how to get a good essay title

Best Tips on How to Title an Essay

How to Make a Good Title for an Essay

The success of an essay heavily depends on its title. This may not come as a surprise given that the essay title is the first aspect to provide the reader with a sneak peek into the text. It piques our interest to read the paper in the first place and gives us a preview of what to expect from the author.

Our research paper writing help prepared a thorough guide on how to title an essay. Here you may find tips and tricks for developing an effective APA or MLA essay title. So, let's dive straight into the article for more exciting details!

Essay Title Format

During your essay writing process, ensure you know the stylistic requirements before beginning an essay. Knowing the format you need to employ is crucial because different style manuals may have varying requirements. Mostly, you could have used an APA or MLA essay title format. Our service, where you can buy essay online , explains these two in more detail below.

Essay Title MLA

If you're required to create an essay title MLA format, check whether your instructor wants you to make a separate cover page. If not, put a heading at the beginning of your work that includes your name, the name of your professor, the course ID, and, lastly, the date.

On the other hand, if you must present a cover page for your essay title MLA, then you need to include the following:

The name of the college
The title of your paper
The subtitle of your paper, if applicable
Your first and last name
Your teacher or professor's name
The class name or course number
The date the paper is due

The formatting instructions are as follows:

Double-spaced
Times New Roman font
Size 12 font
Apart from very short terms, each word's initial letter should be capitalized. The initial word, however, must always be uppercase.
The title page shouldn't include a header with the page numbers.

Essay Title APA

Having discussed the MLA format essay title, let's explore what the APA student title page includes:

The paper title
Author names
Institutional affiliation where the author carried out the study
Name and number of the course
Professor name
Page number

The title of an essay format instructions:

double-spaced
1" margins
12-point Times New Roman
According to APA, your title should be targeted and brief, without unnecessary words or abbreviations

How to Choose a Good Title for an Essay: Important Qualities

Nobody will read a dull headline. Your title should grab your audience's attention and encourage them to read the rest of the work. As it is one of the initial things readers see, having a strong attention grabber is essential when writing an essay from scratch. To fully understand how to come up with a title for essay that is strong and exciting, let's consider a few following factors:

Employ a Catchy Hook - Usually, the title of essay format follows a similar basic structure, especially if they are used for an academic article. The hook serves as a unique component that attracts the reader. It's a captivating statement informing others about the topic of the essay. You can also explore several types of sentences with examples that can help you develop the ideal hook structure.

Consider Topic Keywords - These are essential terms or expressions pertinent to your subject and help your reader understand the focus and body of your article. These focus keywords should serve as a brief, one- to two-word article summary. You can choose some terms from the research topic your instructor gave you, but after your thesis statement is formed, this is where you should hunt for ideas.

Use a Colon - A colon is frequently used in academic titles to separate concepts and sentences. The standard procedure is to place a clever remark or brief quotation before the colon. Although these beginning words offer flavor, they can be overdone. Because of this, some individuals find using the colon to be repugnant. Therefore be careful not to misuse this method.

Ask a Question - To write essay title that is strong, consider asking a question. But, use it with caution because posing a question will make your tone less formal. As long as the question is suitably phrased to meet the subject of your essay, feel free to employ it. Always check to see if the title question still applies to your points in the essay's body. The thesis statement should be appropriately reflected as well.

Find Inspirational Quotes - There is no formula for selecting essay titles from the textual content. You may get playful and choose any quotation, proverb, or catchphrase that applies to your particular publication and works as a title. You may also create a great essay title using well-known expressions or idioms. Doing so will help your readers relate to and feel more comfortable discussing your subject.

Here are other rules for how to create a good title:

Title every section of writing: In the process of writing, create interesting subheadings to give your paragraphs an identity. Also, they make your text look ordered and clear.
The title must bear the theme of the text: choose a title that summarizes the essay.
Capitalize all words with certain exceptions: Capitalize the first letter of every word in the title, but do not capitalize pronouns, articles, prepositions, and conjunctions.
Avoid underlining the title: Since topics come in boldface, underlining it will amount to overemphasis. Some authorities say that if you must underline it, do not bolden it.
Review the final version of the title: Do not forget to do a quick review of the final version of the title—check for grammar, structure, spelling and so on. Re-read it to determine if the title has given justice to the essay. Confirm if the topic is catchy enough to attract your reader’s attention.
When using a colon in your title, follow the rules: Since we are dealing with punctuation rules here, let us talk about the colon – when you have two eye-catching topics, separate them with a colon.

Student’s Guide on How to Come Up with a Title for an Essay

Titling an essay can be easy, but there are a few core principles to be taken into account. The following tips will help you stay on track and avoid any common pitfalls.

Essay Goes First

Never start with a title! If you write it before the rest of the text, it will be based on it, and it should be vice versa. Writing an essay before choosing a heading will give you a clear understanding of what should make sense to the reader. Re-read the finished paper several times to decide on the title. The last thing to create is a title - such strategy will give more time to spend on crafting an essay outline, conducting research, or writing the paper itself.

What are you writing about? What is the style of your paper, and is it an academic essay or a free-form essay like a narrative essay? If the topic of your essay is “Do people who commit heinous crimes deserve the death penalty?” your title should not be humorous; it should be strict and to the point.

If your topic is “Why do people like watching funny cat videos?”, feel free to craft a funny title. Determine the tone of your essay and base your title on it—in consideration with the essay’s topic.

The tone can be:

Serious - “The implications of global warming”
Funny - “How cats and dogs love their masters”
Amiable - “Ways to fight depression”
Persuasive - “Why positive thinking is a must have skill for every person”
Informative - “Ten rules for creating a chemical at home”

The main goal of a title is to name its paper. There is no need to tell an entire story in the title, or provide any useless details. Sum up your paper in a few words! Another way to do this is to sum up your thesis statement, as it represents the main idea of your essay. Take your thesis and squeeze it into 3-4 words. Imagine that you are creating a title for your favourite newspaper or a slogan for Coca-Cola.

Don’t use fancy words! Take 2-3 main words (keywords), put them together, and stop wasting your time. Avoid jargon and abbreviations.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is something that can help any student and young writer reap benefits. While working on a title, detect the words related to the central idea of the paper. Type the words into the search field of Google and add the word “quote.” A search engine will show numerous web pages with in-text quotations that could be useful. Select the fragment you like. It is possible to learn how to make a creative title for an essay in this way.

Discover several more tips from experts:

Never forget the “What,” “Who,” “When,” “How,” “Why,” and “Where” questions (if you start with one of these questions, your title has a chance of getting noticed);
Come up with an unexpected image not related to the selected topic;
Sometimes, starting with a lie increases the chances of a title being able to catch an eye;
Review our catchy essay title examples.

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Feel free to contact EssayPro and we will provide you with a writing help at a moment’s notice. With the years of essay writing experience, titling becomes second nature, so you no longer need to worry about having a catchy headline on your paper.

Essay Title Examples: Bad vs Good

The strongest essay titles condense lengthy essays into concise statements. When wondering how to make an essay title, think carefully about your stylistic choices and essay format to produce an excellent one. Our dissertation help has provided essay title examples to let you understand the difference between good and bad ones more vividly.

Bad Essay Title Examples

As we discussed how to create an essay title and the specific elements that go into it, you should have a clear idea of how important it is to craft a strong title. In contrast, first, look at weak essay title ideas that can break your paper. This should serve as an example of why your heading should not be like this:

Ex 1: ' How Television Has Changed Our World ' - too vast and not informative

Ex 2: 'The Ara Pacis Augustae' - unclear for those who don't know Latin

Ex 3: 'The Most Poisonous Frog' - does not provide any insight

Ex 4: 'A Brief History of Subcultures and How They Manifest Themselves in a Constantly Changing Socio-Economic Environment' - too long and complicated

Ex 5: 'The Little Mermaid 29 Years Later: Selling a Harmful Sexist Message Through a Naughty Image' - inappropriate language

Good Essay Title Examples

Now that you know what a bad essay title looks like, let's explore good essay title examples as their substitutes. Examine the following essay title format styles that will give you a clear understanding.

Ex 1: ' The Electronic Babysitter: A Social History of Uses of the Television' - gives an exact description of what the essay will be about

Ex 2: ' The Modern Historical Significance of the Ara Pacis Augustae to the City of Rome' - here, the reader can understand what they will be reading about

Ex 3: ' A Deadly Beauty: The Evolution of Skin Coloration and Toxicity of the Poisonous Dart Frog' - clear, informative, and on-point.

Ex 4: 'Reconsidering Counterculture in Contemporary Society' - informative enough and brief

Ex 5: 'The Projection of Gender Stereotypes in The Little Mermaid' - employs appropriate language

Catchy Essay Title Ideas

You now understand that long, complicated headlines do not accurately convey the paper's main idea. Take ample time to consider the word choice before tilting your work. How do you create good essay titles? Think creatively and with common sense. But meanwhile, for your convenience, we compiled title ideas for essays you may use as inspiration.

Persuasive Essay Titles

Why Receiving College Education is Important: Examining Long-term Benefits
Face-to-Face Courses Cannot Be Replaced by Online Learning
An MBA Does Not Ensure Corporate Success.
Every Company Should Adopt a Green Strategy.
Energy Drinks Represent a Lucrative Market Segment.
Aircraft, Excess Weight Charges, Need to be Prohibited.
Patients' Life Shouldn't be Put to Death by Nurses.
Google Glasses May Increase the Number of Auto Accidents.
All of the Conventional Malls Will Soon be Replaced By Online Shopping
How Do Team-building Exercises Contribute to the Development of Inventions?
Illegal immigrants are entitled to remain in the US.

Academic Essay Titles

Several English Dialects: The Link Between Various Cultures
Instagram: A social media innovation
Is it possible to reverse drug-induced brain damage, and if so, how?
What the Future Holds for Humans in the Light of Artificial Intelligence
The Story of Two Nations after Decades of Conflict: North and South Korea
Video Games and Their Learning Context in Schools
Free Wi-Fi: Strategies for Enhancing the City's Economy

Strong Research Paper Titles

Digital World Cybersecurity
E-business to Provide New Paths for Booksellers
Outsourcing for Large Businesses
Preparing for College Costs for High School Students
What News Reporters Should Do in the Digital Age and How to Do It: Examples
The Transformative Power of Music: How Heavy Metal Impacted My Life

Best Essay Titles for College Students

The Possible Benefits and Risks of Artificial Intelligence for Humans
The Potential for Time Travel in Virtual Reality
What Role Has Mathematics Played in Human History?
How to Succeed in the Real Estate Industry
E-Commerce: An Empire of Virtual Businesses Worth Millions of Dollars
How to Achieve Financial Independence in the Digital Age Without Opening a Real Business

More Creative Titles for Essays

When getting rewarded for their grades, would kids do better left alone?
How Does Fake News Impact the Mainstream press?
Homelessness in Contemporary Society: A Dilemma
What News Reporters' Best Job Is in the Digital Age and How to Uphold It
Elon Musk: Brilliant Mind or Insane Person?
Positives and Negatives of Employing a Smoker
Do We Employ the Appropriate Student Success Metrics?

Professional Academic Help

Now that you know how to make a good title for an essay, you should also understand that you should approach the task as a process. While composing your essay title, you must condense your whole thesis and point of discussion into a single, concise, yet powerful sentence. If you have time before your deadline, give it some thought and don't hurry.

Don't forget that you can always rely on our professional academic assistance, whether you need a reflection paper , ideas for a strong essay title, or any other academic papers. Consider the following words - write my essay for me - magic keywords for delegating your most complex tasks to our skilled writers!

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Academic writing

Forging good titles in academic writing

Published on March 20, 2015 by Shane Bryson . Revised on July 23, 2023.

The title is the first thing your reader will see, and most readers will make their first judgements of your work based on it. For this reason, it’s important to think about your titles carefully.

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Informative, striking, appropriate, title templates, writing effective headings, other interesting articles, informative title.

