MLA Format using Microsoft Word 365 – Office 365 OneDrive

This tutorial will show you how to do MLA Format using Microsoft Word 365 (Microsoft Office 365 on SkyDrive). It is very easy and we are going to accomplish the following settings:

• All text is font “Times New Roman” & Size 12.
• One-inch page margin for all sides (top, bottom, right and left).
• A header with your last name and page number 1/2 inch from the top-right of each page.
• The entire research paper is double-spaced.
• Your name, name of professor, course title, and due date of paper on the first page.
• Your research paper title is centered.
• Body paragraphs have a 1/2 inch first line indent.
• A Works Cited page beginning on a separate page at the end of the paper.

I. How to Set the Font and Size:

1. When you create a new document, the default font is “Calibri (Body)” and font size 11.
   
2. Click on the drop-down arrow (on the right side of the font) and change the font to Times New Roman.
3. Click on the font size arrow and change the font size to 12.
   

II. How to Set the Margins in Word 365:

1. Click on PAGE LAYOUT.
2. Click on the Margins button.
3. Click on Normal Top: 1″, Bottom: 1″, Left: 1″, Right: 1″.
   

III. How To Create a Header in Google Docs:

1. Click on Insert.
2. Click on Page Numbers.
3. Click on the 3rd box on the first row (this would create the header and automatic page numbering on the top right).
   
   
4. Type your LastName and press the Spacebar key on the computer keyboard once.
5. Highlight both your last name and page number => click on Home => set the font to Times New Roman and font size 12.
6. Click anywhere in the shaded area to close the Header. The header does not appear but it will show when you print your paper.
   

IV. How to Setup Line Spacing to Double Spaced:

1. Click on the Line Spacing icon => then click on 2.
   

V. How to Enter the First Page Information:

1. Type your full name => press Enter.
2. Type your professor’s name => press Enter.
3. Type course title => press Enter.
4. Type your paper’s due date => press Enter.
5. Click on the Align Center icon on the formatting toolbar (to center your blinking cursor) => Type the title of your paper, capitalizing the first letter and all major words and proper nouns. Do not use italics, boldfaced type, underlining, or all caps to format your title. Do not type a period at the end of the title => press Enter.
6. Click on the Align Left icon (to bring your blinking cursor to the left).
7. Click on the Tab key to indent 1/2 inch to begin your first paragraph. Use the Tab key on every next new paragraphs. Your completed setting should look like this:
   

VI. How to Setup the Works Cited Page:

Follow this how-to when you are ready to work on your Works Cited page. The Works Cited page has the following characteristics:

• A heading “Works Cited” centered one inch below the top edge of a new page. Do not bold or underline this heading.
• No indent on the first line of each entry. If an entry runs more than one line, indent the subsequent line or lines 1/2 inch from the left margin.
• Alphabetize entries in your list of works cited by the author’s last name, using the letter-by-letter system.

1. Immediately after typing the final line of your paper, click on Insert => click on the Page Break button (to begin a new page).
2. Click on Home => The font and size on the new page apparently got reset to the default values, change the font to Times New Roman and size 12.
3. Click on the align center icon so that the text is centered.
4. Type Works Cited (do not underline, boldface, italicize, or enclose the title in quotation marks).
5. Press the Enter key once to begin a new line.
6. Click on the align left icon so that the text is aligned left.
7. Now type your sources.
8. As of today January 2014, Word 365 doesn’t seem to have Hanging Indent. You can do it manually by creating a new line after the first line, then press the Tab key on the second/subsequence line.

I hope you found this tutorial helpful. Take care!