Studying at university involves the submission of multiple academic papers and, unless otherwise specified, there are formatting rules. Going to university means doing assignments
Although some professors are more flexible with the rules than others, it is important that we know in advance what the correct layout of an academic paper is (unless otherwise specified), so that we don't waste time consulting it every time from the beginning of our studies until we obtain our
eTítulo. When we start formatting the paper to submit it, the usual doubts always arise: what line spacing should I use? What margin? What font type should I choose? No problem: we'll explain it to you. Properly formatting an academic paper is relatively simple and practically the same for all papers. Some professors may require specific margins or a specific font type, but in general, we just need to follow this structure:
The cover page is the advertising
It is not only an aesthetic matter, although that too, but the main function of the cover page is to identify the topic of the paper and its author, so we must include the title, our name and surname, subject, course, group, etc. It is also an opportunity for our work to stand out, so here on the cover page is where we can be more creative and do something in full color or with striking images. In this way, our work will surely not be forgotten or go unnoticed, so if we are going to highlight it, it is also advisable that we have worked on it seriously. If we have done a weak job that we just want to pass without further ado, it is better to comply with the standards and not stand out in any way.
Pagination is not just for decoration
It is important that the pages are numbered and that this numbering corresponds to the table of contents. Professors have many papers to correct and sometimes they do not read everything in depth, but rather guide themselves by the content we indicate in the table of contents. We can number the pages in the upper or lower margin on the right side and place the number 2.5 cm from the edge. It is essential to respect the title ranges: each one should have its own style: title, title 1, title 2, subtitle... so as not to confuse the reader, to see at all times which section we are in, which subheadings correspond to it, and thus be able to finally prepare our (preferably interactive) table of contents with all the categories of the paper.
Margins
We need the paper to be legible and not overwhelming, so the text must have some "breathing space" around it. There should be a space of 2.54 cm at the top and bottom margins, and about 3.5 cm on the sides. If we do not respect these margins (by default in Word), the text will appear visually overwhelming and will not invite reading. If we make them even larger, it will seem like we are trying to do less than what was requested. The correct layout is as follows: 2.54 cm at the top and bottom and 3.5 cm on the side margins.
Proper line spacing
The text should be double-spaced between lines and triple-spaced when there are titles or images. But it is also common for them to ask for 1.5 line spacing. If nothing is specified, we will use double spacing to increase the length. Each page should not have more than 30 lines, including footnotes, and be careful not to have loose lines at the beginning or end of the page (what typographers called widows and orphans). We will have to adjust the text to avoid this.
Typography
Unless otherwise specified, we should use one of the classic font types (no gothic or overly artistic fonts, and certainly not Comic Sans). The usual choices are Times New Roman, Courier, Calibri, Avenir, etc. And even if we want the paper to appear longer than it actually is, we should not exceed font size 12. In reality, the most requested font type for academic papers is Times New Roman, so if we always use that, we will never go wrong. We must also keep in mind that, when quoting, it is correct to use Latin quotation marks (i.e., these: «») and that if the quote is more than 40 characters long, then we should not use quotation marks, but it should be in a separate paragraph and with font size 10. We must always bear in mind that, when citing, we must use the
APA style if we do not want to be called out, have our grade lowered, or even be accused of plagiarism. As you can see, formatting an academic paper is very simple and we just need to learn these simple rules. It is true that in certain subjects they require less, but if we already know a model that works, why complicate things?
