What are the correct formatting guidelines for college essays?

You’re definitely not alone in wondering about formatting standards—the rules for college essays are a bit different from what you might be used to with school papers. For the Common App essay, there’s actually a lot more flexibility than you’d expect, so here’s what you need to know:

When you paste your essay into the Common App text box, most of your formatting will be stripped away. The system defaults to a basic font and size, and you can’t change it. You don’t need to worry about font (like Times New Roman or Arial), font size, or spacing. Double-spaced essays are not required—in fact, the text box will only let you do single spacing with paragraph breaks. So, it’s best to have single-spaced paragraphs, not double.

For indentation, it’s totally fine to just use block paragraphs (skip a line between paragraphs instead of indenting). That makes your essay easier to read and matches what you'll see in the Common App software. Most students press “Enter” twice to separate each paragraph.

Including a title is optional and rarely necessary for college essays. Most students skip the title and jump straight into the essay, since space is limited (the Common App allows 650 words) and a title doesn’t add much value. If you have a really creative or meaningful title, you can include it, but you don’t have to. Just make sure it doesn’t take up more than a line or two.

Here’s a quick checklist for your Common App essay:
- Type it up in your word processor (like Google Docs or Word), using single spacing and a standard, readable font for drafting.
- Use block paragraphs (no indentation, one line between paragraphs).
- Don’t stress about font, size, or spacing—they'll be uniform after pasting into the Common App.
- Don't include headers, footers, or page numbers.

Example:

When I am running, the world shrinks to the rhythm of my breath.

Training for my first marathon made me confront my own limitations, both physical and mental. There was one morning when I almost quit—my legs ached and my mind screamed at me to give up...

As you can see, just a space between paragraphs is all you need.

If you’re submitting a supplemental essay that needs to be uploaded as a PDF or Word file (which sometimes happens for special programs), stick with 12-point Times New Roman or Arial, single spacing, block paragraphs, and normal margins (1 inch all around). But for the Common App, the text box makes things pretty simple!

Short version: draft your essay with block paragraphs, single spaced, and no need for fancy formatting or a title unless you really want one. Focus most on your story and clarity—admissions readers care far more about that than what your text looks like. If you’re worried about how it looks after you paste it in, you can always use the Common App’s preview button!