do college essays have to be mla format

Whose last name should you use in your MLA header if you’re writing a group paper?

The MLA Style Guide has no specific guidelines for group projects. You should always include the names of all members of the group project in the first line of your heading, but you don’t necessarily need to do this for the header on every page.

If there are only two or three authors collaborating on your paper, you can include all of your last names in the MLA header, e.g., “Granger, Potter, and Weasley 2.”

If you’re part of a bigger group and it would take up too much space to include all of your last names, you can write the name that comes first in the alphabet and then add “ et al. ”, e.g., “Granger et al. 2.” (The term “et al.” is short for the Latin term “et alia”, which means “and others.” You’ll often see it used in academic papers with multiple authors.)

Should you include your class period in your MLA heading or just the class name?

There’s no MLA rule about this, but when in doubt, it’s always better to err on the side of including too much information in your heading rather than not enough.

If your instructor teaches more than one version of the same course, they’ll probably find it helpful if you specify the class period you’re in. You can either include your class period after the class name, e.g., “History of Magic—2nd period”, or before the class name, e.g., “2nd Period History of Magic.”

What should you write in your MLA heading if you don’t have an instructor?

If you have no instructor, you can explain the situation in the line where you would normally put the instructor’s name, e.g., “Independent Study” or “No Instructor.”

What should you write in your MLA heading if you have multiple instructors?

If you have multiple instructors, you can include both of their names in the line where you would put the instructor’s name. If you’re in a college course where you have a professor and a TA, you should choose whose name to include in the header depending on who will ultimately be reading your paper.

Should you include the date you started writing the paper or the date the paper is due?

The MLA Style Guide has no specific guidelines about which date you need to put in the heading. In general, however, the best practice is to put the date the assignment is due.

This is because all the papers for the same assignment will have the same due date, even if different students begin writing their assignments on different days, so it’s easier for your instructor to use the due date to determine what assignment the paper is for.

Should you format the date as Day Month Year or Month Day Year?

In MLA format, you should write the date in the order of Day Month Year. Instead of writing May 31 2021, for example, you would write 31 May 2021.

What font should you use for your MLA heading and header?

Both the heading and the header should be in the same font as the rest of your paper. If you haven’t chosen a font for your paper yet, remember that the key thing to aim for is readability. If you choose a font where your teachers have to squint to read it, or one where your teachers can’t figure out the difference between what’s italicized and what isn’t, you should rethink your choice.

When in doubt, go with Times New Roman, 12 pt. It’s always a safe bet for MLA papers unless your instructor specifically tells you otherwise.

Do you need to italicize or bold the title of your MLA paper?

No. There’s no need to use any special styling on the title of an MLA paper, such as bold or italics.

How do you format section titles in your MLA paper?

If you’re writing a paper with multiple sections, you may need to include a subtitle at the top of each section.

The MLA Style Guide gives you two options for using subtitles in a paper: one-level section titles or several-level subtitles (for papers with subsections within each section).

For one-level section titles, the formatting is simple. Every subtitle should look the same as the title (centered and double-spaced, with no special formatting).

The only difference is that instead of using title case, you should capitalize only the first word of each subtitle. For example, a title would be spelled “How to Turn a Matchstick into a Needle”, while a subtitle would be spelled “How to turn a matchstick into a needle.”

For several-level subtitles, you will need to format each level in a different way to show which level each section is at. You can use boldface, italics, and underlining to differentiate between levels. For example, subtitles at the highest level should be bolded, while subtitles at the next level down should be italicized.

See the chart below for MLA’s suggested formats.

What is the difference between MLA format and APA format?

MLA and APA are two sets of guidelines for formatting papers and citing research.

MLA stands for the Modern Language Association. The MLA handbook is most often used in fields related to the humanities, such as literature, history, and philosophy.

APA stands for the American Psychological Association. The APA format is most often used in fields related to the social sciences, such as psychology, sociology, and nursing.

The APA manual includes a heading format similar to the MLA heading format with a few key differences, such as using a separate cover page instead of simply including the heading at the top of the first page. Both heading formats ensure that all of your papers include all your key identifying information in a clear and consistent way.

Where can you learn more about MLA style?

If you have questions about how to format a specific assignment or paper, it’s always best to consult your instructor first. Your school may also have a writing center that can help you with formatting questions.

In addition, Purdue has fantastic resources for all kinds of formatting topics, from MLA headings to MLA citations and everything in between.

If you would like to find out more directly from the Modern Language Association, consult the MLA Style Center or the MLA Handbook (8th edition).

Now you’re ready to write an MLA paper with a fantastic heading. Make sure your essay does your heading justice by checking it over with ProWritingAid.

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The 3 Popular Essay Formats: Which Should You Use?

General Education

Not sure which path your essay should follow? Formatting an essay may not be as interesting as choosing a topic to write about or carefully crafting elegant sentences, but it’s an extremely important part of creating a high-quality paper. In this article, we’ll explain essay formatting rules for three of the most popular essay styles: MLA, APA, and Chicago.

For each, we’ll do a high-level overview of what your essay’s structure and references should look like, then we include a comparison chart with nitty-gritty details for each style, such as which font you should use for each and whether they’re a proponent of the Oxford comma. We also include information on why essay formatting is important and what you should do if you’re not sure which style to use.

Why Is Your Essay Format Important?

Does it really matter which font size you use or exactly how you cite a source in your paper? It can! Style formats were developed as a way to standardize how pieces of writing and their works cited lists should look. 

Why is this necessary? Imagine you’re a teacher, researcher, or publisher who reviews dozens of papers a week. If the papers didn’t follow the same formatting rules, you could waste a lot of time trying to figure out which sources were used, if certain information is a direct quote or paraphrased, even who the paper’s author is. Having essay formatting rules to follow makes things easier for everyone involved. Writers can follow a set of guidelines without trying to decide for themselves which formatting choices are best, and readers don’t need to go hunting for the information they’re trying to find.

Next, we’ll discuss the three most common style formats for essays.

MLA Essay Format

MLA style was designed by the Modern Language Association, and it has become the most popular college essay format for students writing papers for class. It was originally developed for students and researchers in the literature and language fields to have a standardized way of formatting their papers, but it is now used by people in all disciplines, particularly humanities. MLA is often the style teachers prefer their students to use because it has simple, clear rules to follow without extraneous inclusions often not needed for school papers. For example, unlike APA or Chicago styles, MLA doesn’t require a title page for a paper, only a header in the upper left-hand corner of the page.

MLA style doesn’t have any specific requirements for how to write your essay, but an MLA format essay will typically follow the standard essay format of an introduction (ending with a thesis statement), several body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

One of the nice things about creating your works cited for MLA is that all references are structured the same way, regardless of whether they’re a book, newspaper, etc. It’s the only essay format style that makes citing references this easy! Here is a guide on how to cite any source in MLA format. When typing up your works cited, here are a few MLA format essay rules to keep in mind:

• The works cited page should be the last paper of your paper.
• This page should still be double-spaced and include the running header of your last name and page number.
• It should begin with “Works Cited” at the top of the page, centered.
• Your works cited should be organized in alphabetical order, based on the first word of the citation.

