited.Analysis Sentence: Explains why the evidence is important and how it connects to the thesis–do not restate or summarize the evidence.Conclusion Sentence: Last sentence in the paragraph that draws the body paragraph to a close.In-Text Citation: The short version of the Source Citation that appears directly after the evidence used and refers the reader to the longer Source Citation.Source Citation: Publication information in a specific formula for a source used for evidence in a piece of writingWorks Cited: A list of all source citations of the sources used in a piece of writing.
Look online to see samples of a properly formatted MLA essay.
Most courses in the arts (including English, film, literature, philosophy, and early creative writing) will require you to use MLA format. Although instructors in introductory classes may give students some leeway in selecting a preferred style of citation and essay format, MLA is frequently used because it is one of the most straightforward.
Understand What a Works Cited Page Is
MLA has specific requirements with respect to margins, , and . Set one-inch margins on all sides. Use 11-13-point font unless otherwise specified by the instructor. MLA advises using a font that is both easily readable and has regular and italicized versions of the font that are distinguishable. Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri, Baskerville, and Garamond are all good options; however, if you are ever in doubt as to which font to use, ask your instructor. Whichever font you choose, remain consistent throughout your essay. Your essay should always be double-spaced throughout. Indent the first line of paragraphs one half-inch from the margin. Use only one space after all .
Remember, your Works Cited page should still be double-spaced!
Now let’s take a look at an MLA format essay example. You’ll find in the MLA Style Center. Each sample MLA paper can be used as a reference point to cite your work.
How to Write an Essay in MLA Format | ConfidentWriters
MLA style requires a simple and minimalistic title page. The title page must be the first page of your essay. This means a clear MLA format heading with no extra capital letters or bold or italic typeface.
How do I format my essay using MLA style
MLA, short for the , is a standard format for scholarly writing like study papers and essays. As a college student, you'll find that liberal arts and sciences courses almost always insist on MLA citations and paper formats. In this article, you will find detailed instructions for creating an MLA-formatted document in Office.