Your title should, above all else, convey the topic of your paper. In other words, no matter how witty, clever, original, or otherwise appealing your title may be, it fails if it is not informative.

Decide whether you’ve given a sense of the paper’s topic and claims by comparing your title’s content to the most important aspect(s) of your dissertation statement or hypothesis and conclusions.

Striking title

A striking title is one that entices your audience to read, so know your audience’s tastes.

The analogy of cultivating sexual attraction in a prospective mate is useful here: some audiences will be enticed by a title’s edginess (as with, for example, V. Alneng’s “‘What the Fuck is a Vietnam?’ Touristic Phantasms and the Popcolonization of [the] Vietnam [War],” published in Critique on Anthropology ); others will almost always prefer a more straightforward title (as with J.C. Henderson’s “War as a tourist attraction: The case of Vietnam,” published in the International Journal of Tourism Research ).

You should be able to gauge how edgy your title can be by the tone of your discipline or the publication you’re submitting to, and your main concern should be forming a title that appeals to your readers’ specific tastes.

Consider also that a title that highlights the paper’s fresh insights will often be striking.

An endocrinologist, for example, might become very excited upon seeing the collaboratively authored article “Comparison of the effects on glycaemic control and β-cell function in newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes patients of treatment with exenatide, insulin or pioglitazone: A multicentre randomized parallel-group trial,” published in 2015 in the Journal of Internal Medicine .

This rather long title is more acceptable in the sciences, where what readers tend to find provocative in a title is the degree to which it reveals the paper’s specifics.

Appropriate title

Ensuring that your title is appropriate in a way of making sure not only that your audience understands it, but also that its appeal contributes to its meaning. To make sure the title will be understood, you need to consider how familiar your research topic will be to your audience.

In an academic essay, you can use highly technical terms in your title, but generally avoid terms that the average well-read person in your discipline might not know.

In any writing that has a broad audience, titles need to avoid language that is too sophisticated; a news article, for example, should be easily understood by all.

As a second consideration of appropriateness, make sure that your title does not entice without substance.

The title of Alneng’s paper, for example, does not use “fuck” merely to shock and therefore entice the reader; the uncommon use of a swearword here helps convey the topic of the article: more or less vulgar representations of Vietnam.

The same is true for other striking titles, such as Nancy Tuana’s “Coming to Understand: Orgasm and the Epistemology of Ignorance,” published in Hypatia .

The title’s sexually charged play on words (“coming to understand”) hooks the audience, but is not merely a hook. The pun is directly relevant to the essay’s argument, which is that sexual pleasure offers an important form of knowledge.

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Use key terms. Find words that your audience can easily identify as markers of the topic matter. These will include, for example, terms that convey the field of research, central concepts, or subjects of study.
Identify the context (sometimes called “the location”). By context, I mean the source or the setting of the discussion, depending on discipline. In a history paper this might be a certain century or era; in literary studies a certain book or author; and in the sciences an organism or compound.

The following is a list of title formats, with examples of each. I’ve given the names of the publications in brackets to give a sense of how different disciplines treat titles.

Note that these are not mutually exclusive patterns (i.e. it’s possible to have various combinations; e.g. General & interesting: Informative & specific). Note also that this is not meant to be an exhaustive list.

Striking: Informative – The Specter of Wall Street: “Bartleby, the Scrivener” and the Language of Commodities ( American Literature )
Informative: Striking – Carbon capture and storage: How green can black be? ( Science )
General: Specific – The issues of the sixties: An exploratory study in the dynamics of public opinion ( Public Opinion Quarterly )
“Quotation”: Discussion (social studies) – “I’d rather not talk about it”: Adolescents’ and young adults’ use of topic avoidance in stepfamilies ( Journal of Applied Communication Research )
“Quotation”: Discussion (literary studies) – “I Would Prefer Not To”: Giorgio Agamben, Bartleby and the Potentiality of the Law ( Law and Critique )
Simple and precise – Methodological issues in the use of Tsimshian oral Traditions (Adawx) in Archaeology ( Canadian Journal of Archaeology )
Topic: Method – Mortality in sleep apnea patients: A multivariate analysis of risk factors ( Sleep )
Topic: Significance – LC3 binds externalized cardiolipin on injured mitochondria to signal mitophagy in neurons: Implications for Parkinson disease ( Autophagy )
Technical and very specific – Single-shot quantum nondemolition measurement of a quantum-dot electron spin using cavity exciton-polaritons ( Physical Review )

Although similar, headings are not the same as titles. Headings head paragraphs and help structure a document. Effective headings make your paper easily scannable.

Common high level headings in dissertations and research papers are “Methods”, “Research results”, and “Discussion”. Lower level headings are often more descriptive.

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How to Title an Essay and Grab the Reader’s Attention Right From the Word Go

Take a moment to think about an essay title like a billboard. Isn't it an advertisement, too?! A good title catches the reader's attention and makes them eager to read more and discover what your essay offers. That's why it's important to know how to title an essay and how to make it informative and creative.

Your heading is the first thing the reader sees. Your job is to make them think, 'This is going to be interesting' rather than, 'Oh, it seems very boring.' In this article, we will teach you how to get the reactions you want the readers to have – ‘Amazing!’, ‘What an interesting essay title!’, ‘I’ll definitely read this one till the end.’ If that is the kind of sentiment you want your audience to have, then let’s get down to reading!

Basic Elements of an Essay Title

A misleading essay headline can make or break your paper's quality. That's why your words can be vital for the success of the entire work. But who wants to spoil their essay quality by choosing the wrong title?! To avoid this from happening, let's learn the basic elements of essay headings:

Intriguing hook. A hook creatively introduces an essay to readers. Do you prefer reading content with boring headlines, or are you more inclined to opt for something more eye-catching? Best essay titles are crafted from a catchy hook that acts like bait to draw the reader's attention.

Topic keywords. The first step to creating a great essay title is to find a few words that describe your paper's topic. A thesis statement is the best place where you can find them. For example, if your topic is electro-mobiles, your keywords can be – engine, electric car, charging, eco-friendly, etc. Topic keywords are the core of your essay; they identify the concepts you'll be exploring and answer the question 'What?'

Focus keywords. Once you figure out the topic, the next step is to make a title as specific as possible. This component answers the questions 'where' and 'when' to tell the place and time. This way, you can make the heading more professional.

For now, you are a step closer to knowing the ins and outs of an essay title creation that truly grabs the reader's attention.

What Makes a Great Essay Title?

The essay title is a critical element in writing that college students should master to produce excellent academic papers. It would help if you considered its characteristics to construct a creative title that stokes the reader's curiosity. Some may think it's a simple task, but it takes more effort than anticipated. To make it easier for you, let's go through each character that makes good essay titles:

Grabs Attention and Engages Readers

When chosen carefully, a catchy headline can draw in the readers. It should capture the attention of those who wouldn't typically read the topic. You can use different methods to develop an eye-catchy hook:

Metaphors. Coming up with a good analogy to make your essay's heading more memorable isn't difficult. The important thing is to explain that metaphor, which is a transfer of meaning, in your paper. Your essay title is a hook; if you deceive the reader's expectations, they won't go through the rest of your well-written essay.

Unexpected expressions. This type of heading can catch a reader's curiosity. Seeing something in the title that wasn't expected to be there typically pushes them forward to understand more about it.

Contradictions. With contradiction, you can create a title with the opposite meaning of your main idea. This hook can grab the reader's attention in an argumentative essay to determine how you will state your central idea.

If it's still confusing for you to grasp the essay title writing basics, making you wonder, 'Is there anyone who can write paper for me ?' You can always use our MBA essay writing service or economics paper writing service to do that job for you.

Clearly Stated and Concise

There is no need to tell the whole essay story in your title; you should just summarize your paper in a few creative words. The best practice is to divide the thesis statement into 4-5 words. Try to be as specific as possible; a good essay title should be short and simple.

Avoid using fancy words; start writing with a couple of keywords and put them together. No one likes complicated and tricky essay titles. So, try to stay away from strange phrases and complex structures.

Most students make mistakes by trying to make essay headings catchy and end up straying away from the truth. It's an inaccurate practice that can destroy your entire story. To construct good titles, they should mostly come from your essay's topic, thesis statement, and keywords.

Written in Active Voice

IIf your title contains a verb, always make sure it's in an active voice. Passive voice often confuses readers; giving them a clear idea of what they will read in your academic work would be better. For example, instead of writing, 'Is pollution of nature caused by cars' exhaust?' you can say, 'How does car exhaust contribute to the pollution of nature?'

Titles speak volumes about your academic essay. That's because it's worthwhile to make it perfect. If you want to bring your essay title prowess to the next level, you should be aware of every characteristic it has. This way, it gets easier for you to complete this part of the story, paper, blog article, or any type of assignment you're up to.

Promises Advantages to the Readers

Your aim in creating good essay title examples is to grab the reader's attention. But with that intention, it should also promise them some advantages. For Instance, when you are reading a title that catches your interest, sometimes it isn't enough to make you go through the whole writing. Maybe because you don't have time for it, but if that title also gives the feeling that it will be informative, you will save it to read for later. That's why the title needs to be creative and informative at the same time.

If you can't make good essay titles yet, don't feel bad about yourself. Sometimes, even professional writers experience writer's block while thinking of an ideal heading. What matters is to overcome it, use your writing skills and create a title for an essay that everyone should be willing to read.

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Avoids Acronyms and Jargons

For now, we already know that an essay focuses on attracting attention. But it should be done accurately. More often than not, the specific essay title ideas sound more creative for you while using some kind of jargon, but it's not common in academic writing. An inaccurate essay title can break the overall quality of your paper.

You should also avoid writing about any unethical or immoral subjects. It may be an interesting topic for you to discuss, but it can't be done in narrative and descriptive essays or any kind of academic writing.

Using acronyms in your creative titles isn't the best practice, either. Even if it's a known acronym for everyone, you shouldn't write it anyway. For example, if you want to use the word 'NASA' in your title, which is an acronym, the right way to do it is to write the full name – 'National Aeronautics and Space Administration.'

How to Come up with a Title for an Essay in 5 Easy Steps?

Different types of essays have the same pattern for writing titles. So, for example, if you are writing a descriptive essay now and tomorrow, you need to write a narrative essay. You don't have to use different rules to create their titles. But for the research paper, you need more other details.

I guess you already know the main characteristics of great essay titles. Now, we can guide you on how to create one yourself. Let's define the steps how to come up with a good title for an essay:

Think About Your Audience

Of course, while writing any essay or paper, you always think about who reads it. It's crucial because you should match their interests to impress them. The same works for the title, too. Think about who will read your writing while choosing a headline. What is most likely to appeal to them? Is this paper going to the professor who loves humor? Then use one. Analyze the writing style your readers like, match it and use it to create a title for an essay.

You are crafting your writing for a specific audience; think from their perspective and write a title that can grab enough attention.

Go Through Your Essay Assignment Guidelines Again

While writing an essay, students often dive into creative thinking that can deviate from the main guidelines. To avoid that happening, always go through your essay instructions several times. Check if there are any special requirements for appropriate titles and follow them. In such a way, you can always be sure to stay in the right direction with your essay title.

Read through Your Essay Again

It's typically rare for a good title to come to your mind suddenly; it often needs to be worked on. Great titles are usually crafted from the keywords, thesis statement, and essay topic. Write them down and think of how you can connect them all creatively. These words reflect the central idea and main concept of your essay. Then, re-read your writing, join the main words into sentences and convert them into shorter phrases. Doing this way, you can create a title for an essay that will be both creative and informative.

Restate Your Title

While working on headlines, many essay title ideas can pop up in your mind. Some of them can be fully formed, but whichever you choose, write it down, expand and edit several times. Make the title as simple and informative as possible. Be direct and never mislead the readers, or you can lose their trust; plus, it can only harm your paper's quality. Edit your title until you find it catchy, too. Be enthusiastic and use all your writing skills to create the best headline for your work.

Write Your Title Last

The best advice on how to make a creative title for an essay is exactly like this. Then, when you finish the work, you already have the main concept and all the keywords from which you can craft a great essay headline. This way, you can be more precise, too, as you already know your whole paper.

