MLA Format for Student Essays
You should use the format shown in these two
figures for your essay. Please note that these examples are not drawn
to scale.
A few notes about format:
- Do not use a title page. All the pertinent
information goes on page one.
- Place your last name and the page number flush
with the right margin and one-half inch down from the top of the
page. All other margins are 1 inch.
- Indent the first line of all paragraphs
one-half inch.
- Indent block quotations one-inch at the left
margin, but not at the right margin.
- Double space your entire essay, including
block quotations and the works cited.
- Use a standard 10- or 12-point font. Use good
judgment--some 10-point fonts will be too small, and some 12-point
fonts too large. Ask your instructor if you're not
sure.
- Center your title and use book-title style
capitalization, but DO NOT put it in
quotation marks, underline it, bold face it, italicize it, or use
a font different from the rest of the text.
First Page of the Essay
![](Course%20Images/250format.gif)
Second Page of the Essay
![](Course%20Images/mla_p2.gif)
The Works Cited Page
- Start your Works Cited list on a new
page.
- Number your Works Cited page consecutively
from the last page of your essay.
- Double space your entire Works Cited list. Do
not add any extra space between entries.
- Use a 1/2 inch hanging indentation--that
means, for entries longer than one line, start the first line of
the entry at the left margin and then indent consecutive lines of
that entry one 1/2 inch.
- Alphabetize the entries in your Works Cited
list.
- If your Works Cited list is longer than one
page, do not split an entry between pages--"push" the entire entry
to the top of the next page if necessary.
- For examples of how to cite various types of
sources, go to MLA
Examples.
- Titles of works that have been independently
published, such as books, plays, and movies, may be placed in
italics or underlined; titles of poems, essays, and articles
should be placed in quotation marks.
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Last Updated 04/10/02