APA Essay Format

APA stands for the American Psychological Association. This format type is most often used for research papers, specifically those in behavioral sciences (such as psychology and neuroscience) and social sciences (ranging from archeology to economics). Because APA is often used for more research-focused papers, they have a more specific format to follow compared to, say, MLA style.

All APA style papers begin with a title page, which contains the title of the paper (in capital letters), your name, and your institutional affiliation (if you’re a student, then this is simply the name of the school you attend). The APA recommends the title of your paper not be longer than 12 words.

After your title page, your paper begins with an abstract. The abstract is a single paragraph, typically between 150 to 250 words, that sums up your research. It should include the topic you’re researching, research questions, methods, results, analysis, and a conclusion that touches on the significance of the research. Many people find it easier to write the abstract last, after completing the paper.

After the abstract comes the paper itself. APA essay format recommends papers be short, direct, and make their point clearly and concisely. This isn’t the time to use flowery language or extraneous descriptions. Your paper should include all the sections mentioned in the abstract, each expanded upon.

Following the paper is the list of references used. Unlike MLA style, in APA essay format, every source type is referenced differently. So the rules for referencing a book are different from those for referencing a journal article are different from those referencing an interview. Here’s a guide for how to reference different source types in APA format . Your references should begin on a new page that says “REFERENCES” at the top, centered. The references should be listed in alphabetical order.

Chicago Essay Format

Chicago style (sometimes referred to as “Turabian style”) was developed by the University of Chicago Press and is typically the least-used by students of the three major essay style formats. The Chicago Manual of Style (currently on its 17th edition) contains within its 1000+ pages every rule you need to know for this style. This is a very comprehensive style, with a rule for everything. It’s most often used in history-related fields, although many people refer to The Chicago Manual of Style for help with a tricky citation or essay format question. Many book authors use this style as well.

Like APA, Chicago style begins with a title page, and it has very specific format rules for doing this which are laid out in the chart below. After the title page may come an abstract, depending on whether you’re writing a research paper or not. Then comes the essay itself. The essay can either follow the introduction → body → conclusion format of MLA or the different sections included in the APA section. Again, this depends on whether you’re writing a paper on research you conducted or not.

Unlike MLA or APA, Chicago style typically uses footnotes or endnotes instead of in-text or parenthetical citations. You’ll place the superscript number at the end of the sentence (for a footnote) or end of the page (for an endnote), then have an abbreviated source reference at the bottom of the page. The sources will then be fully referenced at the end of the paper, in the order of their footnote/endnote numbers. The reference page should be titled “Bibliography” if you used footnotes/endnotes or “References” if you used parenthetical author/date in-text citations.

Comparison Chart

Below is a chart comparing different formatting rules for APA, Chicago, and MLA styles.

How Should You Format Your Essay If Your Teacher Hasn’t Specified a Format?

What if your teacher hasn’t specified which essay format they want you to use? The easiest way to solve this problem is simply to ask your teacher which essay format they prefer. However, if you can’t get ahold of them or they don’t have a preference, we recommend following MLA format. It’s the most commonly-used essay style for students writing papers that aren’t based on their own research, and its formatting rules are general enough that a teacher of any subject shouldn’t have a problem with an MLA format essay. The fact that this style has one of the simplest sets of rules for citing sources is an added bonus!

What's Next?

Thinking about taking an AP English class? Read our guide on AP English classes to learn whether you should take AP English Language or AP English Literature (or both!)

Compound sentences are an importance sentence type to know. Read our guide on compound sentences for everything you need to know about compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences.

Need ideas for a research paper topic? Our guide to research paper topics has over 100 topics in ten categories so you can be sure to find the perfect topic for you.

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Sample Essays: Writing with MLA Style

Congratulations to the students whose essays were selected for the 2024 edition of Writing with MLA Style! Essays were selected as examples of excellent student writing that use MLA style for citing sources. Essays have been lightly edited. 

If your institution subscribes to MLA Handbook Plus , you can access annotated versions of the essays published from 2022 to 2024. 

Writing with MLA Style: 2024 Edition

The following essays were selected for the 2024 edition of Writing with MLA Style. The selection committee for high school submissions was composed of Lisa Karakaya, Hunter College High School; and Heather Smith, Dedham Public Schools. The selection committee for postsecondary submissions was composed of Rachel Ihara, Kingsborough Community College, City University of New York; Tarshia L. Stanley, Wagner College; and Joyce MacDonald, University of Kentucky.

High School Essays

Miguel Kumar (Ransom Everglades School)

“McCarthyism at the Movies: The Effects of Hollywood McCarthyism on the American Public”

Catherine Mao (Hunter College High School)

“ Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beholder, and the Beholder Is a White Man: The 1875 Page Act, Eugenics, and Beauty Standards for Chinese Women versus American Women ”

Undergraduate Essays

Rachelle Dumayas  (California State University, Sacramento)

“Should Deaf Children Get Cochlear Implants?”

Holly Nelson (Johns Hopkins University)

“Creating Space? Representations of Black Characters in Regency Romance”

Chloe Wiitala (University of Minnesota, Duluth)

“ Reanimating Queer Perspectives through Camp: A Study of Frankenstein and Its Parodic Film Adaptations ”

Writing with MLA Style: 2023 Edition

The following essays were selected for the 2023 edition of Writing with MLA Style. The 2023 selection committee was composed of Ellen C. Carillo, University of Connecticut (chair); Rachel Ihara, Kingsborough Community College, City University of New York; and Tarshia L. Stanley, Wagner College.

Caroline Anderson (Pepperdine University)

“ L’Appel du Vide : Making Spaces for Sinful Exploration in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde ”

Hunter Daniels (University of South Carolina, Aiken)

“Biblical Legalism and Cultural Misogyny in The Tragedy of Mariam ”

Aspen English (Southern Utah University)

“Putting the ‘Comm’ in Comics: A Communication-Theory-Informed Reading of Graphic Narratives”

Raul Martin (Lamar University)

“The Book-Object Binary: Access and Sustainability in the Academic Library”

Grace Quasebarth (Salve Regina University)

“Finding a Voice: The Loss of Machismo Criticisms through Translation in Isabel Allende’s The House of the Spirits ”

Writing with MLA Style: 2022 Edition

The following essays were selected for the 2022 edition of Writing with MLA Style. The 2022 selection committee was composed of Ellen C. Carillo, University of Connecticut; Jessica Edwards, University of Delaware (chair); and Deborah H. Holdstein, Columbia College Chicago.

Kaile Chu (New York University, Shanghai)

“Miles Apart: An Investigation into Dedicated Online Communities’ Impact on Cultural Bias”

Sietse Hagen (University of Groningen)

“The Significance of Fiction in the Debate on Dehumanizing Media Portrayals of Refugees”

Klara Ismail (University of Exeter)

“Queering the Duchess: Exploring the Body of the Female Homosexual in John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi ”

Yasmin Mendoza (Whittier College)

“Banning without Bans”

Niki Nassiri (Stony Brook University)

“Modern-Day US Institutions and Slavery in the Twenty-First Century”

Samantha Wilber (Palm Beach Atlantic University)

“‘Pero, tu no eres facil’: The Poet X as Multicultural Bildungsroman”

Writing with MLA Style: 2019 Edition

The following essays were selected for the 2019 edition of Writing with MLA Style. The 2019 selection committee was composed of Jessica Edwards, University of Delaware; Deborah H. Holdstein, Columbia College Chicago (chair); and Liana Silva, César E. Chavez High School, Houston, Texas.