Now, you have all the essay titling to make the whole writing process easier for you. But, of course, if it still doesn't help, you can always use a professional writer to help you write the paper.

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Use our cheap paper writing service, and our experts will do that job for you.

Essay Title Formats

We already discussed the characteristics of an essay and guided you on how to create one, but did you know there are different headline formats? Do you know which one you were assigned with? The most commonly used formats are APA and MLA. So let's define both of them to clear all the confusion:

Essay Title Page in APA

You’ve already learned the how-to essay title essentials, so it’s time to proceed to the formatting rules. Now let's see in which format you prefer to write.

In APA format, your title should be in the title case. That means every word that isn't prepositions, articles, coordinating conjunctions, or the word 'to' paired with the infinitive must be capitalized.

A separate cover page in APA format is a must. The following should be listed: The title of your writing, your full name, the institution and department you are in, the course the paper is for, your instructor's name, and the due date. All must be double-spaced and centered. Your cover page in APA should look like this, for example:

The Effects of Car Pollution on Nature

Nadia. K Smith

Department of Nature Sciences, University of California

Nat135: Environmental Problems

Dr. Sarah Williams

September 17, 2021

This example can give you an overview of how to title a page in this format. Also, remember that the APA format is usually used for technical and scientific works.

Essay Title Page in MLA

Similar to the APA format, MLA requires essay titles to be in the title case, too. But it has different rules for the title page. In this format, no title page is required. Instead of it, you must add a 4-line header on the first page.

The header lists your full name, the instructor's name, the course number or title, and the submission date. The header is double-spaced and left-aligned, and the paper's title is centered under the header. For example:

Professor Garcia

Humanities 201

October 10, 2019

The Importance of Following an Essay Structure Guidelines

This is what your essay title in MLA format should look like. MLA is typically used in humanities subjects, such as literary studies, media studies, and languages. We also recommend that you read our article on MLA in-text citation – this information may be useful to you.

Good Essay Title Examples

Knowing theory isn’t sufficient without putting it to practical use, don’t you agree? Let’s check out ten APA and MLA essay title examples to bring your newly obtained knowledge into play.

APA Essay Title Examples

The Impact of Digital Technology on Academic Performance: A Comprehensive Analysis.
Exploring the Role of Gender Stereotypes in Workplace Dynamics.
The Relationship Between Social Media Usage and Mental Health Among Adolescents.
An Examination of Environmental Policies and Their Effectiveness in Addressing Climate Change.
The Influence of Parenting Styles on the Development of Emotional Intelligence in Children.

MLA Essay Title Examples

Rethinking Shakespearean Tragedy: A Comparative Analysis of Hamlet and Macbeth.
Narrative Identity in Modern Literature: Unraveling the Threads of Selfhood.
The Symbolism of Nature in the Poetry of Emily Dickinson: A Close Reading.
Globalization and Cultural Identity: Interconnected Narratives in Contemporary Fiction.
Reexamining Historical Perspectives: The Complex Legacy of the American Revolution.

Final Thought

If you went through the whole article, you now know the importance of a great title. Unfortunately, good essays are often ignored because of a weak headline. Don't let any of your papers be one of them. If you want your paper to be excellent, it should intrigue your readers and make them eager to go through the whole work.

A compelling subject can be the hardest part of your paper, and it takes a great effort to create a perfect name. But it's worthwhile when you see how many readers' attention it grabs. So be enthusiastic, turn your imaginative thinking on and come up with creative headings for your papers. Now, you have all the resources to know how to make a good title for a composition.

But if there are times when you don't feel like writing anything, you are just sitting in front of the desk and wondering: 'Can anyone write my term paper ?' You have the answer to that question, too. You can always use the help of professional writers to do any of your papers for you.

Essay Writing Guide

How To Title An Essay

How to Title an Essay - A Detailed Guide

10 min read

Why is it Important to Have a Good Essay Title?

A great essay title is very important, and it can make or break the overall quality of your essay.

The reason is pretty simple: the title you choose for your essay is the first thing that will decide if your readers will continue reading your paper or not.

That’s why the choice of words and how you create a title is very important. If you are thinking the content of your essay is what matters, then you are wrong. To get a good grade and impress your teacher, every part of the paper plays an important role.

Creating a title that convinces people to read your essay also allows you to showcase your knowledge and writing skills.

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What are the Basic Components of an Essay Title?

There are different types of essays , and each essay has a specific structure that can be followed for writing a well-written paper. Creating an essay title has it is own method, too.

Below, you can find the main components of an essay title.

The Catchy Hook: It introduces the topic in the most interesting and creative way.
Topic Keywords: It is the ‘what’ question of your essay. This component of an essay title identifies the concept that you will discuss in your essay.
Focus Keywords: It is the ‘when’ and ‘where’ question of your essay. It provides more information about the headline and makes it more professional.

How To Make A Good Title For An Essay?

There are a few principles that you should keep in mind when titling an essay.

Write Essay First, Title in the Last

One effective approach is to complete your entire essay first and then tackle the title last. This method allows you to gain a comprehensive understanding of what would resonate with your readers.

Utilize Your Thesis

Your thesis statement , typically found in your essay's introductory paragraph, can be a goldmine for title inspiration. Reworking it can lead to a compelling and relevant essay title.

Take into Account the Tone of Your Paper

Consider the tone of your essay, as it significantly influences the title's choice. For serious topics, maintain a serious and appropriate tone in your title.

Use Relevant Keywords

Incorporate two to three relevant keywords within your title. These keywords should reflect the core themes of your essay and help potential readers find your work.

Get Help from Online Tools

Exploring online title generator tools can provide valuable insights into crafting an effective essay title. These tools can spark creativity and suggest suitable phrases that resonate with your essay's content.

Essay Titles in Different Formats

When titling an essay in different formats, it's important to follow the specific guidelines and formatting requirements of the style guide you are using. Below, you can find the basic guidelines for titling an essay for different formats:

Essay Title APA Format

Let's see what an APA title should include:

The title should be centered but not in bold or italics.
Use title case for the title.
Capitalize the first word of the title and any subtitles, as well as any major words within the title (e.g., The Psychology of Motivation: Understanding Human Behavior).
Use a 12-point Times New Roman or Arial font.

The Impact of Climate Change on Global Biodiversity

Essay Title MLA Format

Here is what an MLA paper title should include:

Title should be centered.
Use title case, which means capitalizing the first and last words of the title and all major words in between (e.g., The Art of Writing: Crafting Engaging Essays).
Do not underline, italicize, or use quotation marks for the title.
It's common to use a 12-point Times New Roman font.

Exploring the Themes in Shakespeare's Sonnets: Love, Time, and Beauty

Essay Title Chicago Format

Chicago style offers two options for formatting titles: headline-style and sentence-style.

Headline style: The title is in the title case and is centered. Major words are capitalized.

Example: The Decline of the Roman Empire: A Historical Analysis

Sentence style: The title is in sentence case (only the first word and proper nouns are capitalized). It is also centered. Use a 12-point Times New Roman or similar font.

Example: The decline of the Roman Empire: a historical analysis

MLA Format for a Book or Film Title Within the Essay

So, how to write a book title in an essay? If your essay discusses a book or film title, you would follow MLA formatting for titles within the essay. Enclose the title in double quotation marks.

Example: "The Catcher in the Rye": A Study of Adolescent Alienation

AMA Format (American Medical Association)

The title should be centered.
Use title case, with the first letter of major words capitalized (e.g., The Role of Genetics in Disease Prevention).
Do not use bold, italics, or quotation marks.
Use a 12-point Times New Roman font.

Example: The Impact of Nutrition on Cardiovascular Health

What are the Characteristics of a Good Essay Title?

A good essay title serves as a preview of the essay's content and should be engaging and informative. Here are the characteristics of a good essay title:

Clarity: The title should clearly convey the topic or subject matter of the essay. It should give the reader a sense of what to expect when they read the essay.
Relevance: The title should be directly relevant to the content of the essay. It should not mislead the reader by promising something that the essay does not deliver.
Conciseness: A good title is concise and to the point. It should be relatively short and avoid unnecessary words or phrases. Brevity is key.
Engagement: An effective title should be attention-grabbing and stimulate readers' interest. It should make them want to read the essay. This can be achieved through the use of intriguing language, a question, or a thought-provoking statement.
Originality: Aim for a title that is unique and original. Avoid clichés or overly generic titles that don't distinguish your essay from others on the same topic.
Balance: A good title strikes a balance between being descriptive and not giving away the entire essay. It should provide a sense of the topic without revealing all the details.
Appropriateness: Consider the context in which the essay will be read. The title should be appropriate for the intended audience and purpose of the essay.
Grammar and Style: The title should adhere to the rules of grammar and style for the chosen writing format (e.g., title case, sentence case) and should not contain errors.
Keywords: If relevant, include keywords or terms that are important to the subject matter. This can help with searchability and SEO if the essay is published online.
Readability: Ensure that the title is easy to read and understand. Avoid overly complex or jargon-filled titles unless the audience is well-versed in the subject matter.
Tone: The tone of the title should match the tone of the essay. For example, if the essay is serious and academic, the title should reflect that tone.
Memorability: A memorable title is more likely to stick in the reader's mind. If it's clever, thought-provoking, or evocative, it can make a lasting impression.

Additional Rules To Create a Good Essay Title

Here are additional rules and tips for creating a good title, summarized and rewritten in simpler language:

Title Each Section: Give every part of your writing a clear title. This helps organize your text and make it more understandable.
Reflect the Theme: Make sure your title reflects the main idea of your essay. It should give readers a good idea of what your essay is about.
Use Title Case: Capitalize the first letter of every word in your title, except for small words like pronouns (e.g., "it," "they"), articles (e.g., "a," "an," "the"), prepositions (e.g., "in," "on," "at"), and conjunctions (e.g., "and," "but"). These small words are not capitalized unless they are the first word in the title.
Avoid Underlining: Don't underline your title. Bold text is usually sufficient to emphasize the title. Some experts suggest that if you really want to underline it, don't bold it at the same time to avoid overemphasis.
Review and Edit: Always review the final version of your title. Check for grammar, structure, spelling, and overall quality. Re-read it to make sure it effectively represents your essay's topic and captures your reader's attention.
Using a Colon: If you decide to use a colon in your title, remember to follow the rules. A colon is used to separate two interesting parts of the title.
Simplify and Keep It Short: Rewrite your title in simple words and try to keep it short. Concise titles are often more effective.

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Some Interesting Example Essay Titles

If you are struggling to come up with a good essay title, refer to the following section. Here, you will find some interesting title examples for different kinds of essays.

How to Title an Essay About Yourself - Examples

Things that make you happy
The significance of personal growth
Your definition of feminism
Why is volunteering important?
The importance of a healthy lifestyle
Your favorite memory
Your proudest moment
Your secret talent
A place you’d want to go
Your most unfortunate day

How to Title an Essay for College - Examples

Poop, animals, and the environment
From homeschooling to the football field
The civil rights movement and its effects
Internet Influence on Kids
The popularity of Sports in the United States
A book that sparks your love for literature
The steps you took to fix an error in coding a program
A serious illness you battled
A talent you have had since you were young
A documentary that made you aware of a particular issue

Example Argumentative Essay Titles

Should animal testing be banned?
Is healthcare a basic human right?
Why does homework not improve learning?
Should video games be considered a sport?
Should teachers be paid more?
Is standardized testing effective?
Is space travel a waste of money?
Effects of video games on children
Is cloning ethical?
Is globalization good or bad?

How to title an essay examples - MyPerfectWords.com

Example Research Paper Titles

How does a search engine work?
Attention deficit disorder
Limitations of the media
What are the gender issues in education?
What are the pros and cons of school uniforms?
Discrimination in education
Education and funding
Disadvantages of homeschooling
How can eating disorders be treated?
Interracial marriage

Example Descriptive Essay Titles

The most beautiful place on earth
The beauty of the starry sky
A perfect companion for me
The best concert I attended Why I like my smartphone
An unusual room
Your favorite food
A favorite photograph
An accident scene
Your favorite car

Hopefully, now you understand how to title an essay in the best way possible. Refer to the above guidelines before you begin the writing process.

