MLA Format Guide - 9th edition

The Modern Language Association (MLA) Format is commonly used for formatting and citing works in essays and other works that require outside sources. Using this method of formatting and citing works in your papers allows you to avoid accidentally plagiarizing material from other writers, which is a very serious offense, especially at the collegiate level and beyond. The most recent edition of MLA format is the 9th edition, which will be outlined in this guide.

The presentation above is pulled from the Purdue OWL website. It covers all major concepts of MLA guidelines. Purdue OWL offers helpful information concerning MLA format.

• Double-space the text of your paper and use a legible font, such as Times New Roman, Ariel, Calibri, etc. While there is no longer a specific style of font required, MLA recommends that the regular and italics styles of your chosen font contrast enough that they are distinct from each other. Be sure to use 12 pt font.
• Leave only one space after punctuation marks.
• Be sure the margins of your document are set to 1 inch on all sides.
• Indent the first line of each paragraph one inch from the left margin using the "Tab" key.
• Create a header at the top left corner of the page using the same font and spacing settings that includes your first and last name, your instructor's name, the course the assignment is for, and the date. An example format for this header will be included in another section.
• Include a page number at the top right of the header and a title centered at the bottom of the header.
• Include a Works Cited page with properly cited sources.
• Include in-text citations.