APA vs MLA: Which Format Does Your Professor Want?

Formatting mistakes are the easiest points to lose — and the easiest to avoid. Yet every semester, students hand in papers with the wrong citation style, incorrect headers, or misformatted reference pages and lose 5-15% of their grade for entirely preventable errors.

This guide gives you everything you need to know about APA and MLA — when to use each, the key differences, and the most common mistakes that cost students grades.

The Quick Answer: How to Know Which One to Use

APA (American Psychological Association)

Used in: Psychology, Sociology, Nursing, Education, Business, Economics, Criminal Justice, Political Science, and most sciences.

MLA (Modern Language Association)

Used in: English Literature, Comparative Literature, Languages, Philosophy, History, Cultural Studies, and performing arts.

Key Differences at a Glance

Title page

APA: Requires a separate title page with running head, page number, title, author name, and institution. The 7th edition simplified this significantly — no more running head for student papers unless your professor requires it.

MLA: No separate title page. Instead, your name, professor's name, course, and date appear in the top-left corner of the first page.

In-text citations

APA: Author-date format. Example: (Smith, 2024) or Smith (2024) found that...

MLA: Author-page format. Example: (Smith 47) or Smith argues that "..." (47).

Reference page

APA: Called "References." Every source is listed alphabetically. Includes DOIs for journal articles. Uses hanging indent.

MLA: Called "Works Cited." Also alphabetical with hanging indent, but formatting details differ (title capitalization, date placement, etc.).

Headings

APA: Has five levels of headings with specific formatting for each (bold, italic, indented, etc.).

MLA: Does not have a prescribed heading system. Headings are optional and flexible.

The 7 Most Common Formatting Mistakes (And How to Fix Them)

1. Wrong font or spacing

Both APA and MLA require 12pt font and double spacing throughout. APA 7th edition recommends Times New Roman, Calibri 11pt, or Arial 11pt. MLA specifies Times New Roman 12pt. Single-spacing or using the wrong font is an instant red flag.

2. Missing or incorrect running head

APA student papers no longer require a running head unless the professor asks for one (this changed with the 7th edition). Professional papers still need it. Many students add running heads when they don't need to, or format them incorrectly.

3. Incorrect in-text citation format

The most common error: using page numbers in APA citations (you only include page numbers for direct quotes) or using dates in MLA citations (MLA never uses dates in text).

4. Reference page formatting errors

Hanging indent, alphabetical order, proper italicization — these small details matter. Many students forget the hanging indent or incorrectly capitalize titles.

5. Block quote formatting

In APA, quotes of 40+ words get block quote treatment (indented, no quotation marks). In MLA, it's 4+ lines of prose. Getting this wrong stands out immediately to professors.

6. Missing DOIs or URLs

APA requires DOIs for journal articles when available. MLA requires URLs for online sources. Omitting these is one of the most common errors in student bibliographies.

7. Inconsistent style throughout the paper

Starting in APA and switching to MLA mid-paper (or mixing conventions) signals to your professor that you're copying from multiple sources without understanding the formatting.

Why Formatting Matters More Than You Think

Professors use formatting as a proxy for academic rigor. A correctly formatted paper signals that the student understands academic conventions and pays attention to detail. A poorly formatted paper creates a negative first impression before the professor reads a single argument.

In competitive programs — nursing, pre-law, MBA — formatting accuracy can be the difference between an A and a B+. Many graduate programs dock full letter grades for formatting violations.

How Scholar Works Handles Formatting

Every Scholar Works paper is formatted precisely according to your professor's requirements. Our writers are experts in APA 7th, MLA 9th, Chicago/Turabian, Harvard, Bluebook, and every other citation style used in US universities.

We format everything: title pages, headers, in-text citations, reference pages, block quotes, tables, figures, and appendices. If your professor has specific requirements beyond the standard style guide, we follow those too — just share your rubric or syllabus and we handle the rest.