However, you can also get help from our essay writing service if you don’t know how to title an essay. Professional essay writers at MyPerfectWords.com can help you write a creative title or even the whole essay from scratch for you.

Feel free to contact our paper writer online anytime and get the best essay writing help.

Nova Allison is a Digital Content Strategist with over eight years of experience. Nova has also worked as a technical and scientific writer. She is majorly involved in developing and reviewing online content plans that engage and resonate with audiences. Nova has a passion for writing that engages and informs her readers.

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Keep reading

How to Title an Essay?

Purpose and importance of essay title.

An essay title bears great importance, which is why a wrong headline choice can make or break the quality of the paper you submit. Why? The reason is simple. The title you choose has to intrigue your professor or other readers. It must make them want to start reading the whole thing to find out what you wrote and how you developed an argument. This is especially important for an argumentative essay topic . That is why the words you use are vital to the success of the entire work.

The title is, in fact, the first thing your professor, client, or other readers see and your job is to get the “This seems very interesting” reaction, rather than “Oh God, this will be boring.”

Some may assume that the text is the only thing that matters. Every part of your paper plays a huge role if you want to get positive feedback and a good grade. Choosing a title that encourages people to read your essay because they’re curious also allows you to find fertile ground to showcase your knowledge, wisdom, and writing skills simultaneously. This is particularly important for freelance writers whose success depends on the number of people who open and read their essays and articles.

What Are the Qualities of a Good Essay Title

Before you start writing a title for your essay, it is always useful to know more about the qualities that every headline should have. When you know all characteristics of good titles, you’re bound to make wise decisions and complete this part of the essay writing process successfully.

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Below we present the most important qualities for the title of your paper:

Eye-catching – think about it. Do you prefer reading content or academic papers with boring headlines, or you’re more inclined to opt for something with an interesting, eye-catching deadline? The answer is obvious

Credible – most students and freelance writers make mistakes by trying to make their titles catchy. In such a way, they stray from the truth, thus making the headline inaccurate or a complete, blatant lie. Nothing will anger your professor like a heading that doesn’t correspond to the truth

Easy to read – nobody likes complicated and tricky titles, not even your professor. Stay away from strange phrases, complex structures, and even some uncommon fonts when writing your headline

Active voice – if your heading contains verbs, always make sure they’re in active rather than passive voice. For instance, instead of “Is regression of society caused by celebrity culture”, you should write “How does celebrity culture contribute to the regression of society?”.

Brief – whenever you can, make an essay title concise. Long headlines are confusing and don’t demonstrate your skills for laconic writing

Accurate – regardless of the topic or niche and under no circumstances write an inaccurate essay title. It would help if you gave your readers a clear idea of what they will read in an essay. Never try to mislead. It can only harm the overall quality of the essay, and your professor will not appreciate it

What Are The Components of the Essay Title?

Our experts state that all types of essays have their outline formula you can use to write a high-quality paper. If you build your heading, you can create your formula too. Below are the main components of your essay’s title:

A catchy hook – introduces the paper in a creative way
Topic keywords – the “core” of your essay. This component identifies concepts you’ll be exploring
Focus keywords – the “where/when” of your essay. Together with topic keywords, these are vital for your headline and provide more info that makes it professional

Example: Buy Me a Date: Consumerization and Theories of Social Interaction in 21st Century Online Dating Sites

Let’s deduce:

Catchy hook – “buy me a date”
Topic keywords – “consumerism, social interaction, dating”
Focus keywords – “21st century”

checklist for writing a title for an essay

Stuck on How to Title an Essay?

Check out these example essay titles. Essay Topic Generator Look for topic View more

How to Create Essay Title

Now that you know the importance of essay titles and the qualities they should have, it’s time to learn how to create them. Don’t feel bad about yourself if you can’t make a good essay title on the spot. Even the most prolific writers experience writer’s block when choosing an ideal headline. The writer’s block isn’t the issue here. It matters how you overcome it and create the title. Here are a few ideas that you’ll find useful.

Write Essay First, Title Last

Creating the title and writing your essay may seem logical, but doing the opposite can be more beneficial. Most authors never start with the title. Of course, you may have some working headline in mind, allowing you to focus, develop an argument, and so on. But, writing your paper will give you a clear idea of what to use in your title. As you write and reread your essay, you’ll know what to say in the title and intrigue your reader. You’ll experience your “Aha; I’ll write this” moment.

Another benefit of creating a title is that you won’t waste too much time. It is not uncommon for students to spend hours just figuring out the proper title for their essays. That’s the time you could have spent researching, creating an outline, or writing. If you still feel confused, you can get professional online writing help at Edusson.

Use Your Thesis

Here is yet another reason to leave the title for the end. Good titles offer your reader (or more of them) the reason for reading your paper. Therefore, the best place to find that reason is the thesis statement you’ve already written in the introduction. Try working the thesis statement, or at least a part of it, into a title.

Let’s say your thesis statement is this: “The American colonies rebelled against Great Britain because they were tired of being taxed, and they resented British military presence in their lives and homes.”

To create a title, you may use the alliteration “Tired of Taxes and Troops,” or you can opt for “Rebellion of American Colonies against British Rule: Taxes, Troops, and other factors.”

Use Popular Phrases and Clichés You Can Re-work

Popular catchphrases that apply to the essay’s topic make eye-catching titles, too, particularly when the phrase is amusing or creates an interesting pun. Besides popular phrases, you can also go for clichés and make some tweaks to re-work and adapt them to the topic of your essay and title itself. For instance: “Fit to be tried: The battle over gay marriage in the courts”.

Consider the Tone of Your Essay

Of course, the tone of your essay plays an important role in creating a perfect title. If you are writing about a serious topic, don’t be witty, silly, or off-the-wall with your headline. If your essay is a personal statement with some anecdotes, you can go for a sparkling yet intelligent title. Always make sure the tone of the title and essay match. Bear in mind that even in amusing titles, you should avoid using jargon. Don’t use abbreviations in your headlines as well.

Use Quote or Central Idea

This isn’t a general rule, but it is handy when applicable. Your title can feature a quote or a part of it taken from our similar interesting essay topics and ideas you’re writing about. If appropriate and relevant to the subject, even a part of a song lyric can serve the same purpose. You can take a fragment of a thought-provoking quote when your essay is about a book. For example: “Toil and trouble: Murder and intrigue in Macbeth”.

Sum Up Your Essay in THREE WORDS

This is a useful technique for creating essay titles. All you have to do is to sum up your entire essay or a thesis statement in three words and use them to build the headline, put a colon and then insert what your essay is all about.

How to Punctuate an Essay Title

Many authors find it difficult to punctuate titles in essays. Properly punctuating titles may be tricky, because the standards aren’t always consistent. Here are some professional tips from our expert that used to write a college essay for students for appropriately punctuating titles using italics, capitalization, and quotation marks.

Although the criteria for proper title capitalization vary widely, here are a few guidelines. Except for articles and prepositions, capitalize the first and final word in a title and every other word in the title. Some people recommend capitalizing prepositions with five or more letters. Of course, just the initial letter is capitalized.

Use punctuation marks only when essential, not at random . Commas, colons, and semicolons are examples of punctuation marks that should be used when they are required. Quotation marks should be placed wherever one occurs in the text of an essay or on the works-cited page.

If your essay contains a subtitle, place a colon after the title and the subheading on the following line underneath it . Even if your headline and subtitle are very short, use two lines. Your work’s additional titles or headers should be bolded but not bigger than the text that follows them. Arrange them to the left and insert them either at the beginning of a section with a period or on their line without a period.

Self-sufficient works or collective essays are italicized . For example, the title of a newspaper might be placed in italics. The title of an article, a song from an album, and a TV episode would be in quotation marks.

Using italics instead of quotation marks consistently throughout your text is critical. The standards for capitalizing and punctuating titles differ in writing. Certain writing assignments need to use one writing handbook’s format over another. Therefore, it might be useful to consult your professor to choose the best guidebook to follow for academic work.

Examples of Good and Bad Titles for Essays

Unsurprisingly, the reader is drawn to an essay title immediately. Nobody loves lengthy and clumsy headlines that do not convey the paper’s main argument. Pay close attention to the word choice as you angle your work. Make use of your rational thinking and creativity. Our specialists that can gladly help you to write essays for money produced the sections below for further information.

It should be simple to read

Essay titles that are completed yet difficult to grasp will not aid you. As a result, it is better to avoid using difficult terms and ideas. Choose something that every level of the reader may read and understand.

Good: “Joseph Stalin vs. Winston Churchill”, “How to Deal with Depression”, “Pros and Cons of Freelance”.

Bad: “Employees Use Social Networking Rather Than Concentrating During Work Hours”, “When Should You Start Giving Your Baby Solid Foods”

It must be short

The title of your essay should not be overly lengthy. It should instead be succinct and straight to the point. Long essay headlines will mislead your readers and not highlight your writing abilities.

Good: “Best App for Writers”, “The Effect of Racism”.

Bad: “What Do School Shooting Survivors Do When They Return to School”

It must be captivating

If you write a good title, it might become an attention-grabbing aspect. Don’t pass up the opportunity to wow your audience right away.

Good: “Suppose This Happened on Your First School Day”, “Do You Engage in Any of These 10 Awkward Behaviors?”

Bad: “Everlasting Feelings”, “Recent Advances in Kidney Failure Treatment”

Mistakes to avoid

Avoid negative tone and sensitive problems
No dramatic and unclear titles
Don’t overuse fonts and punctuation
Be simple and avoid complicated language
Try to sound professional, don’t use filler words

25 Captivating Titles For An Essay

Do you want your essay to persuade your readers or professor? Start with the right words in the title. How your words sound matter more than how sensible they are. One of the greatest principles every student must adhere to is to create meaningful and persuasive papers. The first important step is choosing a catchy topic. If you feel lost, you can look up a list of argumentative topic examples from your field of study. A captivating subject can do a ton of wonderful things: increase the readers’ engagement, grab the professor’s attention, make your paper more interesting, and score higher marks.

What topic idea do you think would make someone start reading your paper immediately? Interesting, confident, creative, striking, bold are some of the words that describe the best essay titles.

Regardless of the paper, you handle, use the following steps on your way to crafting an interesting topic.

Find a creative hook, fact, or quote
Get the right words to describe your idea
Think about a statement that summarizes your paper

Are you stuck wondering how to title your essay? Don’t worry – we have a great selection of catchy college essay titles that will capture the reader’s attention. Our list is sure to help you make a lasting impression on your professor or any other reader. If you need further assistance, you can also take advantage of our literature review service for the best results.

Argumentative Essay Title Examples

Society Has The Responsibility Of Fighting Anorexia
Every Country Must Activate The Death Sentence
Is The US Education System Of Any Help To International Students?
The Most Corrupt Nations In The World
Is Politics A Practical Art Or An Inborn Talent?
Does Alcohol Destroy The Brain?
The Most Appropriate Age To Vote
Spanish Is Not The Easiest Language To Learn
Do Steroids Help Or Destroy Human Body?

Persuasive Essay Title Examples

Capitalism: The Perpetrator Of Social Development
Are Illegal Immigrants A Big Issue?
Alternative Medicine: Pros And Cons
What Role Do Guidance Counselors Play In The Mental Health Of Teenagers
TV As A Major Contributor To Violence In Society
How Would Superman Be In The Real World?
Horror Movies Must Be Banned For Kids’ Sake

Catchy Essay Title Examples

Team Games Should Be Played By Both Boys And Girls
Zoos Vs. Human Prisons
The Good Side Of War
Marijuana Can Assist In Peacemaking
School Kids Should Stop Wearing Uniforms
The Use Of Filthy Language On The Internet
Technology Is Turning People Into Zombies
The Pros And Cons Of Globalization
Tsunami Is A Death Wave

Bottom line

The success of your essay doesn’t only depend on the argument you develop, research you do, the title matters as well. Most students struggle to find an ideal headline, but with a few easy tips and tricks from this post, you can forget about frustrations, save some time, and create a catchy and informative headline to intrigue readers. But if you have some doubts, why not try custom essay writing at Edusson and make sure you have everything in place for a successful essay?

