Writing formats are a method of presenting ideas in a specific structure, which can be based on the type of writing, the personal style of the writer, or the standards of the organization for which the writer is working. The format of a piece of writing reveals the individual’s writing style or the chosen approach to presenting information. This blog covers the various essay writing formats, including those used for citations such as APA and MLA, and those used for creative writing.
APA Format
APA (American Psychological Association) format is a widely used writing style in the social sciences, such as psychology, sociology, and education. It includes specific guidelines for formatting and citing sources in academic papers.
One of the key features of APA format is the use of in-text citations, which allow you to identify the sources of information that you use in your paper. In APA style, these citations typically include the author’s last name and the year of publication, and they are placed in parentheses after the relevant information. Here is an example of an in-text citation in APA format:
According to a study by Smith (2020), students who use technology in the classroom perform better on tests than those who do not.
In this example, the in-text citation (“Smith, 2020”) indicates that the information about student performance is based on a study by an author named Smith that was published in 2020.
APA format also includes specific guidelines for formatting the overall appearance of your research proposal paper, such as margins, font size and type, and headings. It also requires the use of a title page and a References page, which should be included at the end of your paper and list all of the sources that you cited in your paper in alphabetical order.
MLA Format
MLA (Modern Language Association) format is a widely used writing style in the humanities, such as literature, linguistics, and philosophy. It includes specific guidelines for formatting and citing sources in academic papers.
One of the key features of MLA format is the use of parenthetical citations, which allow you to identify the sources of information that you use in your paper. In MLA style, these citations typically include the author’s last name and the page number(s) of the relevant information, and they are placed in parentheses after the information. Here is an example of a parenthetical citation in MLA format:
According to a study by Smith (123), students who use technology in the classroom perform better on tests than those who do not.
In this example, the parenthetical citation (“Smith 123”) indicates that the information about student performance is based on a study by an author named Smith that can be found on page 123 of their work.
MLA format also includes specific guidelines for formatting the overall appearance of your paper, such as margins, font size and type, and headings. It also requires the use of a Works Cited page, which should be included at the end of your paper and list all of the sources that you cited in your paper in alphabetical order.
Chicago Format
Chicago style is a widely used writing style in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. It includes specific guidelines for formatting and citing sources in academic papers. There are two main citation systems within Chicago style: the Notes-Bibliography system and the Author-Date system.
The Notes-Bibliography system, also known as the “humanities” style, uses footnotes or endnotes to cite sources, as well as a bibliography at the end of the document. In this system, sources are cited in the text using a superscript number, which corresponds to a note that appears at the bottom of the page (footnote) or at the end of the document (endnote). The note includes the full citation for the source. Here is an example of a footnote citation in the Notes-Bibliography system of Chicago style:
According to a study by John Smith, students who use technology in the classroom perform better on tests than those who do not.1
John Smith, The Book of Books (New York: Random House, 2019), 123.
In this example, the superscript number “1” indicates that a citation is being provided, and the corresponding footnote includes the full citation for the source (Smith’s book).
The Author-Date system, also known as the “sciences” style, uses in-text citations and a References page at the end of the document. In this system, sources are cited in the text using the author’s last name and the year of publication, and a full citation is provided in the References page. Here is an example of an in-text citation in the Author-Date system of Chicago style:
According to a study by Smith (2019), students who use technology in the classroom perform better on tests than those who do not.
Chicago style also includes specific guidelines for formatting the overall appearance of your paper, such as margins, font size and type, and headings.
Harvard format
Harvard formatting is a citation style that is commonly used in academic writing. It is named after Harvard University, where it was developed. The main characteristic of Harvard formatting is that it uses in-text citations, which means that you include the author’s name and the year of publication within the text of your paper, rather than using footnotes or endnotes.
Here is an example of how to use Harvard formatting in a sentence:
According to Smith (2020), the use of renewable energy sources has increased significantly in recent years.
In this example, Smith is the author’s last name and 2020 is the year of publication.
In addition to in-text citations, Harvard formatting also requires a list of references at the end of the paper. This list should include all of the sources that you have cited in your paper, and it should be organized alphabetically by the author’s last name.
Here is an example of a reference list using Harvard formatting:
Smith, J. (2020). The use of renewable energy sources. Energy Policy, 58, 123-134.
Jones, A. (2019). Climate change and its impacts on the environment. Environmental Science and Technology, 53(8), 4561-4568.
In this example, the reference list includes the author’s last name, their initials, the year of publication, the title of the article or book, the journal or book title, and the page numbers.
IEEE format
IEEE formatting is a citation style that is commonly used in technical and scientific writing. It is named after the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), which is a professional organization that develops standards and guidelines for a wide range of industries.
One of the main characteristics of IEEE formatting is that it uses numbered citations, which means that you include a number in square brackets within the text of your paper to indicate the sources you are citing. The corresponding reference list at the end of the paper includes the full citations for each source, organized in the order in which they are cited.
Here is an example of how to use IEEE formatting in a sentence:
The use of renewable energy sources has increased significantly in recent years [1].
In this example, [1] is the numbered citation that corresponds to the first reference in the reference list.
Here is an example of a reference list using IEEE formatting:
[1] J. Smith, “The use of renewable energy sources,” Energy Policy, vol. 58, pp. 123-134, 2020.
[2] A. Jones, “Climate change and its impacts on the environment,” Environmental Science and Technology, vol. 53, no. 8, pp. 4561-4568, 2019.
In this example, the reference list includes the author’s name, the title of the article or book, the journal or book title, the volume and issue numbers (if applicable), the page numbers, and the year of publication.
Contrary to popular belief, it is not always the writer who gets to choose the appropriate writing format for a college assignment or project. Instead, a professor or instructor may assign the format. This blog discusses five common writing formats: Chicago or CMS, APA, MLA, Turabian, and IEEE, and provides an overview of the basic page layout for each format.