Catherine Charlton (University of King’s College, Nova Scotia)

“‘Coal Is in My Blood’: Public and Private Representations of Community Identity in Springhill, Nova Scotia”

Alyiah Gonzales (California Polytechnic State University)

“Disrupting White Normativity in Langston Hughes’s ‘I, Too’ and Toni Morrison’s ‘Recitatif’”

Meg Matthias (Miami University, Ohio)

“Prescriptions of (Living) Historical Happiness: Gendered Performance and Racial Comfort in Reenactment”

Jennifer Nguyen  (Chaminade University of Honolulu)

“The Vietnam War, the American War: Literature, Film, and Popular Memory”

Emily Schlepp (Northwest University)

“A Force of Love: A Deconstructionist Reading of Characters in Dickens’s  Great Expectations ”

Home / Guides / Citation Guides / MLA Format / How to Cite an Essay in MLA

How to Cite an Essay in MLA

The guidelines for citing an essay in MLA format are similar to those for citing a chapter in a book. Include the author of the essay, the title of the essay, the name of the collection if the essay belongs to one, the editor of the collection or other contributors, the publication information, and the page number(s).

Citing an Essay

Mla essay citation structure.

Last, First M. “Essay Title.” Collection Title, edited by First M. Last, Publisher, year published, page numbers. Website Title , URL (if applicable).

MLA Essay Citation Example

Gupta, Sanjay. “Balancing and Checking.” Essays on Modern Democracy, edited by Bob Towsky, Brook Stone Publishers, 1996, pp. 36-48. Essay Database, www . databaseforessays.org/modern/modern-democracy.

MLA Essay In-text Citation Structure

(Last Name Page #)

MLA Essay In-text Citation Example

Click here to cite an essay via an EasyBib citation form.

MLA Formatting Guide

MLA Formatting

• Annotated Bibliography
• Bibliography
• Block Quotes
• et al Usage
• In-text Citations
• Paraphrasing
• Page Numbers
• Sample Paper
• Works Cited
• MLA 8 Updates
• MLA 9 Updates
• View MLA Guide

Citation Examples

• Book Chapter
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Website (no author)
• View all MLA Examples

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To cite your sources in an essay in MLA style, you need to have basic information including the author’s name(s), chapter title, book title, editor(s), publication year, publisher, and page numbers. The templates for in-text citations and a works-cited-list entry for essay sources and some examples are given below:

In-text citation template and example:

For citations in prose, use the first name and surname of the author on the first occurrence. For subsequent citations, use only the surname(s). In parenthetical citations, always use only the surname of the author(s).

Citation in prose:

First mention: Annette Wheeler Cafarelli

Subsequent occurrences: Wheeler Cafarelli

Parenthetical:

….(Wheeler Cafarelli).

Works-cited-list entry template and example:

The title of the chapter is enclosed in double quotation marks and uses title case. The book or collection title is given in italics and uses title case.

Surname, First Name. “Title of the Chapter.” Title of the Book , edited by Editor(s) Name, Publisher, Publication Year, page range.

Cafarelli, Annette Wheeler. “Rousseau and British Romanticism: Women and British Romanticism.” Cultural Interactions in the Romantic Age: Critical Essays in Comparative Literature , edited by Gregory Maertz. State U of New York P, 1998, pp. 125–56.

To cite an essay in MLA style, you need to have basic information including the author(s), the essay title, the book title, editor(s), publication year, publisher, and page numbers. The templates for citations in prose, parenthetical citations, and works-cited-list entries for an essay by multiple authors, and some examples, are given below:

For citations in prose, use the first name and surname of the author (e.g., Mary Strine).

For sources with two authors, use both full author names in prose (e.g., Mary Strine and Beth Radick).

For sources with three or more authors, use the first name and surname of the first author followed by “and others” or “and colleagues” (e.g., Mary Strine and others). In subsequent citations, use only the surname of the first author followed by “and others” or “and colleagues” (e.g., Strine and others).

In parenthetical citations, use only the author’s surname. For sources with two authors, use two surnames (e.g., Strine and Radick). For sources with three or more author names, use the first author’s surname followed by “et al.”

First mention: Mary Strine…

Subsequent mention: Strine…

First mention: Mary Strine and Beth Radick…

Subsequent mention: Strine and Radick…

First mention: Mary Strine and colleagues …. or Mary Strine and others

Subsequent occurrences: Strine and colleagues …. or Strine and others

…. (Strine).

….(Strine and Radick).

….(Strine et al.).

The title of the essay is enclosed in double quotation marks and uses title case. The book or collection title is given in italics and uses title case.

Surname, First Name, et al. “Title of the Essay.” Title of the Book , edited by Editor(s) Name, Publisher, Publication Year, page range.

Strine, Mary M., et al. “Research in Interpretation and Performance Studies: Trends, Issues, Priorities.” Speech Communication: Essays to Commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the Speech Communication Association , edited by Gerald M. Phillips and Julia T. Wood, Southern Illinois UP, 1990, pp. 181–204.

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Your chance of acceptance, your chancing factors, extracurriculars, do college essays need to be in mla format.

Hi all, I'm starting to write my college essay and I was wondering if it needs to be in MLA format? I know we use MLA for most of our high school essays, but I'm not sure if it's necessary for college applications. Any advice or guidance would be appreciated. Thanks!

Hey there! Great question about college essay formatting. Generally, college application essays don't need to be in a specific format like MLA, as the main focus is on the content and your ability to convey your story effectively.

However, it's still important to maintain a clean, easy-to-read format. Make sure you use a standard font (like Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri) and size (usually 12), with 1-inch margins. Double-spacing is also a good idea, as it makes your essay more readable.

When my child was applying to college, they just made sure that their essay was well-organized, engaging, and free of grammatical errors. The admissions officers are more interested in your story and what you can bring to their campus community, rather than strict adherence to a format like MLA.

Best of luck with your essay and the whole application process! Just focus on sharing your unique experiences and perspectives, and you'll do great!

About CollegeVine’s Expert FAQ

CollegeVine’s Q&A seeks to offer informed perspectives on commonly asked admissions questions. Every answer is refined and validated by our team of admissions experts to ensure it resonates with trusted knowledge in the field.

How to Style Essays Using MLA Format

What is MLA format? It is one of the most commonly used academic style guides. This format was developed by the Modern Language Association, which is exactly what the abbreviation MLA stands for. This format is mostly used by students in the humanities – literature, liberal arts, language, and other disciplines.

When writing an MLA format essay or other paper, students are required to follow specific style requirements. In this article, we are going to give you an exhaustive insight into the core MLA style guidelines based on the format's 8th edition, published in 2016. The dissertation services team EssayPro has spent a lot of time dealing with various formatting styles such as MLA Format, APA style, Chicago style format and Harvard style. Let's go deeper into our MLA handbook with our papers service .

General MLA Format Guidelines

An MLA format follows the listed rules:

In the next section, you will get to know how to create an MLA format heading, which appears at the top of your writing assignment. Before using the instruction, ask if your professor prefers a certain way to format an MLA heading.