FAQ About How to Title an Essay

Can an essay title be a question.

Yes, it can be a question. It should be related to the facts presented in the essay and should represent the thesis that the author intends to prove. But don’t overuse it. Sometimes it may add to your essay a less formal tone.

How Long Should An Essay Title Be?

Excellent research paper titles include precise terms and phrases that appropriately reflect the article’s key topic. Come up with a title for essay that is brief yet contains enough keywords. This will allow others to locate it while searching related databases. A typical rule of thumb is 5 – 10 words.

Should An Essay Title Be Italicized?

If the source is independent, italicize the title. Write the titles of books, films, websites, and magazines in italics. If the paper belongs to a larger piece of work, add the quotation marks. Writers use them for articles, websites, essays, and songs .

Effective Ways to Improve Creativity

How to Write a Synthesis Essay

How to Use Sentence Starters for Essays
How to Write a Hook for your Essay or Paper [Examples Included]

Improve your writing with our guides

Writing a Great Research Summary and where to Get Help on it

How To Write A Process Essay: Essay Outline, Tips, Topics and Essay Help

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Writing an effective title

Writers often omit or underuse the helpful tool that is an essay title. Feeling stuck, writers may give up on generating a title, or merely label their essays by assignment sequence (“Paper #2”) or task (“Rogerian Argument”). An absent or non-specific title is a missed opportunity: titles help writers prepare readers to understand and believe the paper that is to follow.

Remember the functions of a title.

As composition and rhetoric scholars Maxine Hairston and Michael Keene explain,

a good title does several things: First, it predicts content. Second, it catches the reader’s interest. Third, it reflects the tone or slant of the piece of writing. Fourth, it contains keywords that will make it easy to access by a computer search. (73)

Keeping these functions in mind will help a writer choose a specific and meaningful title, not a mere label.

Think of title-writing as a process, and allow yourself to stretch your thinking during that process.

Like any piece of writing, an effective title does not appear in one magic moment; it takes brainstorming and revising. Richard Leahy's “Twenty Titles for the Writer” exercise helps writers slow down and engage in the process of title-writing.

Although it can feel painstaking and a little silly, actually doing all the steps of Leahy’s exercise takes your thinking in new directions, and almost always guarantees an interesting and effective title. (Of course, how you use the exercise is up to you.) “Twenty Titles for the Writer” is below.

Twenty Titles for the Writer

1. Copy out of your draft a sentence that could serve as a title.

2. Write a sentence that's not in the draft to use as a title.

3. Write a title that is a question beginning with What, Who, When, or Where.

4. Write a title that is a question beginning with How or Why.

5. Write a title that is a question beginning with Is/Are, Do/Does, or Will.

6. Pick out of the essay some concrete image—something the reader can hear, see, taste, smell, or feel—to use as a title.

7. Pick another concrete image out of the essay. Look for an image that is a bit unusual or surprising.

8. Write a title beginning with an -ing verb (like “Creating a Good Title”).

9. Write a title beginning with On (like “On the Titles of Essays”).

10. Write a title that is a lie about the essay. (You probably won't use this one, but it might stimulate your thinking.)

11. Write a one-word title—the most obvious one possible.

12. Write a less obvious one-word title.

13. Write a two-word title.

14. Write a three-word title.

15. Write a four-word title.

16. Write a five-word title.

17. Think of a familiar saying, or the title of a book, song, or movie, that might fit your essay.

18. Take the title you just wrote and twist it by changing a word or creating a pun on it.

19. Do the same with another saying or title of a book, song, or movie.

20. Find two titles you've written so far that you might use together in a double title. Join them together with a colon [ : ].

Hairston, Maxine, and Michael Keene. Successful Writing . 5th ed. New York: Norton, 2003.

Title exercise adapted from Richard Leahy's “ Twenty Titles for the Writer .” College Composition and Communication 43.4 (1992): 516–519. JSTOR. University Libraries, U of Minnesota. 19 July 2007 <http://www.jstor.org>.

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How To Write An Essay

How To Title An Essay

Learn How to Title an Essay Like a Professional Writer

15 min read

Published on: Mar 1, 2023

Last updated on: Jan 29, 2024

What is an Essay Title

An essay title is the name or label given to an essay, which provides a brief summary of the main topic or theme of the essay.

It should be catchy, informative, and relevant to the content of the essay, while also giving readers an idea of what to expect from the writing.

A good essay title should capture the reader's attention and make them interested in reading the essay.

Purpose and Importance of Essay Title

A title holds great importance in essay writing. It can easily make or break the quality of your work.

Choosing a title that interests the audience and motivates them to read your essay. This is because they are intrigued, it serves as fertile land to present your knowledge, ideas, writing skills, and critical thinking.

Qualities of an Essay Title

When coming up with the topic or title for your essays, keep in mind that it should contain the following qualities:

Eye-catching and unique: The title should be eye-catching and unique to grab the readerâs attention.
Based on facts: A good title is always believable and based on facts. Especially for writing essay types and papers that stand on facts and logic should have believable titles.
Audience-appropriate: Readability is key. Using fancy and bombastic vocabulary that is not common for the audience will affect the readership.
Tone: A great essay title is always written in an active voice.
Brief and Short: The title should be brief and to the point. Avoid dragging titles into long sentences.
To-the-Point: An essay title should be accurate and clearly present the main theme of the essay. This will allow the reader to know what to expect from the document.

Components of an Essay Title

Just as all formal writings have an outline to follow, a good essay title is constructed using a formula as well. Keep in mind that the shorter, the better. A title must not exceed 10 to 12 words.

The components of an essay title include

An attention-grabbing and catchy hook
Tone sets the overall mood or attitude conveyed by the title.
The focus keyword - the âwhereâ and âwhenâ in your essay.

Once you know the importance and elements of an essay title, you are more likely to create a better title.

How to Title an Essay?

Almost all essay writers find it tricky to make an appropriate title for their essays. However, writing a title is not only based on good writing skills. You need to know the basics of creating it.

A good and effective essay title can be created by taking the following steps:

1. First Write an Essay

It will be extremely beneficial and easy to create a title once you have written an entire essay.

After writing your essay, you will be clear about what title suits your content the most. Complete your essay and then start reading it.

This will give you a clearer picture of how to address the essay properly.

Deciding on a topic or a title can be time taking. Another advantage of writing a title at the end is that it saves a lot of your time.

Also, the wrong topic makes it difficult for you to choose the best essay title.

Struggling with getting started with your essay? Check out this helpful guide on how to write an essay !

2. Use your Thesis Statement

There is another reason you should leave your title for an end. An effective title provides a reason for the readers to read your essay. The best part to find a reason is in the thesis statement in the introduction of your essay.

You can always get a title from a thesis statement or by using a part of that argument in the title.

3. Popular Phrases

Catchphrases and cliches that go with the theme of your essay can be used as the titles as well. When popular phrases are appropriate and interesting, they make effective puns.

Play with the cliches and twist them to create something of your own. Be creative and innovative for your titles as much as you can.

4. Consider the Tone

Another trick to creating an effective title for your essay is to consider the essayâs tone and come up with something related to it.

If the tone and subject of your essay are serious and sad, never make the mistake of addressing your title in an informal and fun way.

Do not try to go off the wall in such cases. The tone of your essay and the title have a strong connection to a good essay.

5. Use a Central Idea or a Quote

It is not mandatory but an easy way to create a title that uses a central idea. You can use a quote as the title of your essay topic.

If the purpose is served correctly, even song lyrics work the best sometimes.

6. Summary in Three Words

The most common and basic technique is to get a title from the summary of your essay.

A writer can summarize the entire essay or the central idea and thesis statement in three words and write a title.

This can be a title by putting it in a headline, inserting a colon, and stating the purpose of your essay.

7. Movie Titles in an Essay

A movie title can also be used as a title in an essay.

There are some basic ways to do that. A writer can highlight the title, use a capital letter for the first letter of the movie title, and italicize its font.

Another technique is by creating a sentence structure and using a movie title in it. You can use quotation marks as well as the underlining tool. However, title the essay according to the field of study and donât make it irrelevant.

Mistakes to Avoid While Giving a Title to Your Essay

Here are some tips to keep in mind when crafting effective essay titles to avoid common mistakes:

Positive themes

Avoid writing about sensitive, unethical, or immoral topics, such as drugs, prostitution, or murder.

Personal information

Your personal negative experiences should not be included in your essay. However, you can still include lessons learned from those experiences in a professional manner.

Relevant Questions

Make sure to ask questions that are relevant to your field of study to ensure you choose an appropriate topic.

Professional tone

Keep your essay professional and avoid including personal information or experiences that are not relevant. Your readers are not interested in your personal life.

Understanding requirements

It's important to understand your professor's requirements to avoid choosing the wrong topic and wasting time and effort.

Neutral perspective

Avoid taking an offensive approach in your essay and steer clear of controversial topics such as religion, abortion, and politics.

How to Title an Essay in Different Formats?

All academic essays require a format through which the writer shapes his document. This format varies from academic level to level and institution as well. The format styles include MLA, APA, Chicago, and Harvard.

MLA, APA, and Chicago are the most common formats that are usually used. If you are writing an essay choosing a specific format, all of the parts should be drafted accordingly.

From titling an essay to drawing a conclusion, the writer must follow the format properly to create a strong essay.

How to Title an Essay in MLA Format?

No matter which essay format you are using to shape your argumentative essay, descriptive essay, etc. The qualities of the title and components remain the same.

Although the formatting of the title may differ. For an MLA style , format your essay title in the following pattern:

On the cover page of your essay, using double spacing, write your name in the upper left corner
Along with your name, present your instructorâs name, the course title, and the date.
Double-space a line and using centered alignment, provide the essay title in font size 12 pt.
Do not bold or italicize the title.
Capitalize important words only and not the articles in the title.

How to Format an Essay in APA Format?

If you are writing an essay in APA style, you might be wondering how to title an essay in apa format.

Simply use the following guidelines to format your title and make your writing process easy:

Type the title in upper and lowercase letters
Use centered alignment on the upper half of the page and write the title
The title in APA style should not exceed more than 12 words
Avoid using abbreviations and irrelevant words
The title should be presented in a line or two and not more than that
Use double spacing between the lines
Beneath the title, write your name and the institutional affiliation.

How to Title an Essay Chicago Style

To create an appropriate final version of the title for your essay in Chicago style, you should follow certain guidelines.

Use a heading level 2 (H2) for your title
Center the title on the page and use title case capitalization
Keep the title informative and concise, aiming for no more than 12-15 words
Consider including relevant keywords to make your essay easier to find
Avoid using slang or informal language in your title
Use proper grammar and punctuation

How to Choose a Good Title for an Essay

Choosing a good title for an essay is crucial as it sets the tone and theme for the reader.

Here are some important qualities to consider when selecting a title:

Informative: A good title should give the reader an idea of what the essay is about. It should be concise and clearly convey the main topic or argument of the essay.
Catchy and Memorable: A title that is catchy and memorable can grab the reader's attention and make them more likely to read the essay. Consider using wordplay, puns, or alliteration to make your title stand out.
Unique: A title that is unique and original can make your essay stand out from others. Avoid using generic or clichÃ© titles that have been overused.
Accurate: A title should accurately reflect the content of the essay. Avoid using sensational or misleading titles that do not accurately convey the main point or argument of the essay.
Relevant: A title should be relevant to the current times or issues. Especially in subjects like current events, social or political issues, and scientific research.
Reflective of Tone: The title should also reflect the tone of the essay. If the essay is humorous, the title should be as well. If the essay is serious or academic, the title should reflect that.

