APA 7th Edition Formatter

A running head is a shortened version of your paper title that appears in the header at the top of every page. In APA 7th edition, it is written in all uppercase letters and limited to 50 characters (including spaces and punctuation). On the first page, it is preceded by "Running head: " — on all subsequent pages, only the abbreviated title appears. APA 7th edition made the running head optional for student papers but required it for manuscripts submitted to journals.

In APA 7th edition (2020), student title pages now include the course name, instructor name, and assignment due date — fields that were not present in the 6th edition format. The running head is no longer required for student papers (though it is still needed for professional/journal submission manuscripts). The author note moves to professional papers only. The tool generates the student paper format with optional instructor and course fields.

A complete APA 7th edition student title page includes: (1) running head in the header, (2) page number 1 in the upper right, (3) the paper title in bold title case, centered in the upper half of the page, (4) author's full name, (5) institutional affiliation, (6) department and course number/name, (7) instructor's name, and (8) assignment due date. These should be double-spaced, centered, and use a 12pt font.

Title case means capitalizing the first letter of major words in the title. Capitalize nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and pronouns. Do not capitalize articles (a, an, the), short prepositions (in, on, at), or coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or) unless they are the first word of the title or subtitle. For example: "The Effects of Social Media on Adolescent Mental Health."

The paper title on the title page should be: (1) centered horizontally, (2) in bold, (3) in title case, (4) positioned in the upper half of the page. The title should be concise but descriptive — APA recommends titles of no more than 12 words. Do not italicize, underline, or use quotation marks on the title page. Avoid abbreviations and unnecessary words like "A Study of."

APA 7th edition accepts several fonts: 12pt Times New Roman, 12pt Arial, 11pt Calibri, 11pt Georgia, or 10pt Lucida Sans Unicode. Times New Roman 12pt is the most traditional and widely accepted choice. Use the same font throughout the entire paper (body text, headings, references). The running head in the header should use the same font as the paper body.

Not necessarily. If your title is under 50 characters in all caps, it can be used as-is. If it is longer, you must create an abbreviated version that is meaningful and represents the full title. Abbreviate by removing less essential words while keeping the core topic. For example, "The Longitudinal Effects of Early Childhood Trauma on Adult Attachment Patterns" might become "CHILDHOOD TRAUMA AND ADULT ATTACHMENT."

No — APA 7th edition explicitly states that student papers do not require a running head. However, many instructors and universities still require it for all papers, and it is required for professional manuscripts submitted for publication. Always check your instructor's specific requirements. When in doubt, include the running head, as it demonstrates familiarity with the complete APA format.