How-to · Step-by-step
APA title page
An APA title page is the formatted first page of an APA 7th-edition paper, carrying the title, author and affiliation — with separate student and professional versions.
The step most authors miss
Doing CRediT right? Don’t stop at the statement.
A CRediT statement credits you inside one paper. The recognition CRediT was built for happens when those roles are tied to you, persistently. Sign in with your ORCID — free — and claim your CRediT contributions on casrai.org, the home of the standard. They become a verified, portable part of your identity, not a line that disappears into one PDF.
Free: claim your contributions, then export a journal-ready CRediT statement, schema.org structured data, JATS XML, CSV or BibTeX — and preview your public profile. A membership publishes that profile publicly and verifies the journals you serve.
Step by step
How to do it
1.Add the page number
Place the page number in the top-right corner of the header; the title page is page 1. In the professional version the header also carries a running head — a short, all-capitals version of the title — in the top-left.
2.Position the title
Centre the title in the upper half of the page, roughly three or four lines down from the top margin. Put it in bold title case, and keep it concise — APA recommends focusing on the main topic in no more than about a dozen words.
3.Add the author name
Leave one blank double-spaced line after the title, then centre the author’s name (or names) in plain, non-bold text. Use the form first name, middle initial, surname, and omit titles such as Dr or degrees such as PhD.
4.Add the affiliation
On the next line, centre the author’s affiliation: the department and the institution, separated by a comma (for example, Department of Psychology, University of Leeds). This identifies where the work was carried out.
5.Complete the student version
For a student paper, continue with centred lines giving the course number and name, the instructor’s name, and the assignment due date in month-day-year order. No author note or running head is required.
6.Complete the professional version
For a professional paper, add an author note in the lower half of the page — ORCID iDs, affiliation changes, disclosures and a contact address — and ensure the running head appears in the header on every page.
Student versus professional title pages
APA 7th edition introduced two distinct title-page formats. The student version is the default for coursework: title, author, affiliation, course details, instructor and due date, with a page number but no running head. The professional version, used for manuscripts submitted for publication, replaces the course block with an author note and adds a running head to every page. Choosing the right version matters — submitting a professional layout for an assignment, or vice versa, is a common and easily avoided error.
Common questions
FAQ
What is the difference between a student and professional APA title page?+
The student title page lists the title, author, affiliation, course number and name, instructor and due date, with a page number but no running head. The professional version omits the course details, adds an author note in the lower half, and includes a running head — a short capitalised title — in the header of every page. Students should use the student version unless told otherwise.
Does an APA 7th-edition student paper need a running head?+
No. Under APA 7th edition the running head is required only for professional papers intended for publication. Student papers carry a page number in the top-right of the header but no running head, which was a deliberate simplification from the previous edition where students were also asked to include one.
How long should an APA title be?+
APA advises a focused, descriptive title that names the main topic and key variables, ideally no longer than about twelve words. Avoid filler phrases such as “A study of” and abbreviations. The title is set in bold title case and centred in the upper half of the title page.
Going deeper