Essay Title Examples

Just like the tone of every essay differs, the title also differs from each type of essay. For example, movie titles can only be used for informal writing and narrative essays.

Some examples of essay titles are provided below.

Here are some more examples of essay titles.

Tips to Draft an Essay Title

Titles for Different Types of Essay

How To Title An Essay About A Book

Bad vs Good Essay Title Examples - H3

Tips for Crafting an Outstanding Title

Here are some tips for crafting an outstanding title:

Brainstorm: Begin by brainstorming a list of potential titles for your essay or paper. Write down as many ideas as you can think of, even if they seem silly or irrelevant at first.
Be Specific: A good title should be specific and accurate. It should give the reader an idea of what the essay is about. Avoid vague or general titles that don't provide any useful information.
Use Keywords: Including keywords in your title can make it easier for readers to find your work in searches. Consider what words or phrases a person might use to search for your topic and incorporate them into your title.
Be Creative: A creative and unique title can make your work stand out from others. Consider using wordplay, puns, alliteration, or metaphors to create a memorable and attention-grabbing title.
Keep It Short and Sweet: While a title should be specific and informative, it should also be concise. Try to keep your title under 10-12 words, as longer titles can be difficult to read and remember.

For more tips, you can check out this video:

The success of your overall essay is not just based on how well you presented the argument and conducted research to gather the information. A title plays a vital role as well.

Creative titles are like the icing on the cake. Nobody will want to read it when it will not appeal to them.

Make your college essay and paper flawless, as they are the only thing that will get you scores in academics. So, you have to know what mistakes to avoid and what to do when title the essay.

However, you can ask professionals at our best essay service to write your essays perfectly and with the best quality.

Place your " write my college essay for me " request today to get your essays and research papers written by professionals and get writing services at exciting prices.

Also, try our AI writing tool to make your academic journey easier!

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it better to use a question or a statement as my essay title.

Whether to use a question or a statement as your essay title depends on the content and purpose of your essay.

Using a question can be effective if your essay is exploratory and seeks to answer a specific question. On the other hand, using a statement can be more appropriate if your essay has a clear argument or thesis statement.

Barbara P (Literature, Marketing)

Barbara is a highly educated and qualified author with a Ph.D. in public health from an Ivy League university. She has spent a significant amount of time working in the medical field, conducting a thorough study on a variety of health issues. Her work has been published in several major publications.

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How to Create an Essay Title: 7 Best Practices

Table of contents

The title of your essay is probably the first thing that your readers or professors will read, so it has to be perfect. If the title is appealing, you can consider half the battle won.

Your title is like a window to your mind and your power of expression. Through your title, your readers will determine if they are interested in reading your essay or not.

Choosing the right essay title gives a good impression, sets the tone of the paper, and augments the argument that is later discussed in the main body of the essay.

In this article, you will learn how to create an essay title that attracts attention and generates interest in your professor.

What are the Components of a Good Essay Title

A title can make or break the eagerness of wanting to read the entire essay. If you have an uninspiring title for an interesting, well-researched paper, your professor will most likely be put-off, making your entire effort go waste.

On the other hand, a clear and concise title helps to evoke inquisitiveness in your readers, making them open to what you have to say and the arguments you’ve addressed.

A good and clear title also emits the fact that you have researched and understood the prompt, you know what you want to write about, and you know how to frame it. This is a tremendous plus point as it's very important to bring your audience to attention so that you can get them to engage with and relate to your writing.

Before we talk about how to create an essay title, let’s take a look at the three components of a strong essay title:

A catchy hook - A creative way to introduce your subject argument to your readers. This is what draws your readers in.
Topic keywords - These keywords are related to the important topics that you will be exploring further and detailing in your essay. This is majorly relying on the “what” part of your paper.
Focus keywords or source - These stand firm on the “where/when” aspect of your essay. These keywords will help your readers understand a little more about the source of the argument and where the concepts that are to be discussed have originated from.

Example of an essay title for better understanding

“ What is the truth: Is Veganism a privilege for the 21st Century? ”

Hook : What is the truth?

Topic Keywords : Veganism; privilege

Source : 21st Century

7 Best Practices to Create an Essay Title and Captivate Readers

We know that the naming of the essay is just the first step, but it is one of the most important aspects of essay writing.

Here are seven practices to keep in mind while framing an essay title.

1. Craft the title at the end

People often waste too much time thinking about coming up with a good essay title first and then begin writing their essays.

It may seem like a logical thing to do, but it is not the most practical idea. If you still have a working headline in your mind, write it in the top corner of your essay for backup.

But as you write your essay, you will immediately come up with a variety of perfect essay titles that are brief and summarize the gist of the essay in a few words. This is because as you read and re-read your essay, you will have a clear idea as to what you are really saying in your draft and your title should represent the focus of your writing.

The time that you’ll spend thinking about your title could well be used to do research or creating an outline .

2. Use your thesis statement

A good title will influence your readers to be interested in your essay and explore it further. It will make them eager to know more about what you are writing. This is where your thesis statement plays an important role and provides a clear understanding of your title.

Your thesis statement and your title should be interdependent and since this statement is the focal argument of your paper, it should be incorporated at least as a part of your headline.

3. Consider the tone and audience of the essay

The title should grasp the reader's attention, and this can only be accomplished when you know who your target audience readers are going to be.

When you are submitting an essay as part of your college curriculum, you are reaching out to a learned faculty. It is important to keep your tone grave and your argument seriously. Avoid the usage of flippant language or slang because you are not talking to 16-year-olds. The audience is rooted in the transfer of knowledge, and your address to them should be likewise.

Similarly, in the case of the tone of the essay, a descriptive essay will have a fairly different tone from an argumentative essay . Since you are writing an academic essay, use a formal setting for writing your essay.

The subject of the essay also determines the tone. For instance, the way you title a fashion innovation essay would be quite different from the way you do a write-up about an archeological excavation.

The theme and audience of your essay should determine the method of crafting your essay title as well as give you a head start in framing your content.

Always make sure that the tone of your essay and your title match and have a similar theme, and don’t mislead the readers.

This video by Language Centre University of Groningen will help you determine the purpose, audience, and tone of your essay

4. Sum up your title in 5 words

Your essay title should be brief but should give your readers an idea regarding the main argument of your essay.

Think about it: if you had to summarize the focus of your essay in 5 words, what would it be? Long and detailed titles look cumbersome while making it tedious for readers to read or understand the context of your essay. The key is to get straight to the point.

5. Keep it simple

Don't use fancy or complicated words that might confuse your readers, instead go for straight-to-the-point words and avoid adding any unnecessary details in the title of your essay. Pick out important and useful keywords from your essay to frame a great title.

6. Look for creative quotes

There is no hard and fast rule for choosing essay titles from the content written. You can get creative and pick any quote, phrase or slogan that is relevant or appropriate to your specific paper and that suits as a headline.

You can also use popular phrases or idioms to generate that perfect title. This will make your topic look more approachable and relatable to your readers.

7. Avoid abbreviations

Why should you opt for using abbreviations, jargon, or slang in your essay title when you can write full, proper words?

You doesn't want all that hard work and commitment in crafting a great essay to go down the drain only because you used a “misc.” instead of writing ‘miscellaneous’ or a ‘vs.’ instead of ‘versus’.

Your readers will see an abbreviation on your essay title and think of your topic as too casual and not worth spending time on. Thus, they would move on to other topics and that will result in your essay being sidelined.

Conclusion: create a strong essay title

Generating a great essay title takes diligence, commitment, and proper time. The structure, each component, the appropriate words, and the clear but specific meaning and argument of your essay should be showcased in the title.

This ability, if cultivated well, will surely go a long way in earning you good grades and impressing your professors with your writing skills, your research competence, and your strengths in thinking through a topic.

When you need help in grabbing the reader's attention right from the outset, implementing these seven best practices will help you craft a strong essay title. If you’re not happy with your essay title or need help brainstorming, you can reach out to our experts at Writers Per Hour.

From researching topic ideas and framing essay titles to delivering an original, well-written fast essay - our professional essay writers are here to support you with all your essay writing needs!

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How to Come up With a Good Title

Last Updated: December 21, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Rachel Scoggins, PhD . Rachel Scoggins is a Visiting Assistant Professor of English at Lander University. Rachel's work has been presented at the South Atlantic Modern Language Association and the Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy. She received her PhD in Literary Studies from Georgia State University in 2016. There are 10 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 575,915 times.

Writing an essay or a story can seem like the hardest part of the project, but sometimes coming up with a catchy title can be just as challenging. However, with a combination of organization and creativity, you can create a wide selection of potential titles that will allow you to choose the perfect one for your work.

Things You Should Know

For non-fiction titles, try combining 2 elements, like a quote and a main theme, with a colon between them.
For fiction titles, jot down keywords about the main topic and characters. Arrange keywords in different combinations until you find something that you like.
Use strong, vivid language to make your title stand out from the crowd.

Writing a Title for Non-Fiction

Essays often change during the drafting and revising process. A title you come up with at the beginning may not reflect your essay when you have finished it. Make sure to also revise your title after you finish your paper.

Step 2 Identify major themes in your work.

Look at your thesis statement. This sentence contains the major argument of your paper and can help you craft a title.
Look at your topic sentences. Reading these sentences together can help you pick out themes, symbols, or motifs in your paper that can be integrated into the title.
Consider asking a friend to read your work to help you identify themes.

If you are writing a school assignment, or your audience are academics and specialists in your topic, use formal language. Avoid using a playful tone or slang terms.
If you are trying to reach an online audience, think of what keywords a reader might use to find your article. For example, if you wrote a how-to article, include words like "beginner" or "do it yourself" that would identify your writing as appropriate for all levels of ability.
If your piece is a news story, consider who you are writing about. For example, if are writing about an athletic team write down terms like "fan," "coach," "referee," or the team name. Readers with an interest in sports or that team can quickly identify your perspective and the topic of your story.

Step 4 Think about the function of a title.

Declarative titles state the main findings or conclusions.
Descriptive titles describe the subject of the article but do not reveal the main conclusions.
Interrogative titles introduce the subject in the form of a question. [6] X Research source

Look for attention-grabbing descriptions or phrases you're proud of. For example, in an essay on censorship choose a phrase like "forbidden music" that is descriptive but also intriguing.

For example, in an essay on religious persecution, a quote like "God was silent" is arresting and thought-provoking. Readers may immediately agree or disagree and will want to read your explanation.
If you use someone else's words, make sure to put them in quotation marks, even in the title.

Step 9 Create a list of possible titles.

The Negative Impact of Replacement Referees on Football Fans (Theme and Audience)
"A Crucible of Victory": Understanding the Western Front in World War One (Quote and Theme)
The Queen of Diamonds: Marie-Antoinette and Revolutionary Propaganda (Phrase and Theme)

Most words in your title should begin with a capital letter.
The first word and the first word after a colon should always be capitalized even if one of the "short words."
In general, do not capitalize the following words: and, a, an, the, or short prepositions if they are not the first letter in the title.
If the title of a book or film is part of your essay title, it should be put in italics, e.g., Gender Relationships Between Vampires in Twilight. Short story titles are always in quotation marks.
Know if the paper follows MLA, APA, or another style. Websites like Purdue University's Online Writing Lab , APA Style , and MLA Handbook can help you with conventions for titles.

Writing a Title for Fiction

For example, many young adult fantasy novels hinge on one or two intriguing words: Twilight, Bitten, Cinder, The Selection .

Try adding a more descriptive word to the basic title. Successful titles using the above words include The Giving Tree, A Tree Grows In Brooklyn, The Mystery of the Blue Train , and The Orphan Train .

Read your title out loud. Does it roll off the tongue? Is it exciting? Does it sound boring? Would you check out this title? The answers to these questions can help you revise the title.

For example, the use of the word desire in Eugene O'Neill's Desire Under the Elms is far more interesting than Love Under the Elms . [10] X Research source

Examples of this type of title include: The Grapes of Wrath; Absalom, Absalom; Gaudy Night and, The Fault in Our Stars .

