Formatting Your Manuscript
Text Formatting
Body Text
All text in manuscripts (including abstract and appendices, but not including tables & figures) must follow these guidelines:
- 12-point Times New Roman font
- DOUBLE SPACED
- Left-justified only
- 0.5 inch paragraph indent
Tables & Figures
Figures, tables, and exhibits can be in font sizes smaller than 12-point Times New Roman (e.g., 10-point Arial or Calibri). Text in figures, tables, and exhibits may be single spaced.
References
References must be in 12-point Times New Roman font and SINGLE SPACED, with a hanging-indent.
References should be listed alphabetically by author name at the end of the paper in conformance with APA 7th edition. In-text citations should be indicated by the author’s last name and year of publication, e.g., (DeGross, 1977) or DeGross (1977).
References, Tables, Figures, & Footnotes
The following guidelines should be noted:
- Figures, tables, and exhibits should be embedded in the body of the paper, either immediately after the reference in the text or as soon as possible thereafter. If you are not referring to a table, figure, or exhibit in the text, it should not be included.
- References and in-text citations should be formatted in conformance with APA 7th edition.
- Authors should limit the number of citations in the text. Only those that are essential should be included.
- When using citations in text, stress the point of what’s being cited, not who made the citation (for example, “…the Minnesota Golden Gophers basketball team was arguably the best team in the nation (Smith and Jones, 1997)” rather than “Smith and Jones (1997) argue that the Golden Gophers were the best…”).
- Authors should limit the use of footnotes. These can be distracting to a reader who may only have a short time to scan an article.
Manuscript Structure
Page Layout
Below is an outline of how to structure your manuscript. The entire manuscript must have 1-inch margins.
- Page 1:
- Paper title.
- Abstract.
- Keywords: Select 5 to 10 words or phrases to be used for indexing. These might include important terms from the title, their synonyms, or related words. Authors should not use prepositions nor hyphens unless the hyphenated parts are always treated as a unit. Authors should use terms that are as specific as possible and whose meaning is generally known.
- Page 2:
- Paper title.
- Beginning of manuscript.
Headings
Headings should be clearly delineated. Authors should show each heading’s level of importance as follows:
MAJOR HEAD
Separate line centered over text; bold, all caps. Headings and subheadings should not be numbered.
First Subhead
Separate line centered over text; bold, upper/lower case.
Second Subhead
Separate line, flush left; bold, upper/lower case.
Third Subhead: On the same line as the beginning of the text, flush left, bold, upper/lower case, followed by a colon.