What Does APA Format Sample Essay Look Like?

By Staff Writer | Last Updated August 4, 2015

An APA format sample essay consists of a title page, abstract, actual essay, references and appendices with each section separated by a page break. Each page of the essay consists of a running head and page number. An APA essay must be typed in 12-point Times New Roman font.

The title page in an APA essay consists of the title, author’s name and institution. It should be at the centre of the page and should not be italicized, underlined or bolded. The title page also consists of an author note which identifies the department of the author and institution affiliation along with any changes to it. For students writing dissertations, theses and class papers, including the author note is not mandatory.

Abstract must briefly summarize the essay using 150 to 200 words. The word “Abstract” in the title must be centre aligned. The content of the abstract must be left aligned with no indentation of the first line.

The actual content of the essay must start with title of the essay. It must be centre aligned and not bolded. The content of the essay should be left aligned. The different sections of the essay must be clearly distinguished using headings and sub-headings. The first line of each paragraph must be indented by 0.5″ from the left margin.

The references and appendices must be on separate pages and should have their title centre aligned. Referencing, both in-text and in reference list, must strictly to adhere to the rules of APA citation style.