Are in-text references in an essay included in the final word count?


A 3000-word count should contain a one-paragraph introduction. Contrastingly, longer and more complex essays may contain two to three paragraphs that serve as the foundation.


The essay word count does more than guide you on how long the essay should be. Additionally, it helps you figure out how much information you should include in the essay and its complexity. Therefore, the word count will guide the development of your essay, including the thesis statement, which identifies your essay’s core subject and its arguments.

An academic essay word count usually differs depending on the specific assignment, the course and departmental guidelines, and the level or area of study. The word count is usually shorter than that of a or . Typically, an essay word count ranges from 2500 to 3000 words.

Select in your document where you want the word count to appear

When writing a , the word count is crucial to keep in mind. Following the word count guidelines, typically given by the institution shows your capability to adhere to instructions and keeps your ideas in an organised and concise frame. Exceeding the word count by far can also result in penalties. Therefore, it is an essential skill to manage your word count effectively to write an influential and compelling essay.

An essay with a short word count may require a specific topic. Also, it needs straightforward and focused arguments. In contrast, longer essays need a broader approach to the subject or complex arguments. However, the essay still needs to be focused.

All pages in an APA paper should include a header. In the header, include the running head title, followed by the page number, which should be right-justified. When page numbering is properly set up using the Headers and Footers function in Microsoft Word, the computer will automatically handle the consecutive numbering.

The title page of an APA paper should include a concise title, the author's name and institutional affiliation, an author's note, and a running head for publication. A running head is an abbreviated title of no more than 50 characters, starting with the words "Running head," followed by a colon, one space, and an abbreviated title—all in capital letters. Part Four of our APA series provides an example for your reference.


Where in my paper do I include the word count in APA format

Can someone explain to me why so many people are obsessed with word count and page count? If you’re a writer, shouldn’t writing well be the most important thing? Why do writers seem to obsess over word count and page count? I just don’t understand it.

APA 7th Edition Referencing Guide: Formatting your assignment

Things were so much easier back in the day when you could know exactly how many pages 500 words would be. Now that it’s so easy to manipulate pages, they have no real meaning. I can change he margins, increase the font point size or just choose a font that fits me needs for space. Pages are useless these days. That is why almost al assignments are done with word counts. Everyone knows how easy it is to manipulate pages that it’s the only way to ensure assignments are done correctly.

Your essay should include four major sections ..

How many words is a page if the lines are 1.5 spaced? I have a teacher who insists all our essays be spaces 1.5 (not single and not double) and there is no information on this. If I write 1000 words, how much would that be 1.5 spaced?

On the first line of the abstract page, center the word ..

As an illustration please see the table below. In the table there are some examples of the differences between word counts for Word and PDF documents including and excluding footnotes. The largest discrepancy was 114 words where a Word document with footnotes was submitted. This was due to Turnitin only picking up the words in the main body of text. The Pdf version of this file actually reported more words in total than the original, but with less difference.

Are the title page, in-text citations, and/or references ..

Only exceed the word count if it’s really necessary to complete your argument. Longer essays take longer to grade, so avoid annoying your marker with extra work! If you are struggling to edit down:

APA Citation Guide (7th edition): Paper Formatting

Page count was great when there were only typewriters and each page was basically the same, but now it’s easy to manipulate page count by changing font size and fonts. You can also adjust margins with a computer. Word count is just a lot more accurate.