The Form of an MLA Paper

Please note that you have free access to Microsoft Word (and Office 365) through your AUR account. To install office for free on up to 5 computers (PC and Mac), first login to your AUR email from the Web Browser (CLICK HERE); click on OFFICE 365 HOME PAGE near the top left corner; follow the App icons to the right side of the page and click on Install Office Apps.

​

In a nutshell, you must make YOUR paper look exactly like the sample paper. This means:

​

• Use the same font type and size for everything, including the title. Good fonts are Times New Roman or Palatino, size 11.

• 1-inch/2.5cm margins on all sides

• Half-inch/1.25cm indentation for first line of every paragraph

• Last name and page number in top right corner, in the document header. For how to do this in Microsoft Word CLICK HERE. First, insert the page number; then, type your last name next to it. Remember to leave a space between last name and page number.

• Center your title

• Start Works Cited on a new page. Use Insert Page Break function (not paragraph returns) to make sure the Works Cited will always begin on a new page. For how to do this in Microsoft Word CLICK HERE.

• Use hanging indentation for works cited entries (first line all the way to the edge, following lines indented half-an-inch/1.25cm. For how to do this in Microsoft Word CLICK HERE.