Examples of this type of title include To Kill a Mockingbird, Catch-22, and Catcher in the Rye.

Step 9 Write down your inspirations when they come.

Community Q&A

Write the whole essay, go to your thesis and find a way to narrow it down to two to four words. Thanks Helpful 3 Not Helpful 0
Try this template to generate a good title. Thanks Helpful 4 Not Helpful 2

↑ https://www.trentu.ca/academicskills/how-guides/how-write-university/how-approach-any-assignment/writing-english-essay/drafting-english
↑ https://www.grammarly.com/blog/themes/
↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/common_writing_assignments/research_papers/identifying_audiences.html
↑ https://writing.umn.edu/sws/assets/pdf/quicktips/titles.pdf
↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6398294/
↑ https://blog.efpsa.org/2012/09/01/how-to-write-a-good-title-for-journal-articles/
↑ https://library.sacredheart.edu/c.php?g=29803&p=185911
↑ https://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/title
↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/brainstorming/
↑ https://www.writersdigest.com/at-work-on-first-draft/7-tips-to-nail-the-perfect-title

About This Article

To help you come up with a title for an essay, write a draft of your paper first so you know what its main themes are. Then, write down key points in your essay that you could include in the title. Before making a decision, take your audience into account, such as by trying to include keywords in a title if your article is for an online audience. Additionally, decide whether you want to state the conclusion of your piece up front with a declarative title or introduce the subject as a question with an interrogative title. For tips on how to come up with a title for a story or other work of fiction, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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How to Title an Essay: Guide with Creative Examples [2024]

It’s not a secret that the reader notices an essay title first. No catchy hook or colorful examples attract more attention from a quick glance. Composing a creative title for your essay is essential if you strive to succeed, as it:

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causes the first impression;
reflects the tone, topic, and the purpose of the writing;
indicates the author’s credibility.

Thus, how you name your paper is of the same importance as the paper itself.

Good titles for essays should be concise and eye-catching. Nobody likes long and cumbersome headings that do not reflect the point of the paper. While tilting your work, pay enough attention to the word choice. How do you come up with a good title? Use your common sense and imagination. For more details, our experts prepared the sections below.

💭 What Are Good Titles?

✔️ Finish Your Essay

🤲 sum it up, 🏷️ define the keywords, 🖊️ follow the format, ⚖️ change words, ✨ 23 creative title examples, 💭 what are good titles for essays.

A title is a critical part of any academic paper, so you must understand what to include and how to choose it. Here are some features that your heading has to show.

👩‍🏫 How to Title an Essay?

Are you struggling with formulating a heading? Yes, this task is quite challenging. But let’s figure out the basic rules.

The title of any paper should reveal:

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What the paper is about. Cover the general idea of your work in the title.
Why the reader might be interested in it. Prove the relevance of your paper to the audience.
The context of the issue. A good title previews the full picture of the topic regarding its “when” and “where.”

To nail your essay heading, follow the guide below. Check our title examples if you are not sure about your abilities. You can also try and use a creative title page generator for a faster result.

Before writing a title to your essay, you should finish your paper. This way, you’ll be able to reread and get the whole idea to incorporate it into your title.

Moreover, you’ll see how long a title should be for an essay after finishing the entire piece. But remember: not too lengthy and not too wordy.

The essay title depends on the type of essay:

Narrative essay . For this kind of essay, the title should not provide any detailed info or reflect your position. It should only present the general idea of your piece of writing. For example, the narrative essay topic may look like this: My Thorny Pass to Success.
Argumentative essay . The title for an argumentative essay should clearly state the point you are going to support. For instance, you can choose the following heading: Social Media Has a Negative Effect on Teenagers.
Cause and effect essay . For this kind of essay writing, the title should be clear and provide a background of the issue. The reader should immediately understand what the problem is, what its cause is, what an effect is. Usually, writers use the words “due to” or “because” to highlight the cause-effect correlation. Look at the example: Because Coronavirus Attacks, People Start to Explore New Ways of Remote Working.
Persuasive essay . A persuasive essay should have a dynamic title that immediately calls to action. Moreover, the topic has to be relevant to the audience. For example, for students, the following title would be compelling: Sleep 7-8 Hours a Day: the Lack of Sleep Affects Academic Performance.

The most straightforward way of creating an essay title is summarizing. Sum up the whole paper in one sentence, focus on the central idea, cut the details, and use it as the title.

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For this purpose, you can take your thesis statement and restate it, adding creativity. Or use the best summary generator you can find to simplify the task. But don’t forget to make sure that it sounds catchy and explains why the potential reader should check your essay.

For example:

Let’s imagine, you are writing about Artificial Intelligence, and your thesis statement sounds like this:

The purpose of this paper is to explore the advantages of Artificial intelligence’s influence on society and to discover possible outcomes.

Then, the title may be the following:

Artificial Intelligence – the Next Step into the Bright Future.

Every essay includes the key concepts that you explored and the terms that you used for this. You should find essential words and phrases and incorporate them into the essay titles. The keywords will focus the reader’s attention on the central topic of your paper.

Get an originally-written paper according to your instructions!

You are writing about the negative impact of deforestation on the environment. These are your keywords, as they are the most vital ones. Thus, the title would sound like this:

Protecting the Environment: Deforestation Should be Stopped.

Every educational institution requires to format the academic papers for a particular writing style. Among a wide diversity of citation styles , the most popular ones are APA and MLA formats.

There are a lot of specific requirements regarding the essay title formats. So, let’s investigate these styles.

The APA style requires a title page at the beginning of your research paper. Here, where the readers first meet the heading. The title page should include the following:

The paper’s title. Centered, bold, capitalized, 3-4 lines below the top margin.
The author’s name (first name, middle initial, last name). Centered, not bold, two lines below the title.
The author’s affiliations. Centered, not bold, immediately after the name.
Number and name of the course.
The instructor’s name and title.
Page number in the top right corner.

See the example of an APA title page below:

The MLA style does not require a separate title page. Still, some formatting rules are to be strictly followed.

The MLA paper should start one inch from the top of the document, flush left.
Write the author’s name, then the instructor’s name, the course number, and the date. Each item should be on a separate double-spaced line.
Add the title of your paper. It should be centered and capitalized.
Do not put quotation marks, underline, italicize, or boldface your MLA title. Just make it centered and capitalized.

Here is an example of an MLA title formatting.

Before choosing a title, figure out is the tone of your essay. Is it more formal or friendly? Do you write it for a college or a personal blog?

Change the wording to make your title sound more catchy and positive. Or serious and official. You can try something new and come up with a creative title for your essay.

You need to write an article about the benefits of healthy eating for university and your online blog. For an academic essay, your title would probably look like this:

A Well-Balanced Diet Is a Key to a Healthy Organism.

In contrast, for a blog article, it would be better to write something like this:

An Apple a Day Keeps a Doctor Away: How Healthy Eating Helps us Be Fit.

Do you see the magic? One topic, different wording, and completely diverse tones as a result. So, try until you reach the most appropriate version of the title for your piece of writing.

Are you still struggling with the selection of a heading for your paper? Take a look at our creative essay title examples! Inspire, then turn on your imagination, and create a personal title.

Argumentative Essay Titles.

Intercultural Community at University: Prosperity or Constant Encounters.
Leadership Nature: a Congenital or an Acquired Feature?
Do Energetic Drinks Help or Harm the Organisms?
Why Should Sex Education Be Taught at Schools?
Should the Law Punish Bullying?
Guns Legalization is an Unsafe Way of Self-Protection.

Narrative Essay Titles.

Lady Macbeth – One of the Most Frightening Female Characters of Shakespeare.
The Art of Overcoming Failures: How to Deal with the Downfalls Easily.
Steve Jobs: from a Poor Student to a Multi-billionaire.
The Most Influential Person in my Life.
Three Biggest Events of my Life that Shaped me as a Person.
What Does it Mean to be a Loving Kid for your Parents?
What Does “Family” Mean to You?

Persuasive Essay Titles.

Never Judge the Person by their Appearance.
Music Should be Implemented as a Medical Treatment.
In the Battle Between E-Books and Paper Books, the Last Ones Should Win.
Remote Learning Cannot Replace Face-to-Face Classes.
Technology Addiction is a Threat to the Future Generation.
Murderers Should be Sentenced to Death Penalty.

Cause and Effect Essay Titles.

Because of Traveling Around the World, People Expand their Horizons.
Due to Massive Immigration, Countries Lose their Cultural Identity.
Home Abuse as a Cause of Depression and Suicide as its Effect.
Drug Addiction: a Cause for Psychological Disorder or an Effect?

Thank you for reading our article. Now you get how to come up with a good title for an essay. Don’t forget to share our page with your friends.

Writing an Effective Title: Quick Tips, Student Support Writing Center, University of Minnesota
Choosing a Title, Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper: Research Guides at University of Southern California
How Do I Write a Great Title: U-M LSA Sweetland Center for Writing, College of Literature, Science, and Arts, University of Michigan
General Format: Purdue Online Writing Lab, College of Liberal Arts, Purdue University
Formatting a Research Paper, Heading and Title: The MLA Style Center
Title Page Setup: APA Style, American Psychological Association
APA Title Page (Cover Page) Format, Example, Template: Saul McLeod, Simply Psychology
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Essay Titles That Stand Out: How Are They Made

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Admission Writing Tips
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Student Life
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Understanding Plagiarism
Academic Writing Tips
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Today we are going to talk about essay titles and how they are made. An essay topic is a definitive element and in most cases, the success of your writing will depend on your paper title. A good one has to intrigue readers and grasp their attention. A bad one may seem confusing, fake or just uninspiring. But how to craft a compelling title? That’s what we are going to find out in this blog post!

Essay Titles: Basics

An essay title is the most visually visible part of your writing that outlines the main theme and idea. A good title usually bears informative, emotional and aesthetic functions.

Key features of good essay title: “Informational, Emotional, Aesthetic”

Informational Introduces the subject, outlines The main ideas and presents the writer’s point.
Emotional Attracts the reader’s attention, evokes Emotions and raises genuine interest.
Aesthetic Tells your reader about an aesthetic dimension and writing style.

An essay title is not the same as in a research paper . The primary objective of an essay writer is to get an emotional response from the reader. So you don’t have to be just descriptive in your heading or subheading. Don’t be afraid to use rhetoric techniques, idioms, quotations, or other means of expression to communicate your point.

Good Titles for Essays: Everything You Should Know

Good essay title ideas require rules as much as they need a creative approach. There is a set of general features for compelling headers you should check out:

Uplifting Should be anything but boring.
True and Realistic Should not be too provocative but has to outline the major ideas as well.
Readable Shouldn’t sound complicated without a real reason.
Active Voice Contains verbs in active voice form.
Brief Includes only essential information and messages.

When you are composing a title, check if it meets those conditions. Naturally, you can step away from some of them if the logic of your header requires it. But it is very recommended to keep all features in mind to ensure that your audience reads your piece from cover to cover.

How to Come Up with a Title for an Essay: Tips and Tricks

There are several actionable tips on titling an essay . We are talking about generally accepted essay format features that a writer needs to follow in every case. Here are the most important format rules for essay title for you to remember:

Include or at least hint at the major theme in your title.
Don’t forget to capitalize the words. Make an exception for prepositions, pronouns, articles and conjunctions.
Keep yourself from unnecessary improvements. Do not underline it and do not use any colors or unexpected formatting. Ask your instructor if it is required to highlight in bold.
Write your title last. It is a good idea to save this objective for the very end. After you have a finished text, it may be easier to come up with a catchy name.
Use more subheadings for every section of your paper. It is not forbidden to use different section headings in your essay structure. So if you feel like adding more headlines — go for it.

The title of your paper will also depend on the types of essays . As you probably know, essays can be very diverse in terms of style. Some essays raise important topics, others - denounce them. Some essays can be informative and descriptive, others can carry persuasive elements. Let’s look at the major essay types by the tone of narration.

