Features of the Title Page for a Research Paper

When students prepare research papers for a college or university, he pays the most attention to the introductory part, the main text, and the conclusion. It sounds a bit logical because such a written piece should contain information that is of scientific value. Therefore, you can use it as a foundation for further exploration. Often, students spend days choosing the optimal research format for writing an academic piece. You have to spend a lot of effort studying all possible sources of information and selecting the most relevant and important ones. However, in the whirlpool of scientific work, students sometimes forget about really important things that affect the final grade. The title page is one of the most important parts of academic writing. It is the "face" of your research project since it is the first thing every reader sees. And looking at this page, the audience decides whether it is worth reading this written work and analyzing the information. Finding the key to the reader's curiosity is not an easy task, so we offer our assistance. Let's learn more about the features of the cover page for a research paper, as well as the most common formatting options and requirements for each of them.

Title Page Formats and Features

If you compose a title page properly, it will help you to get a high grade and respect from your professor. You should reveal vital information in this part of your research paper, including:

• an academic paper topic;
• author;
• an institutional affiliation;
• a due date.

This page shows the basis of the entire research paper. Moreover, the correct formatting allows the audience and readers to understand how thoroughly you came to the preparation for your academic task. In addition, people are inclined to judge every written piece by the cover, so it is more valuable to create a proper one!

Thus, we have moved to the main question - how to compose a cover page for a research paper correctly? First, there are two widespread formats for research papers in colleges and universities: APA and MLA. Many students consider them similar, but they have some unique and mandatory requirements for creating a title page. The choice of format to implement depends on the requests of your tutor, so it is much better to get more knowledge about all the structures.

APA Guidelines

Creating a first-class cover page for your academic assignment is not that complicated. However, you will definitely get a high grade if you follow our advice on how to do it properly. Thus, the APA format includes the following structure:

• Title.
• Personal information.
• Page header.
• Page number.

The title of your written piece has to be center-aligned, about in the middle of the page. You should write the full topic of your task here, so do your best to make it fascinating for readers. When considering the font choice, 12-point Times New Roman would be the best choice as a common academic recommendation. After that, you need to specify your personal information (full name, educational institution, and the due date to submit your research paper. All these details have to be written on the page footer and center-aligned. Further, your tutor may set some specific requirements, so we recommend asking for them first.

The page header is a vital element that should be used on each page of your research paper. You need to write a shortened your assignment's title and align it to the left. As for a page number, remember to separate it from the page header. The best place to set this critical component is the right side of the cover page.

APA Title Page Example You May Follow

Running head: EFFECTS OF POLLUTION IN ARCTICA (+ the page number on the right side of a page)

Title: Effects Of Pollution: An Arctic Environmental Study (center alignment)

Personal details (center alignment): Kate Bushnell

University of California Irvine

Dr. Brucknell

November 10, 2007

MLA Format Guidelines

If you are assigned to write a Human Science or Literature research paper, you will definitely use the MLA (Modern Language Association) format. In most cases, this option does not involve the traditional title page since you should indicate all vital information on the paper's first page. But your professor may sometimes ask you to create a separate page for your academic piece. Therefore, we offer you to follow our guidelines on composing a cover page that comply the MLA formatting requirements. Here are five crucial elements of the title page for a research paper:

• The topic name.
• Your full name.
• Course or a class.
• Instructor's name.
• The due date.

And now, let's review some nuances for each of these elements.

• You have to use the 12-point Times New Roman font for the whole research paper.
• Write the paper's title one-third down the page. All words of the topic should be capitalized; the exception is suitable for some very short words and prepositions (e.g., and, an, of, for, etc.). Do not use punctuation marks unless you cite a particular reference. Plus, you have to italicize the title if it is an art piece name.
• Skip 2-3 lines after the topic before specifying your full name.
• If you need to write a course or class, make sure you have added a double space before it.
• Remember to correctly indicate the instructor's name (according to the academic degree).
• Use a European style to write the "due to" date on the Modern Language Association title page.

An Excellent MLA Research Paper Cover Page Sample

Title: Psychological Characteristics of Patients With Schizophrenia

Your name(double-spaced): Alessia Michelle

Your course\class(double-spaced): PSYCH 716

Instructor: Dr. Steve Clark

Deadline: June 1, 2021

So, MLA and APA cover page formatting is slightly different, despite some common things. Be careful when creating a title page for your academic essay, and you will be rewarded with a high grade. We hope you will follow our advice and wish you the best of luck!