MLA Example

In this article, we have taken you through the core concepts, rules, and guidelines of the MLA format (8th edition). To help you get a deeper understanding of how your paper should look, here is a clear MLA format example:‍‍

Read our blog about Chicago style essay and the ASA paper example ; these articles will greatly help you understand more about essay writing formats. Count on the support of our business essay writing service .

Title Page, Headings, and Subheadings

It is worth noting that MLA essay format does not imply the use of a title page. Generally, students are not prohibited from adding a title page to paper in MLA style, yet there is no official guide on how to format this according to MLA rules.

A header in MLA format can be either placed on the title page (if you decide to include one), or you can add it at the top of first page of your work.

All four formating rules have to be placed in this exact order with double line spacing and one-inch margins from all sides of the page.

The last of the header (assignment's due date) in MLA paper should be followed by the assignment's name, unless you are creating a title page – in this case, you will start your project on the next page. The work's title should be centered and does not need to be put in bold, italicized, underlined, or placed in quotation marks.

The only case when you would need to use an italicized font in the MLA title is if you include the name of another source within yours.

Title Example: The Concept of American Dream in the Novel The Great Gatsby

Headings and Subheadings

Regardless of the type of assignment, using headings and subheadings in the text is vital to ensure the logical organization and structure of the content. Therefore, writing a paper in MLA format, you will likely have to include some chapter titles, section headings, and other subheadings.

The font and size of all elements remain the same. The only thing you are changing is the font style. Bold font is a wise choice for chapter titles as it shows a greater level of importance, while italics are less prominent and, thus, good for section headings. Meanwhile, subheadings, which are the least important of all heading types, are left in the standard font style.

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Basic Text Formatting Requirements in MLA Format

A running head is a short heading located at the top of every page in the right corner. This heading consists of the author's last name and the page number—following it after a space.

Example: Blackwood 4

The standard MLA margins are one inch. Every page of your work should have one-inch margins from upper right hand corner to all sides. The only item that should be seen in the one-inch margin is the running head.

The first word of every new paragraph should have a one half-inch indent from the left margin. All paragraphs need to have double spacing. The standard space between the left margin and the start of your text is one-half inch. To set it, you can use the “tab” button.

Throughout the whole paper, use standard double MLA spacing.

The MLA format guide suggests using the Times New Roman font in 12pt size. Although Times New Roman is a recommended font, students are allowed to use other standard fonts.

In-Text Content in MLA Format

Writing a paper in MLA format, you can use any of these ways to add quotes in your text:

• Giving a quote and mentioning the author’s name in the sentence

Example: Winston Churchill shared his opinion on the importance of reading in one of his famous quotes, “Employ your time in improving yourself by other men’s writings so that you shall come easily by what others have labored hard for.”

In this example, the name of the quote’s author is placed at the beginning of the sentence, so there is no need to mention it again.

• Giving a quote and not mentioning the author’s name in the sentence

Example: A clear statement of the importance of reading is highlighted in the words of a famous politician, “Employ your time in improving yourself by other men’s writings so that you shall come easily by what others have labored hard for” (Churchill).

When the author’s name is not added to the sentence, put it in parentheses after the sentence.

• Block quotes

The third type of quote is called block quotes, and it applies to all phrases of 4 lines or longer. If you need to add a large quote in the body of your paper, follow these rules:

• Start a block quote on a new line.
• Don't put a block quote in quotation marks.
• Keep it double-spaced.
• Make a half an inch indent for the entire quote from the left margin.
• Make sure you keep the quote in its original state (with the same punctuation, capitalization, etc.)
• Mention the author's name in parentheses — after the quote.

Abbreviations

Generally, the MLA format prefers rare use of abbreviations. In the official guide, the Modern Language Association advises scholars to spell out abbreviations into full words. This rule applies to papers written in this format to avoid any confusion.

Although it is recommended to use abbreviations only rarely, there are some cases when you may find them appropriate in your text. In such cases, you will need to follow certain rules:

• Do not place periods between capital letters (e.g. United States = US, not U.S.)
• If the full words are in lower case, periods between the words are acceptable “for example = e.g.”
• When the full phrase has a blend of upper and lower case letters, do not put periods if there are more upper case letters (e.g. PhD, not Ph.D.)

Now, let's look at different abbreviation cases separately:

MLA format requires using full month names in the body of a paper. Thus, if you need to mention a specific month in your own research paper or other paper, you have to type them fully. However, if you are making references, you are allowed to use abbreviations for months that are longer than four letters. For example, June will stay the same, while longer names like January can be abbreviated to Jan.

Also, students are allowed to use other abbreviations in their Works Cited page. Some of the acceptable abbreviations are:

• Chapter – ch.
• Page and page numbers – p. and pp.
• Volume – vol.
• Revised – rev.
• Number – no.
• Edition – ed.
• Translated or translation – trans.

Once again, these specific abbreviations can only be used on your Works Cited page. Otherwise, in the paper's body, you are expected to type them out in full.

Depending on the type and content of your work, you may need to use numbers frequently. In this case, follow the guidelines given below:

In terms of the use of numbers in MLA style, there are two more tips to follow:

• Do not include ISBN numbers in a paper.
• Do not start a new sentence with a number. If possible, restate a sentence so that the number is placed elsewhere. If it is not possible, spell out the number that stands at the beginning of the sentence.

Images and Tables

It is always a good idea to add photos, images, tables, and other visual elements to a paper as long as they contribute to the overall quality of the work and add value. Thus, if a specific image or table does not bring any actual value, it is better to avoid adding it.

General rules:

• Place an image as close to the sentence to which it relates as possible.
• Create a label for each image you include, and add labels right under each particular image. A label has to begin with the abbreviation “Fig.”
• Following the abbreviation “Fig.”, place a specific number assigned to the image based on its location in the paper. For example, the first image included in the paper should be labeled as “Fig. 1”, and the following should be “Fig. 2,” etc.
• Place parentheses with the label and number of the relevant image at the end of the piece to cite it.
• Apart from the label, every image should feature a brief caption placed right underneath it, after the label.
• In case the caption of an image or table provides exhaustive data about its source of origin and you haven't already cited the same source in your text, it does not have to be added to the Works Cited page.

Example: Princess Diana’s famous midnight blue velvet dress was sold for $347,000 (fig. 1). (Image) Fig. 1. Princess Diana’s Famous Dress; attribution information.

Unlike images, tables in your paper do not need to be marked with the “fig.” label. Instead, you need to include the label “Table”, followed by an Arabic numeral. Similarly to images, tables in your work are assigned numbers based on the specific order of their appearance in the text. Also, every table needs to have a title. Together, the label “Table”, numeral, and title have to be located above the data set on separate lines, and all flush left.

Tables' titles have to have all of their first letters capitalized:

If you need to add a list to your paper, that’s fine. However, there are a number of rules you will need to follow:

• All lists in MLA format need to be horizontal.
• A colon needs to be placed between the list and the introductory sentence, unless the list is a part of the sentence.

Example: Ernest Hemingway has written numerous art pieces: The Torrents of Spring, The Sun Also Rises, To Have and Have Not, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Across the River and into the Trees, and The Old Man and the Sea.

Example of a list as a part of a sentence:Some of the most popular works of Ernest Hemingway are The Torrents of Spring, The Sun Also Rises, To Have and Have Not, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Across the River and into the Trees, and The Old Man and the Sea.

