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**Erin** · 2002 September 23rd, 11:26 PM

How to Format Your Essay

One of the most common problems we see with essays posted here is improper FORMATTING.

I have therefore put together this list of formatting tips for you to follow BEFORE you submit your essay to this forum for others to read and comment on.

Remember, the real ETS essay scorer reads hundreds of essays every week and really, really appreciates nice formatting.

Essays submitted here that do NOT follow these formatting rules will receive lower scores (if somebody offers a score) and will incur the disdain of fellow forum members.

Yes, believe it or not, punctuation IS very, very important in English. There’s a lot more for me to say, so you should check this topic regularly for updates.

The Most Important ETS Essay Formatting Rules

This list was compiled by Erin with the help of all the visitors to the TestMagic forums.

Hit "Enter" twice at the end of every paragraph. Doing this will create a space between your paragraphs and will make your essay much, much easier to read. Remember, the real ETS essay scorer reads hundreds of essays every week and really, really appreciates nice formatting.

Or, indent the paragraphs in your essay. "indentation" refers to the number of blank spaces at the beginning of a paragraph. The "standard," or most traditional formatting, requires using five blank spaces at the beginning of every paragraph. There are, however, two other common ways. The second very common way is to use two spaces instead of five; the third way way is not to use any spaces at all, but to separate the paragraphs with a space.

You will notice in these forums that I (Erin Billy) usually skip a line between paragraphs, but that I do not use any spaces at the beginning of a new paragraph. I do this because this is an Internet discussion forum. When I have to write a formal paper, however, I skip one line between paragraphs and indent five spaces.

Hit the space bar after almost EVERY punctuation mark. Specifically, this includes periods, commas, and colons. Conversely, do NOT hit the space bar before almost EVERY punctuation mark.
- Good: Because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early.
- Bad: Because I was sleepy,I went to bed a bit early.
- Bad: Because I was sleepy ,I went to bed a bit early .

CAPITALIZE the first letter of every sentence, the pronoun “I,” and other proper nouns.
- Good: Because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early.
- Bad: because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early.

Do not use only uppercase letters or only lowercase letters.
- Good: Because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early.
- Bad: BECAUSE I WAS SLEEPY, I WENT TO BED A BIT EARLY.
- Bad: because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early.

It would be very good to follow these guidelines in your posts, as well (if only to develop good habits). It can be difficult at times to read posts that use "irregular" punctuation.

I hope this post helps!

2002 September 23rd, 11:26 PM	#1 (permalink)
Erin Did it. Forum Admin Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: USA Posts: 8,716	How to format your essay How to Format Your Essay One of the most common problems we see with essays posted here is improper FORMATTING. I have therefore put together this list of formatting tips for you to follow BEFORE you submit your essay to this forum for others to read and comment on. Remember, the real ETS essay scorer reads hundreds of essays every week and really, really appreciates nice formatting. Essays submitted here that do NOT follow these formatting rules will receive lower scores (if somebody offers a score) and will incur the disdain of fellow forum members. Yes, believe it or not, punctuation IS very, very important in English. There’s a lot more for me to say, so you should check this topic regularly for updates. The Most Important ETS Essay Formatting Rules This list was compiled by Erin with the help of all the visitors to the TestMagic forums. Hit "Enter" twice at the end of every paragraph. Doing this will create a space between your paragraphs and will make your essay much, much easier to read. Remember, the real ETS essay scorer reads hundreds of essays every week and really, really appreciates nice formatting. Or, indent the paragraphs in your essay. "indentation" refers to the number of blank spaces at the beginning of a paragraph. The "standard," or most traditional formatting, requires using five blank spaces at the beginning of every paragraph. There are, however, two other common ways. The second very common way is to use two spaces instead of five; the third way way is not to use any spaces at all, but to separate the paragraphs with a space. You will notice in these forums that I (Erin Billy) usually skip a line between paragraphs, but that I do not use any spaces at the beginning of a new paragraph. I do this because this is an Internet discussion forum. When I have to write a formal paper, however, I skip one line between paragraphs and indent five spaces. Hit the space bar after almost EVERY punctuation mark. Specifically, this includes periods, commas, and colons. Conversely, do NOT hit the space bar before almost EVERY punctuation mark. Good: Because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early. Bad: Because I was sleepy,I went to bed a bit early. Bad: Because I was sleepy ,I went to bed a bit early . CAPITALIZE the first letter of every sentence, the pronoun “I,” and other proper nouns. Good: Because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early. Bad: because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early. Do not use only uppercase letters or only lowercase letters. Good: Because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early. Bad: BECAUSE I WAS SLEEPY, I WENT TO BED A BIT EARLY. Bad: because I was sleepy, I went to bed a bit early. It would be very good to follow these guidelines in your posts, as well (if only to develop good habits). It can be difficult at times to read posts that use "irregular" punctuation. I hope this post helps! _ _ _ _ SIG _ _ _ _ ☼ It's BACK! Sentence Correction ☼ 98 fans on Facebook. 902 to go!