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Setting up Your Paper
SET-UP YOUR PAPER IN APA FORMAT - MICROSOFT WORD 2016
- SET THE FONT
- From the Home tab, in the Font group, use the drop-down menu to change to one of the fonts listed in section 2.19 of the Publication Manual, which includes Times New Roman size 12, or Calibri size 11.
- SET THE MARGINS
- From the Layout tab:
- In the Page Setup group, select Adjust Margins.

- Choose Normal to create 1 inch margins on all sides.
- DOUBLE SPACING
- From the Home tab, in the Paragraph group, select Line and Paragraph Spacing

- Select 2.0, to set the document to double-spaced.
NOTE: This guide explains how to set-up your paper before writing it. To change the spacing of a paragraph or portion of the text after you've written it, select the section that needs to be changed and follow the step to change only what is highlighted.
- INSERT PAGE NUMBERS
- On the Insert tab in the Header & Footer group, select Add Page Numbers

- Using a PC: Choose Top of Page then Plain Number 3 from the menu
- Using a Mac: Choose Page Number from the menu to bring up a dialog box. Within the dialog box choose the following settings:
- Position: Top of page (Header)
- Alignment: Right
- Check the box in front of Show number on the first page

TITLE PAGE
- From the beginning of the first page press the enter key 4 times.
- On the Home tab, select Center Text in the Paragraph group
- Put the following information on the title page, with each item on a separate line
- The title of your paper
- The title should be the only item on the Title Page presented in bold text
- Press Ctrl (on a PC) or select ⌘ (the command button on a Mac) key along with the B or use the Bold button in Font group of the Home tab)
- There should be an extra space after your title, which can be done by tapping enter twice.
- Your first and last name
- Harrisburg Area Community College
- Course Number followed by a colon and the course name
- Instructor’s first and last name
- Due date of the Assignment
- After the title page information is typed, you will start your paper on a new page by going to the Insert tab and selecting Insert Page Break in the Pages group

- Before you begin typing your paper, remember to move the alignment back to left aligned by selecting Align Left from the ribbon or pressing Ctrl (on a PC) or ⌘ (on a Mac) and the letter L.
- REFERENCES AND HANGING INDENTS
- Starting your References page
- The References page should start on a new page, which can be done by inserting a page break at the end of your paper (as explained in step 5, part d)
- On the Home tab, in the Paragraph group, select the Center Text button and type the word References in bold.
- Press Enter to move to the next line and change the alignment back to Left align. (as explained in step 5, part e)
- Adding and formatting References
- Type your first citation, allowing it to flow naturally to the next line.
- At the end of your citation use the enter key to go to the next line to start the next citation.
- Once you are finished with all your citations, select everything below the word References
- You will create a hanging indent by pressing the Ctrl (on a PC) or ⌘ (on a Mac) key along with the T key on your keyboard.

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APA 7 Formatting: Word 2016
This document provides a printable version of how to set up your document in MLA format using Microsoft Word.