How to Set Up MLA Format in Google Docs in 10 Steps

• Start by opening a new document.

• Choose the font style and size.

• Navigate to "Insert," then click on "Headers & Footers," and choose "Header."

• Select alignment.

• Click on "Page Numbers" and select the page format you want.

• Go to “File”, “Page Setup” and adjust the margins to 1 inch.

• Go to "Line & Paragraph Spacing" and select "Double."

• Input the report details.

• Modify alignment and indentation as needed.

First, hit Enter on the keyboard, then align the text to the left. To indent the sentences, drag the ruler on top of the document. Next, drag the rectangle to half an inch or 1.27 cm.

• In the "Insert" tab, click on "Break" and select "Page Break."

MLA Works Cited Format

When writing academic research papers however, students conduct research and collect information from a variety of sources (e.g. books, websites, scientific journals, etc.). Putting information from different sources, along with your own ideas, is vital to create a compelling and informative paper. However, if the sources used in the project are not cited correctly, it can influence the final grade of the paper, as well as indicate the paper as being plagiarised. That's why you need to cite correctly and include works cited page.

To make a reference to an original source of information included in a paper, students need to create in-text citations, as described in the previous section of our article. However, providing a brief reference to original sources in your text is not enough. To provide readers with sufficient details on the origin of the information used in the text, you need to list all sources on a separate page. Below you can find a detailed guide on how to create an MLA works cited page. 

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Check out our MLA FORMAT CITATION GUIDE

General Formatting Rules

• Place the Works Cited section on a separate page at the end of your work.
• Apply the same margins and a header with your last name and page number—just like you have everywhere else in the paper.
• Name the page Works Cited and place the title in the center at the top of the page. (Note, do not put the title in quotation marks or italicize it).
• Align your citation entries with the left margin.
• Use double-line spacing.
• Add 0.5-inch indents to the second and following lines of every citation entry.
• Place your entries in alphabetical order.
• When marking a single page of a printed source to which you have referenced, use the abbreviation “p.” before the number (e.g. p. 632).
• When marking numerous pages throughout the source, use the abbreviation “pp.” and add a specific span of pages after the abbreviation if necessary (for example, when you refer to a particular chapter or article, e.g. pp. 65-112).
• Always indicate the name of an online database in italics if you retrieved an original printed publication from a database. Do not provide subscription information.

Entry Types

Depending on the type of the original source, the format of your entries can vary. Here are examples of how different entry types should be shaped:

Last, First Name of the Author. Title. City of Publication: Publisher, Year Published. Print

Example: James, Henry. The Turn of the Screw. New York: Penguin Publish, 2007. Print

Newspaper ‍

Last, First Name of the Author. “Title of the Article.” Newspaper Title [City] Date Month Year of Publication: Page(s). Print.

Example: Quint, Peter. “Turning Screws.” Pittsburgh Press [Pittsburgh] 7 Mar. 1990: 12-14. Print.

Last, First Name of the Author. “Title of the Article.” Journal

Title Series Volume.Issue (Year Published): Page(s). Database Name. Web. Date Month Year Accessed.

Example: Quint, Peter. “Turning Screws.” Journal of Engineering. 28.1 (2012): 41-54. Print.

Article from the Web (with author) ‍

Last, First Middle Initial. “Article Title.” Website Title. Website Publisher, Date Month Year Published. Web. Date Month Year Accessed.

Example: Quint, Peter. “Turning Screws.” New York Times. New York times. 17.02.2017. Web. 18.03.2017

Article from the Web (without author) ‍

“Website Article.” Website Title. Website Publisher, Date Month Year Published. Web. Date Month Year Accessed.

Example: “Turning Screws.” New York Times. New York Times. 17.02.2017. Web. 18.03.2017

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What Title Page Do I Need for My MLA Paper?

How to format a paper in mla style, how to cite in mla format, what is the easiest way to create mla citations, what are nine core elements of mla citations.

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• Creating an MLA title page

MLA Title Page | When You Need One & How to Format It

Published on July 12, 2021 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on March 5, 2024.

In MLA style , a title page is usually not required for your paper. Instead, MLA recommends including a header on your first page listing your name, your instructor’s name, the course name and number, and the submission date, followed by the title of your paper.

However, you should include a separate title page instead in these cases:

• Your instructor requires it
• The paper is a group project (i.e. you need to list multiple authors)

The formats for a separate title page and a first-page header are shown below. You can also use our templates in Word or Google Docs.

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Table of contents

Mla title page format, creating an mla header, frequently asked questions about mla format.

To create an MLA format title page, list the following on separate lines, left-aligned at the top of the page:

• Your co-authors’ names, each on its own line, if it’s a group project
• Your instructor’s name
• The course name and number
• The submission date

Then leave a few blank lines and list the title of the paper, centered and in title case, halfway down the page. All text should be double-spaced and in the same font as the rest of the paper.

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Most MLA papers will instead list this information in a header , which appears on the same page as your opening paragraphs instead of on a separate page before them. In the header, left-aligned, list

Then on the next line, write the title of your paper, centered and in title case. On the line after that, start your first paragraph. The header and title should be double-spaced, like the rest of the paper.

Usually, no title page is needed in an MLA paper . A header is generally included at the top of the first page instead. The exceptions are when:

• Your instructor requires one, or
• Your paper is a group project

In those cases, you should use a title page instead of a header, listing the same information but on a separate page.

If you’re working on a group project and therefore need to list multiple authors for your paper , MLA recommends against including a normal header . Instead, create a separate title page .

On the title page, list each author on a separate line, followed by the other usual information from the header: Instructor, course name and number, and submission date. Then write the title halfway down the page, centered, and start the text of the paper itself on the next page.

MLA recommends using 12-point Times New Roman , since it’s easy to read and installed on every computer. Other standard fonts such as Arial or Georgia are also acceptable. If in doubt, check with your supervisor which font you should be using.

MLA Style  is the second most used citation style (after APA ). It is mainly used by students and researchers in humanities fields such as literature, languages, and philosophy.

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If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2024, March 05). MLA Title Page | When You Need One & How to Format It. Scribbr. Retrieved September 3, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/mla/mla-title-page/

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• CSN Libraries
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• Course Guides

ENG 101 - Okey

• Citing in MLA
• Useful Databases at CSN Libraries
• Choosing a Research Topic
• How To Search Databases
• Verifying Sources (CRAAP Method)
• Avoiding Plagiarism

MLA Style Guide and Examples

The Modern Language Association uses the MLA Handbook to provide guidelines on MLA Style, which is the citation style you will be using in this class to format your papers and cite your sources. Included on this page are important documents and links that will help you to use MLA properly.

New MLA 9 rules state that the citation should NOT include http:\\ 

For example, https://roadtrippers.com/the-ultimate-guide-route-66/  should be changed to roadtrippers.com/the-ultimate-guide-route-66/

• MLA 9th Edition
• In-text Quotes
• Works Cited Examples
• Purdue OWL Use this to double-check your citations.

Additional Support

· The CSN Centers for Academic Success is offering online tutoring to CSN Students through Brainfuse .

