The cover page, also known as the title page, is the first page of an APA style paper. It contains important information about the paper, including the title, the author's name and institutional affiliation, and a running head. The running head is a shortened version of the title that appears at the top of every page of the paper.
The cover page should be formatted according to the guidelines set forth in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA). The title of the paper should be centered and written in bold, uppercase and lowercase letters. It should be followed by the author's name, which should be written in uppercase and lowercase letters and centered beneath the title. The author's institutional affiliation should be written in uppercase and lowercase letters and centered beneath the author's name.
Below the author's institutional affiliation, the running head should be written in all capital letters and should be left-aligned. The page number should be right-aligned and placed at the top of the page.
It is important to note that the cover page is not included in the page count of the paper. The title page is numbered as page 1, but the numbering is not displayed on the cover page.
Here is an example of a properly formatted APA style cover page:
Title of Paper
Author's Name Institutional Affiliation
Running head: SHORTENED TITLE OF PAPER
1
It is important to follow the guidelines for formatting the cover page as outlined in the APA Publication Manual. A properly formatted cover page not only presents a professional appearance, but it also helps the reader to quickly and easily identify the key information about the paper.
