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How to format an essay is a quality assurance measure that provides guidance on how best to structure your academic content. Each school of thought has a specific format based on their parameters on making content referencing easy. Examples of standard paper writing formats may be MLA, Chicago and APA. Our essay writing experts discuss the dissimilarities in the different writing formats and how they are applied in essay writing. If you need help, our professional essay writers have mapped out this process to give you a simplified version of how to write an essay format. Besides the formatting, they can assist you in writing the entire essay.

How to format an essay: What is an Essay Format/Structure?

The structure is fundamental if the essay is academic, informative, or any other specific essay. For example, the IB essay format is usually rigorous and must be followed when writing an assigned essay.

• Title page
• The abstract comprises paragraphs three in number, each containing 100 words. Thus the whole abstract has 300 words.

1: Here, a research question must be placed, the essay’s importance explanation and lastly, a strong thesis statement.

2: Essential recourses, the limits of the research, and also its scope

3: The conclusion reached in your essay

• Table of contents
• The research question
• Thesis
• The introduction
• The arguments
• The subheadings
• The conclusion
• Appendix
• The cited works

Here the process on on how to format an essay

• Body
• Conclusion
• Bibliography

One can follow the outline on how to format an essay when writing a research paper. You can also use this when writing an essay format that is sustained – if it is based on the MLA guidelines. Always remember that the student is supposed to keep track of all their research sources so they can be applied, as shown above.

Some of the most popular format used in academia includes :

• Chicago
• APA
• Turabian
• MLA
• Chicago

How to Format an Essay Using MLA

For you to use the MLA format, you must follow a primary number of rules and instructions

• Heading
• Your name
• Name of your professor 
• Your class
• Date DD/MM/YY
• Font – Times New Roman, Font size text 12pt
• Spacing: Double – spaced in the whole essay. No extra spaces even between the paragraphs
• Margins – An inch all round
• Page numbers – Each page must have a page number and the last name on the page’s header.
• Title – In an essay, you need a good title. The title should be at the center of the essay paper. The font of the title is supposed to be the same as that of the essay
• Indentation – It is supposed to be half an inch
• Align – Evenly align your words in the paper to the left side of the essay.

How to Format an Essay Using MLA Guidelines

MLA is often used in the humanities, which differs from other academic writing formats. , we are going to dig deeper later. For now, internalize how to put into use the MLA format.

The Similarities and Differences between the MLA and the APA Formats

Before we dig deep into the APA style, let us look at the differences between the two for you to have a clear understanding. 

Let’s first look at the similarities. 

• Formatting style is similar: citation, indentation and spacing. 
• All information in the essay must have works cited on the page and link. 
• In both writing formats, they take advantage of the parenthetical citations evident in the body of the paper. This shows the calculations and quotes. 
• Per the alphabet, both formats’ citations are on the reference page. 

The differences between MLA and APA Format are as follows :

MLA Format	APA Formats
Used in the humanities	Used in the social sciences
In the in-text citation, the author’s name is in the sentence, and the year is not required.	In the APA format, the citation is required at the end of the in-text citation.

How to Format an Essay Using APA

The APA format is one of the most common essay formats in college, so familiarizing yourself with the format’s requirements is very important. We will apply the same guidelines in APA format as in the MLA section.

• Font – Type Times New Roman
• Spacing – Double-spaced in the whole essay. No extra spaces even between the paragraphs
• Margins – An inch all round
• Page numbers – Each page must have a page number and the last name on the page’s header.
• Title – In an essay, you need a good title. The title should be at the center of the essay paper.
• Indentation – It is supposed to be half an inch
• Align – Evenly align words in the paper to the left side of the essay.

The professor or instructor may sometimes need specific characteristic deviations as a requirement in the APA format.

How to Format an Essay Using Chicago Style

The Chicago format use is usually prevalent in academic writing and places its focus on the source of where it originated.

It usually tells us that the paper’s main objectives are precise citations and footnotes.

The Chicago style format outline

• The title page.
• In this format, the title page is all about the spacing
• Space between the lines “2.”
• At the center of the page, write your name
• The number of the cause
• Professor’s name
• The date
• Margins:
• Use one-inch margins
• Spacing:
• Double spacing
• Do not use extra spaces between the paragraphs
• Page numbers
• Write a page number on every page and the last name on every page top right
• Don’t number your title page
• Footnotes:
• In the Chicago format, you will require a footnote
• Bibliography:

Tips on Writing an Academic Paper

When writing an academic paper, there is no proper way of doing so. Still, there will always be guidelines to bear the content workflow that should be consistent, whether it is an informative essay, a college application essay, or a research paper. 

There will always be an essay format that you should follow. To make your work easier, divide your work into different steps:

Choose a Good Essay

Many students usually need help with picking a good essay topic in their essay writing. The case you choose should be specific to enable you to explore it and hit your word limit. On the other hand, the topic should not be broad because it will force you to squeeze your information into the word limit. You will be overwhelmed if you are not specific about the two topics. 

Research

Before knowing how to write a good essay, do intensive research about the topic. Find compelling arguments for your points and facts. When it comes to bringing together information, the sky is the limit. Ensure you know the topic before you commit.

Pick Resources that are Compelling in Specific

When you know the subject, you should argue in basic conversation with the issue at hand. Choose credible information resources and begin extracting information from the specific resource. You are going to need as many as you can source to put in your reference points. 

Make a Good Outline

In all academic essay works, you should always have a plan. This is the most crucial point of the essay writing process. When you have a strong essay outline and a specific goal in mind, its flow is certain, and you can predict the outcome.

You will have a point of reference when stuck along the way. The way forward will be easy now that you have the links from your research. You should also have a list of keywords in your information to make your language rich.

Write a Draft

Ensure your outline has enough information before writing anything in your body paragraphs. You should feel free to mess around with your creativity along your paper writing process and explore the possibilities. Let’s start with a 5 paragraph essay structure. 

Ask for Your Peer’s Opinion on Your Academic Paper.

In no time, the draft will be done, and thus you can send it to your peers for review. You can ask a classmate, friend, specialist, or even your relative to contribute if they are willing. You should collect as much feedback as you can.

The Final Work

Before heading into the final draft, proofread the essay. It helps to correct minor mistakes such as grammar and punctuation. Make sure your work follows proper essay structure.

Need Help on How to Format an Essay Paper?

If you still need clarification on how to format an essay, request help from our professional essay writers. We will lend you a helping hand and take care of your assignment.