What font size and spacing should I use for my college essay?
I'm about to submit my Common App personal statement, but I'm nervous about the formatting stuff like font size and spacing. I know the platform says to paste text in, but I'm confused about what actually looks best to admissions officers.
Do they care if you use Times New Roman or Arial? Should I stick to 12pt with double spacing, or is single spacing okay since it's all going into a text box anyway? I don't want it to look weird or unprofessional, but I also want to make sure I fit within the word limit and nothing gets cut off.
If you've already submitted or have advice from past years, any tips would be appreciated. I just want to make sure my essay comes across clearly. Thanks in advance for the help!
Do they care if you use Times New Roman or Arial? Should I stick to 12pt with double spacing, or is single spacing okay since it's all going into a text box anyway? I don't want it to look weird or unprofessional, but I also want to make sure I fit within the word limit and nothing gets cut off.
If you've already submitted or have advice from past years, any tips would be appreciated. I just want to make sure my essay comes across clearly. Thanks in advance for the help!
1 month ago
•
12 views
Lydia Schooler
• 1 month ago
Advisor
When submitting your Common App personal statement, you actually don’t need to stress much about the font, size, or spacing; the platform standardizes everything for you once you paste your essay into the text box. Admissions officers typically see your essay in a basic, easy-to-read font (like Arial or Times New Roman), and font size is also set automatically so everyone’s submission appears the same.
For best results, draft your essay in a word processor like Google Docs or Microsoft Word using 12pt Times New Roman or Arial, single spacing, and standard 1-inch margins. This will help you keep track of formatting and length while you write. When you’re ready, copy and paste your essay into the Common App essay box—at that point, the system strips most formatting (such as bold, italics, and underlining are retained, but fonts and spacing are not).
You don’t have to double-space your essay, as the Common App will default to single spacing with a blank line between each paragraph for readability. Paragraph breaks and indents generally translate well, but always preview your essay before you submit, just to check that your paragraphs are kept intact and there are no weird symbols or spacing issues.
Admissions officers care most about clarity and easy reading. They are used to the Common App’s standard format, so your essay won’t look "weird" if you simply paste it in. No one will see fancy formatting, and everyone is evaluated using the same basic template. For example, a student last year worried about saving space by reducing spacing, but after pasting their essay in, the system automatically applied the correct formatting, and everything looked clean.
The key things to remember: stick to the word limit and review your essay in the preview mode before submitting. If you have important italicized words (titles or foreign phrases), double-check that these appear correctly, as sometimes the text box can alter special characters. If something seems off, edit directly in the Common App box to adjust.
So, you’re safe with: draft in 12pt Times New Roman or Arial, single spacing; paste into the box; use the preview to check line breaks and italics. That’s all you need to look professional and clear to admissions officers!
For best results, draft your essay in a word processor like Google Docs or Microsoft Word using 12pt Times New Roman or Arial, single spacing, and standard 1-inch margins. This will help you keep track of formatting and length while you write. When you’re ready, copy and paste your essay into the Common App essay box—at that point, the system strips most formatting (such as bold, italics, and underlining are retained, but fonts and spacing are not).
You don’t have to double-space your essay, as the Common App will default to single spacing with a blank line between each paragraph for readability. Paragraph breaks and indents generally translate well, but always preview your essay before you submit, just to check that your paragraphs are kept intact and there are no weird symbols or spacing issues.
Admissions officers care most about clarity and easy reading. They are used to the Common App’s standard format, so your essay won’t look "weird" if you simply paste it in. No one will see fancy formatting, and everyone is evaluated using the same basic template. For example, a student last year worried about saving space by reducing spacing, but after pasting their essay in, the system automatically applied the correct formatting, and everything looked clean.
The key things to remember: stick to the word limit and review your essay in the preview mode before submitting. If you have important italicized words (titles or foreign phrases), double-check that these appear correctly, as sometimes the text box can alter special characters. If something seems off, edit directly in the Common App box to adjust.
So, you’re safe with: draft in 12pt Times New Roman or Arial, single spacing; paste into the box; use the preview to check line breaks and italics. That’s all you need to look professional and clear to admissions officers!