Brainfuse offers free online tutoring, writing services and homework assistance 24/7.  Certified Brainfuse tutors provide live, on-demand tutoring and assignment help in a variety of subjects. Brainfuse tutors meet students where they are at in order to effectively help students of all skill levels. To access services, students can log into their GoCSN account and then into Canvas. Students can choose a listed course on the left and then click on Brainfuse Online Tutoring.

For more information, watch the video below:

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What’s the Best Scholarship Essay Format?

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Many scholarships require students to write an essay as part of their application. These writing and essay scholarships want to learn about your experiences, interests, or background as a student through your essay. But once you have finished writing, you may wonder: What is the best way to format my scholarship essay?

Should you include a title? What about spacing, page numbers, or citations? These are important questions and should be essential parts of your editing and revising process. Keep on reading to make sure that your essay is formatted properly!

Don’t miss: Scholarships360’s free scholarship search tool

Getting started with essay formatting

The first rule of the scholarship essay format is following all of the rules that the scholarship application states. Whether that is spacing, citations, or font size, you should always follow the directions. There isn’t a faster way to get a scholarship committee member to say “nah” than ignoring the directions.

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Essay titles.

Should you begin your essay with a title? In my experience reading essays of all types, a title is very optional. If it is an especially clever or necessary title, then sure, go for it!

Otherwise, I would recommend saving your valuable word count and put it towards the actual essay. If you write your essay and are feeling stuck on a title, let it go and don’t worry about it. Prepare for your scholarship writing endeavors  by reading our short essay guides for 250 word essays , as well as 500 word essays !

Related: How to write an essay about yourself

Font size & style

The MLA recommends using size 12 font, and that’s what we’d recommend using. As far as the style of the font, you should stick to something that is legible and easy to read. Times New Roman or Arial are both going to be good bets. The scholarship essay is not the best place to get creative with a funky, hard-to-read font.

Should I single or double space the essay?

We know that most of your essays for school are probably double spaced. This is usually a good call for scholarship essays as well, because it makes the essay easier to read. In addition to spacing, you want to make sure that your scholarship essay is broken down into paragraphs and is not one single block of text.

Are page numbers required?

On many school papers, you may have to put a page number on each page. This is not necessary for your scholarship essays unless it is a clearly stated requirement.

Does proper scholarship essay formatting require citations?

If you are citing other sources, it is a good idea to use citations. It does not matter whether you are using MLA, Chicago, or some other type of citation (unless it is specifically required). Instead, it is important to simply be consistent in how you cite your sources. Most essays probably will not require outside sources or research, but if you are applying to certain research-based or STEM scholarships you may want to brush up on your citations.

Do’s and don’ts for scholarship essay formatting 

Final thoughts

Writing can be a very stressful process for students, both in the scholarship process and the college admissions process. One of the best things that you can do is give yourself plenty of time to write and refine your essays. Ideally, you will also have a trusted outside reader serve as an editor for all of your essays.

The major rules of scholarship essay formatting are to follow the application instructions and make sure that your formatting is not distracting. Ultimately, you will want to ensure that the essay reader can easily and clearly read your essay and not distract them with sloppy or unconventional formatting.

Additional resources for writing essays

Here at Scholarships360, we have nearly every resource to help you write your best scholarship essay and to help you through the college admission process. Learn how to write winning scholarship essays , including how to start a scholarship essay and how to end a scholarship essay as well! Maybe you are writing a “Why this college” essay ? We can help with that too! Also, be sure to check out our individualized supplemental essay guides for schools that require them.

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Key Takeaways

• First and foremost, always carefully read the instructions of what format is required 
• Unless otherwise specified, double space your essay and break it down into easily digestible paragraphs
• If not stated, use easy to read fonts like Times New Roman or Ariel
• Never use information without citing, and if you do need to cite, be consistent with citation style (such as MLA, APA, Chicago, etc.)
• Always. always double check that your essay is not only formatted correctly, but thoroughly proofread for grammar and spelling
• Most important of all is to always look for any formatting guide from the scholarship provider, and ensure that you take their advice over any of ours

Frequently asked questions about scholarship essay formatting  

Should a scholarship essay be double spaced, what citation style should i use in a scholarship essay, is it better to include a scholarship essay title, what font is good for a scholarship essay, scholarships360 recommended.

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• University of Michigan Library
• Research Guides

The Library Research Process, Step-by-Step

• Understanding & Using a Citation Style
• Finding & Exploring a Topic
• Finding Books
• Finding Articles
• Evaluating Sources
• Reading Scholarly Articles

Citation Styles

What is a Citation?

A citation is positioned within the body of your paper, right after you finish referencing or quoting another author's work. This is known as an inline or in-text citation. At the end of your paper, you will also provide a complete reference. A reference must provide enough information to both identify and locate the original source of the information.

A reference usually includes:

• Name(s) of author(s)
• Title of source (article or chapter title and journal or book title)
• Publication date (if known)
• Page number(s)
• Volume and edition/issue numbers (for books and articles)
• If the content is likely to change over time, include the date you originally accessed the content.

Citation Resources

Style Guide Resources

Check out the U-M Library's comprehensive  Citation Help Research Guide  for examples and formatting tips for APA Style, MLA Style, IEEE Style, and well as other Science Styles. You'll also find guidance on citing government documents, data and statistics, and using bibliography tools. Learn how to manage your citations and get help with the  Manage Citations with Zotero, Mendeley, Endnote Research Guide .  

Many students also rely on PurdueOWL for their various style guides, but be aware that the website has many ads, whereas our Citation Help Research Guide is ad-free.

Related Sources

• Do you have a literature review assignment? Check out this guide for an in depth look at writing an advanced literature review.
•   Beyond Plagiarism  is made up a series of lessons that focus on strategies for finding, citing, analyzing, and quoting source material responsibly.

Tools for Formatting Citations

Having trouble formatting your citations? Use these tools to automatically generate citations for books, journal articles, newspapers and more in APA, MLA, and Chicago styles.

• EasyBib EasyBib is an automatic bibliography and citation generator for MLA citations.
• University of North Carolina Citation Builder This citation generator will format citations in MLA, APA, Chicago, or CSE citation styles.
• ZoteroBib Helps you build a bibliography instantly from any computer or device, without creating an account or installing any software.

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MLA In-Text Citations: The Basics

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Guidelines for referring to the works of others in your text using MLA style are covered throughout the  MLA Handbook  and in chapter 7 of the  MLA Style Manual . Both books provide extensive examples, so it's a good idea to consult them if you want to become even more familiar with MLA guidelines or if you have a particular reference question.

Basic in-text citation rules

In MLA Style, referring to the works of others in your text is done using parenthetical citations . This method involves providing relevant source information in parentheses whenever a sentence uses a quotation or paraphrase. Usually, the simplest way to do this is to put all of the source information in parentheses at the end of the sentence (i.e., just before the period). However, as the examples below will illustrate, there are situations where it makes sense to put the parenthetical elsewhere in the sentence, or even to leave information out.

General Guidelines

• The source information required in a parenthetical citation depends (1) upon the source medium (e.g. print, web, DVD) and (2) upon the source’s entry on the Works Cited page.
• Any source information that you provide in-text must correspond to the source information on the Works Cited page. More specifically, whatever signal word or phrase you provide to your readers in the text must be the first thing that appears on the left-hand margin of the corresponding entry on the Works Cited page.

