APA 7th Edition for Nursing Papers: Complete Formatting Guide

APA 7th Edition Basics

Page Setup

• 1-inch margins on all sides
• 12-point Times New Roman, Calibri, or Arial
• Double-spaced throughout
• Page numbers in upper right corner
• No running head (unless required by instructor)

Title Page

• Title in bold, centered, upper half of page
• Your name, institution, course, instructor, date
• No "by" before your name

In-Text Citations

Narrative Citation

Smith (2024) found that early mobilization reduces ICU stay.

Parenthetical Citation

Early mobilization reduces ICU stay (Smith, 2024).

Multiple Authors

• 2 authors: (Smith & Jones, 2024)
• 3+ authors: (Smith et al., 2024): from the FIRST citation

Reference Page Rules

• Title "References" centered, bold
• Hanging indent (0.5 inch)
• Alphabetical by first author's last name
• DOI as hyperlink when available

Journal Article

Smith, J. A., & Jones, B. C. (2024). Title of article in sentence case. Journal Name in Italics, 15(2), 123–145. https://doi.org/xxxxx

Book

Author, A. A. (2024). Title of book in italics (2nd ed.). Publisher Name.

Website

Organization Name. (2024, January 15). Title of page. https://www.example.com/page

Common APA Mistakes in Nursing Papers

1. Incorrect et al. usage: use from first citation for 3+ authors
2. Missing DOIs: always include when available
3. Improper heading levels: Level 1 centered bold, Level 2 left-aligned bold
4. Old edition formatting: running heads are no longer default
5. Citing secondary sources: try to find the original source

Heading Levels

• Level 1: Centered, Bold
• Level 2: Left-Aligned, Bold
• Level 3: Left-Aligned, Bold Italic
• Level 4: Indented, Bold, Period.
• Level 5: Indented, Bold Italic, Period.

Get APA Formatting Help →

Where to go next

If you are building on this topic, our nursing care plan examples shows the full worked structure, and the NCLEX study plan covers the reference detail most rubrics expect. When the deadline is tight, our MSN and PhD-prepared nurses provide nursing assignment help and nursing writing service so you can study the model, then write with confidence.

Need a tutor on this today? Get instant help or message us on WhatsApp.