What's the proper format for a college admission essay?

Colleges primarily care about the content of your essay, but it’s definitely normal to feel unsure about the formatting details. For the Common App, there are a few basics you can follow:

There’s no official required font or spacing for the Common App essay, because you’ll typically paste your essay directly into a text box on the application portal. The Common App specific instructions mention that when you paste your essay in, it will automatically be formatted as single-spaced, left-aligned, and in a standard font. You can use paragraph breaks by hitting "enter," and it’s a good idea to double-space between paragraphs to make sure your breaks show up (just add an extra enter/return). There’s no option to add tabs or indents, so don’t worry about those. Margins are controlled by the online system, not you, so you don’t need to set them.

It’s a common issue for formatting (like indentations or double-spacing) to disappear when you paste your essay into the application. The key thing is to check over your essay carefully in the preview window and make sure paragraph breaks are clear, and all your text is included. If lines run together, add an extra return between paragraphs for clarity. Don’t use unusual fonts, colors, emojis, or images, even if your document editor makes them look nice—they won’t carry over to the submission platform, and might look odd. If you’re asked to upload a file (some schools outside of the Common App might do this), use a standard font like Times New Roman or Arial in 12-point size, single-spaced, and standard 1-inch margins. Save as a PDF to preserve your formatting.

In summary: single-spacing is the norm, and the system sets the font/margins. Focus on clarity and readability! For example, when I submitted my application, I copied my essay from Google Docs and pasted it into the Common App essay field. I made sure to double-enter between paragraphs because otherwise they ran together, but otherwise, I didn’t overthink it—and my formatting was exactly how it appeared in the preview. Just take a final look before submitting to make sure everything appears as you intend.

As long as your writing is clear and your paragraphs are distinct, colleges will focus on what you say, not on tiny formatting details. Good luck finishing your essay!