In-text citations: Author-page style

MLA format follows the author-page method of in-text citation. This means that the author's last name and the page number(s) from which the quotation or paraphrase is taken must appear in the text, and a complete reference should appear on your Works Cited page. The author's name may appear either in the sentence itself or in parentheses following the quotation or paraphrase, but the page number(s) should always appear in the parentheses, not in the text of your sentence. For example:

Both citations in the examples above, (263) and (Wordsworth 263), tell readers that the information in the sentence can be located on page 263 of a work by an author named Wordsworth. If readers want more information about this source, they can turn to the Works Cited page, where, under the name of Wordsworth, they would find the following information:

Wordsworth, William. Lyrical Ballads . Oxford UP, 1967.

In-text citations for print sources with known author

For print sources like books, magazines, scholarly journal articles, and newspapers, provide a signal word or phrase (usually the author’s last name) and a page number. If you provide the signal word/phrase in the sentence, you do not need to include it in the parenthetical citation.

These examples must correspond to an entry that begins with Burke, which will be the first thing that appears on the left-hand margin of an entry on the Works Cited page:

Burke, Kenneth. Language as Symbolic Action: Essays on Life, Literature, and Method . University of California Press, 1966.

In-text citations for print sources by a corporate author

When a source has a corporate author, it is acceptable to use the name of the corporation followed by the page number for the in-text citation. You should also use abbreviations (e.g., nat'l for national) where appropriate, so as to avoid interrupting the flow of reading with overly long parenthetical citations.

In-text citations for sources with non-standard labeling systems

If a source uses a labeling or numbering system other than page numbers, such as a script or poetry, precede the citation with said label. When citing a poem, for instance, the parenthetical would begin with the word “line”, and then the line number or range. For example, the examination of William Blake’s poem “The Tyger” would be cited as such:

The speaker makes an ardent call for the exploration of the connection between the violence of nature and the divinity of creation. “In what distant deeps or skies. / Burnt the fire of thine eyes," they ask in reference to the tiger as they attempt to reconcile their intimidation with their relationship to creationism (lines 5-6).

Longer labels, such as chapters (ch.) and scenes (sc.), should be abbreviated.

In-text citations for print sources with no known author

When a source has no known author, use a shortened title of the work instead of an author name, following these guidelines.

Place the title in quotation marks if it's a short work (such as an article) or italicize it if it's a longer work (e.g. plays, books, television shows, entire Web sites) and provide a page number if it is available.

Titles longer than a standard noun phrase should be shortened into a noun phrase by excluding articles. For example, To the Lighthouse would be shortened to Lighthouse .

If the title cannot be easily shortened into a noun phrase, the title should be cut after the first clause, phrase, or punctuation:

In this example, since the reader does not know the author of the article, an abbreviated title appears in the parenthetical citation, and the full title of the article appears first at the left-hand margin of its respective entry on the Works Cited page. Thus, the writer includes the title in quotation marks as the signal phrase in the parenthetical citation in order to lead the reader directly to the source on the Works Cited page. The Works Cited entry appears as follows:

"The Impact of Global Warming in North America." Global Warming: Early Signs . 1999. www.climatehotmap.org/. Accessed 23 Mar. 2009.

If the title of the work begins with a quotation mark, such as a title that refers to another work, that quote or quoted title can be used as the shortened title. The single quotation marks must be included in the parenthetical, rather than the double quotation.

Parenthetical citations and Works Cited pages, used in conjunction, allow readers to know which sources you consulted in writing your essay, so that they can either verify your interpretation of the sources or use them in their own scholarly work.

Author-page citation for classic and literary works with multiple editions

Page numbers are always required, but additional citation information can help literary scholars, who may have a different edition of a classic work, like Marx and Engels's  The Communist Manifesto . In such cases, give the page number of your edition (making sure the edition is listed in your Works Cited page, of course) followed by a semicolon, and then the appropriate abbreviations for volume (vol.), book (bk.), part (pt.), chapter (ch.), section (sec.), or paragraph (par.). For example:

Author-page citation for works in an anthology, periodical, or collection

When you cite a work that appears inside a larger source (for instance, an article in a periodical or an essay in a collection), cite the author of the  internal source (i.e., the article or essay). For example, to cite Albert Einstein's article "A Brief Outline of the Theory of Relativity," which was published in  Nature  in 1921, you might write something like this:

See also our page on documenting periodicals in the Works Cited .

Citing authors with same last names

Sometimes more information is necessary to identify the source from which a quotation is taken. For instance, if two or more authors have the same last name, provide both authors' first initials (or even the authors' full name if different authors share initials) in your citation. For example:

Citing a work by multiple authors

For a source with two authors, list the authors’ last names in the text or in the parenthetical citation:

Corresponding Works Cited entry:

Best, David, and Sharon Marcus. “Surface Reading: An Introduction.” Representations , vol. 108, no. 1, Fall 2009, pp. 1-21. JSTOR, doi:10.1525/rep.2009.108.1.1

For a source with three or more authors, list only the first author’s last name, and replace the additional names with et al.

Franck, Caroline, et al. “Agricultural Subsidies and the American Obesity Epidemic.” American Journal of Preventative Medicine , vol. 45, no. 3, Sept. 2013, pp. 327-333.

Citing multiple works by the same author

If you cite more than one work by an author, include a shortened title for the particular work from which you are quoting to distinguish it from the others. Put short titles of books in italics and short titles of articles in quotation marks.

Citing two articles by the same author :

Citing two books by the same author :

Additionally, if the author's name is not mentioned in the sentence, format your citation with the author's name followed by a comma, followed by a shortened title of the work, and, when appropriate, the page number(s):

Citing multivolume works

If you cite from different volumes of a multivolume work, always include the volume number followed by a colon. Put a space after the colon, then provide the page number(s). (If you only cite from one volume, provide only the page number in parentheses.)

Citing the Bible

In your first parenthetical citation, you want to make clear which Bible you're using (and underline or italicize the title), as each version varies in its translation, followed by book (do not italicize or underline), chapter, and verse. For example:

If future references employ the same edition of the Bible you’re using, list only the book, chapter, and verse in the parenthetical citation:

John of Patmos echoes this passage when describing his vision (Rev. 4.6-8).

Citing indirect sources

Sometimes you may have to use an indirect source. An indirect source is a source cited within another source. For such indirect quotations, use "qtd. in" to indicate the source you actually consulted. For example:

Note that, in most cases, a responsible researcher will attempt to find the original source, rather than citing an indirect source.

Citing transcripts, plays, or screenplays

Sources that take the form of a dialogue involving two or more participants have special guidelines for their quotation and citation. Each line of dialogue should begin with the speaker's name written in all capitals and indented half an inch. A period follows the name (e.g., JAMES.) . After the period, write the dialogue. Each successive line after the first should receive an additional indentation. When another person begins speaking, start a new line with that person's name indented only half an inch. Repeat this pattern each time the speaker changes. You can include stage directions in the quote if they appear in the original source.

Conclude with a parenthetical that explains where to find the excerpt in the source. Usually, the author and title of the source can be given in a signal phrase before quoting the excerpt, so the concluding parenthetical will often just contain location information like page numbers or act/scene indicators.

Here is an example from O'Neill's  The Iceman Cometh.

WILLIE. (Pleadingly) Give me a drink, Rocky. Harry said it was all right. God, I need a drink.

ROCKY. Den grab it. It's right under your nose.

WILLIE. (Avidly) Thanks. (He takes the bottle with both twitching hands and tilts it to his lips and gulps down the whiskey in big swallows.) (1.1)

Citing non-print or sources from the Internet

With more and more scholarly work published on the Internet, you may have to cite sources you found in digital environments. While many sources on the Internet should not be used for scholarly work (reference the OWL's  Evaluating Sources of Information  resource), some Web sources are perfectly acceptable for research. When creating in-text citations for electronic, film, or Internet sources, remember that your citation must reference the source on your Works Cited page.

Sometimes writers are confused with how to craft parenthetical citations for electronic sources because of the absence of page numbers. However, these sorts of entries often do not require a page number in the parenthetical citation. For electronic and Internet sources, follow the following guidelines:

• Include in the text the first item that appears in the Work Cited entry that corresponds to the citation (e.g. author name, article name, website name, film name).
• Do not provide paragraph numbers or page numbers based on your Web browser’s print preview function.
• Unless you must list the Web site name in the signal phrase in order to get the reader to the appropriate entry, do not include URLs in-text. Only provide partial URLs such as when the name of the site includes, for example, a domain name, like  CNN.com  or  Forbes.com,  as opposed to writing out http://www.cnn.com or http://www.forbes.com.

Miscellaneous non-print sources

Two types of non-print sources you may encounter are films and lectures/presentations:

In the two examples above “Herzog” (a film’s director) and “Yates” (a presentor) lead the reader to the first item in each citation’s respective entry on the Works Cited page:

Herzog, Werner, dir. Fitzcarraldo . Perf. Klaus Kinski. Filmverlag der Autoren, 1982.

Yates, Jane. "Invention in Rhetoric and Composition." Gaps Addressed: Future Work in Rhetoric and Composition, CCCC, Palmer House Hilton, 2002. Address.

Electronic sources

Electronic sources may include web pages and online news or magazine articles:

In the first example (an online magazine article), the writer has chosen not to include the author name in-text; however, two entries from the same author appear in the Works Cited. Thus, the writer includes both the author’s last name and the article title in the parenthetical citation in order to lead the reader to the appropriate entry on the Works Cited page (see below).

In the second example (a web page), a parenthetical citation is not necessary because the page does not list an author, and the title of the article, “MLA Formatting and Style Guide,” is used as a signal phrase within the sentence. If the title of the article was not named in the sentence, an abbreviated version would appear in a parenthetical citation at the end of the sentence. Both corresponding Works Cited entries are as follows:

Taylor, Rumsey. "Fitzcarraldo." Slant , 13 Jun. 2003, www.slantmagazine.com/film/review/fitzcarraldo/. Accessed 29 Sep. 2009. 

"MLA Formatting and Style Guide." The Purdue OWL , 2 Aug. 2016, owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/. Accessed 2 April 2018.

Multiple citations

To cite multiple sources in the same parenthetical reference, separate the citations by a semi-colon:

Time-based media sources

When creating in-text citations for media that has a runtime, such as a movie or podcast, include the range of hours, minutes and seconds you plan to reference. For example: (00:02:15-00:02:35).

When a citation is not needed

Common sense and ethics should determine your need for documenting sources. You do not need to give sources for familiar proverbs, well-known quotations, or common knowledge (For example, it is expected that U.S. citizens know that George Washington was the first President.). Remember that citing sources is a rhetorical task, and, as such, can vary based on your audience. If you’re writing for an expert audience of a scholarly journal, for example, you may need to deal with expectations of what constitutes “common knowledge” that differ from common norms.

Other Sources

The MLA Handbook describes how to cite many different kinds of authors and content creators. However, you may occasionally encounter a source or author category that the handbook does not describe, making the best way to proceed can be unclear.

In these cases, it's typically acceptable to apply the general principles of MLA citation to the new kind of source in a way that's consistent and sensible. A good way to do this is to simply use the standard MLA directions for a type of source that resembles the source you want to cite.

You may also want to investigate whether a third-party organization has provided directions for how to cite this kind of source. For example, Norquest College provides guidelines for citing Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers⁠ —an author category that does not appear in the MLA Handbook . In cases like this, however, it's a good idea to ask your instructor or supervisor whether using third-party citation guidelines might present problems.

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How the 12-team college football playoff will work: teams, schedule, bids.

The College Football Playoff will introduce a 12-team playoff bracket for the 2024-25 season, expanding from the four-team format. Here's what you need to know about the change:

How CFP teams are selected under new format

The new 12-team College Football Playoff field will include the five highest-ranked conference champions, which will receive automatic bids. The seven highest-ranked teams remaining will round out the 12-team format. 

The top four teams will receive a first-round bye to the quarterfinals.

FOLLOW IT ALL: Live scoreboard and stats for every game

Where CFP games will be played

The four highest-ranked conference champions will be seeded Nos. 1-4 and receive a first-round bye. Seeds 5-12 will play each other in the first round. The higher-seeded teams will play host in their first round games. Here's a breakdown of the first round matchups:

• No. 5 vs. No. 12
• No. 6 vs. No. 11
• No. 7 vs. No. 10
• No. 8 vs. No. 9

New Year's Six bowl games will be introduced in the quarterfinal round. The semifinals will be played in bowls on a rotating basis while the national championship host site is determined through bids by prospective host sites.

Here's what the 12-team field would've looked like in 2023-24

On Sunday, Dec. 3, the CFP Selection Committee released the final set of rankings for the 2023-24 season . Michigan, Washington, Texas and Alabama comprised the top 4 that'll compete in the College Football Playoff in the final year before the expanded format is introduced. Utilizing the respective rankings, let's project what the 12-team bracket would look like for the 2023-24 season.

Here are the final CFP rankings of 2023-24: Released: Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023

First round

As stated in the official announcement by the CFP , the first rounds would take place at either the home field of the higher-seeded team or another site designated by the higher-seeded program during the week of Saturday, Dec. 21.

Although specific game dates have not yet been announced, we can make predictions on how each matchup will appear. Keep in mind that the No. 12 seed will go to Liberty, as the Flames are the sixth highest-ranked conference champion in the final CFP rankings, replacing Oklahoma — a team that finished third in the Big 12 — as the No. 12 team. 

No. 12 Liberty at No. 5 Florida State No. 11 Ole Miss at No. 6 Georgia No. 10 Penn State at No. 7 Ohio State No. 9 Missouri at No. 8 Oregon

🔮 FUTURE:  How the first College Football Playoff rankings predict the semifinals

With the top-four seeded teams receiving bye weeks, the winner of each team listed above would move on to face teams No. 1 through 4. Teams will not be reseeded. This means that the top-ranked team would proceed to face the winner of the No. 9 and No. 8 matchup.

CFP officials stated that the four quarterfinal games and two Playoff Semifinal games will be played in New Year's Six bowls on a rotating basis. 

2024 quarterfinals : Fiesta Bowl, Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl 2024 semifinals : Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl  2025 quarterfinals : Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl 2025 semifinals : Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl 

The CFP  schedule for the 2024 and 2025 seasons:

Tap here to learn more about the 12-team CFP expansion for the 2024 and 2025 seasons.

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