Your title should represent the style and tone of your essay, setting your reader up for a certain type of experience. It is pivotal for the writer to understand the text’s tone and style. Also, never forget how the title is related to your thesis statement. Of course, a headline and a thesis are not equal. A thesis statement is where you state your main idea. In contrast, a good title also serves as an attractor, requiring creativity as well. However, your thesis and title should not contradict each other. We always recommend double-checking whether those essay elements are coherent or not. In any case, it is a great idea to take a closer look at your headline after you finish a paper.

Good Essay Title Examples for School and College Students

It may still be hard to understand how to come up with a title for an essay without examples. That’s why we have prepared several smartly crafted essay titles for your benefit. To get a better impression, we decided to show good and bad compare and contrast essay topics . We have picked different narrative essay topics .

Problematic Essay Headline

Yes: The Disturbing Impact of Sea Pollution on Life and Population of Marine Mammals No: The Negative Impact of Human Factor on the Marine Ecosystem and Marine Mammal Species Explanation: The second title is unreasonably long and sounds too formal.

Descriptive Essay Headline

Yes: How I Met My Cat Steve and Lost the Fear of Dogs No: Cool Cat Story Explanation: The second variant is too short and fails to state a specific topic.

Narrative Essay Headline

Yes: My Battle with Leukemia: How I Fought and Eventually Won No: The fight with disease: My story Explanation: A title should focus on a narrow topic rather than general.

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Persuasive Essay Headline

Yes: Why we all need to care more about melting caps before it is too late No: Why Stupid Humans Should Consider Polar Ice Melting Explanation: A title shouldn’t contain inappropriate language.

Expository Essay

Yes: My Favorite Under-30-Minutes Cooking Recipes No: The best dishes that I can cook in less than 30 minutes Explanation: Your title should be catchy and creative.

A good title can have a pivotal role in the final judgment about your writing. Your title should be responsible for the first impression of your writing, so it is extra important. So don't be afraid to walk an extra mile composing your essay title. Also, we have prepared some more essay titles for different essay genres. Check out our list for inspiration and new ideas. Remember that if you're tired from writing already, you can always buy essay paper from us.

Argumentative Essay Titles

Can’t come up with a good topic for an argumentative essay ? Well, not a big problem. We have prepared some super-hot topics for you to choose from.

Do video games really induce excessive violence?
Does the penitentiary system benefit our society?
Should we learn to consume fewer goods on a daily basis?
How dangerous blind trust in science can be in science?
Is marriage still working?
What is more important: material goods or spiritual experience?
Is the Second Amendment good for the USA today?
Should we tax our rich and privileged more?
Is an euthanasia a matter of personal choice or not?
Do we need a universal basic income?

Can't think of a good essay title? Well, it’s not a big deal if you have an outstanding essay services at your command! By the way, we’re devilishly good at composing killer titles for essays!

Persuasive Essay Titles

Also, here are some persuasive essay titles for you to consider. You can easily borrow one of those or alter it to fit your topic.

Five reasons why you should never miss voting at elections
Why it is important to respect other people’s religious beliefs
Why it is significant to legalize marijuana countrywide
Why paternity leave is as important as maternity leave
Foreign languages — why it is important to be multilingual
Homeschooled — why some children should study at home
Why everyone needs to start caring about climate change right now
Ten reasons why you need to try meditation
Why it is unproductive to take advantage of someone else’s work
Benefits of sport running

Research Paper Titles

Writing a research paper assumes that you need to analyze some piece of information. Here are some hot research paper topics that may inspire you in your academic work.

Impact of Jackson Pollock work on action painting school in the US
How the US education system can be improved by applying Nordic countries experience
Philosophical implications of existentialism in Soren Kierkegaard’s “Fear & Trembling”
Tarkovsky vs. Kubrick: philosophical analysis and comparison of directors’ depiction of human in space
How mass media changed with the popularization of cancel culture
Themes of Nazism and Christianity in New German cinema movement
Death penalty: the least effective method of crime prevention
Motives of Eurocentrism and white chauvinism in “Disgrace” by J. M. Coetzee
State of woman’s minority rights in the post-Me Too United States society
Negative impact of social media on teenagers’ self-perception and social contacts

Creative Essay Titles

Do you want to make a truly unexpected and creative essay ? Well, then you need to go the extra mile to come up with a truly stunning title. For now, here are some creative topics for you as an inspiration.

Jack of all trades: How can you do more with proper time-management model behind the belt
Emollit mores nec sinit esse feros - how important are social studies in our life
Cold, trembling and alive: my best trip to Alaska
No bullets spent - antimilitarist tendencies of the modern left-wing American politics
The most memorable dream I ever had
Taken for granted: Modern ecological crisis and the social insensibility
Life-changing experience of climbing an Everest (and I had it)
The Heart of Darkness - magnum opus by Joseph Conrad analyzed
How it happened that I became a freegan (and managed to get away with it)
The best funny story I ever heard

College Essay Titles

Here is the list of titles that are designed especially for college students. Check out the list for insights and inspiration.

How I turned my weaknesses into strengths
How and why I celebrate Halloween
If you would be turned into an animal, which animal it will be
Student loans: how can we change a system to save our young from debt hole?
What historical event would you like to change and why?
What historical figure would you like to meet the most?
Benefits of organic farming - past, present and future
Sexual harassment - how can we battle it as a society
Universal basic income - do we need it or not?

Now you are heavily armed with writing tips and useful information about essay titles. Don’t hesitate to revisit the guide if you forget something. Also, you can always ask our writers for some assistance with your academic writing or use Essay Title Generator .

Order any kind of paper or other written academic assignment and get a 100% original, high-quality paper in the end! So don't hesitate and contact us whenever you are ready! Good luck!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. where do i put the essay title in my paper.

An essay title is normally located either on the title page (if there is any) or on the very first page of your paper. A title should be centered unless your professor has other requirements.

2. Can I use underlining when formatting my essay title?

No, it is better to avoid any unnecessary formatting for your essay title. Ask your instructor whether there are special requirements to its format. Do not apply bold font or underlining unless you are asked to do so.

3. What is the essay title length?

In most cases, the optimal length for essay title is between 5 and 15 words. This standard is not obligatory but is preferred to be followed.

Daniel Howard is an Essay Writing guru. He helps students create essays that will strike a chord with the readers.

How to Write a Great College Application Essay Title

Learn why you should craft an effective title and how to make it work

Essay Samples & Tips
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Ph.D., English, University of Pennsylvania
M.A., English, University of Pennsylvania
B.S., Materials Science & Engineering and Literature, MIT

Your application essay' s title is the first thing admissions officials will read. Although there are many ways to approach the title, it's important that the words at the top of the page make the proper impression.

Key Takeaways: Application Essay Titles

Don't skip the title. It's the first thing the admissions folks will read, and it is your chance to grab their interest.
Avoid vague titles and cliché phrases. Make sure the title gives a sense of your essay's content.
A little humor can be fine in a title, but it isn't necessary and cleverness should never be forced.

Importance of the Title

Ask yourself which work you'd be more excited to read: " Give Goth a Chance " or "Carrie's Essay." If you don't provide a title, you don't give your reader—in this case, busy admissions officials sorting through thousands of applications—any reason to be interested in reading your essay other than a sense of duty. Ensure that college admissions officers are motivated to read your essay due to curiosity rather than necessity.

Alternatively, imagine a newspaper in which every article lacks a title: You would be unlikely to pick up the paper and read anything. Clearly, a newspaper without titles would be confusing for readers. Application essays are similar in that way: Your readers want to know what it is that they are going to read.

The Purpose of an Application Essay Title

A well-crafted title should:

Grab your reader's attention
Make your reader want to read your essay
Provide a sense of what your essay is about

When it comes to the third item, realize that you don't need to be too detailed. Academic essays often have titles that look like: "Julia Cameron's Photography: A Study of the Use of Long Shutter Speeds to Create Spiritual Effects." For an application essay, such a title would come across as cumbersome and even pompous.

Consider how a reader would react to an essay with the title, "The Author's Trip to Costa Rica and How It Changed His Attitude Toward Biodiversity and Sustainability." After reading such a long and belabored title, admissions officials would have little motivation to read the essay.

Essay Title Examples

A good title can be clever or play with words, such as "Porkopolis" by Felicity or "Buck Up" by Jill. "Porkopolis" is a nonsense word, but it works well for an essay on becoming a vegetarian in a meat-centric world, and "Buck Up" employs both a literal and figurative meaning of the phrase. However, don't try to be too clever. Such efforts can backfire.

A title can be provocative. As an example, a student who wrote about encountering new foods while abroad titled her essay "Eating Eyeballs." If your essay focuses on a humorous, shocking or embarrassing moment in your life, it's often easy to write an attention-grabbing title. Titles such as "Puking on the President," "Romeo's Ripped Tights," and "The Wrong Goal" are sure to pique your reader's interest.

Simple and direct language can also be quite effective. Consider, for example, "The Job I Should Have Quit" by Drew, "Wallflower" by Eileen, and "Striking Out" by Richard. These titles don't play with words or reveal great wit, but they accomplish their purpose perfectly well.

In all of these examples, the title provides at least a sense of the essay's subject matter, and each motivates the reader to continue reading. After viewing such titles, even harried admissions officials are sure to ask: What the heck does "Porkopolis" mean? Why did you eat eyeballs? Why should you have quit your job?

Avoid These Title Mistakes

There are some common missteps that applicants make when it comes to titles. Be aware of these pitfalls.

Vague language . You'll be off to a remarkably bland start if your essay is titled "Three Things That Matter to Me" or "A Bad Experience." "Bad" (or "good" or "evil or "nice") is a painfully subjective and meaningless word, and the word "things" might have worked well in Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried," but it rarely adds anything of value to your essay. Be precise, not vague .

Broad, overly general language . This is a continuation of the vague language problem. Some titles try to cover far too much. Don't call your essay "My Life Story" or "My Personal Growth" or "An Eventful Upbringing." Such titles suggest that you are going to attempt to narrate years of your life in a few hundred words. Any such effort is doomed to failure, and your reader will doubt your essay before beginning the first paragraph.

Overblown vocabulary . The best essays use clear and accessible language. When a writer attempts to sound intelligent by adding unnecessary syllables to every word, the reading experience is often torturous. For example, if an essay's title is "My Utilization of Erroneous Rationalizations During My Pupilage," the reader's immediate response is going to be pure dread. No one wants to read 600 words on such a subject.

Strained cleverness . Be careful if you're relying on wordplay in your title. Not all readers are fans of puns, and a title may sound ridiculous if the reader doesn't understand a supposedly clever allusion. Cleverness is a good thing, but test out your title on your acquaintances to ensure that it works.

Clichés . If your title relies on a cliché, you're suggesting that the experience that you are narrating is unremarkable and commonplace. You don't want the first impression of your essay to be that you have nothing original to say. If you find yourself writing "When the Cat Got My Tongue" or "Burning the Midnight Oil," stop and reevaluate your title.

Misspellings . Nothing is more embarrassing than a misspelled title. There, at the top of the page in bold letters, you've used the word "it's" instead of "its ," or you wrote about "patients" instead of "patience." Take extra care to check the spelling of your essay title—and, indeed, your essay in general. An error in the title is sure to eliminate any confidence your reader has in your writing ability.

A Few Title Tips

Many writers—both novices and experts—have a difficult time coming up with a title that works well. Write your essay first and then, once your ideas have truly taken shape, go back and craft the title. Also, seek help with your title. A brainstorming session with friends can often generate far better titles than a solitary session of pounding your head on your keyboard. You want to get the title right so that the admissions officials read your essay in a curious and eager state of mind.

If you're writing your essay for the Common Application , keep in mind that your title will go in the text box with the rest of the essay, and the title will count toward your essay's overall word count.

Tips for the Pre-2013 Personal Essay Options on the Common Application
Sample Application Essay - Porkopolis
How to Write an Outstanding College Application Essay
"Grandpa's Rubik's Cube"—Sample Common Application Essay, Option #4
Tips for Writing a Winning College Application Essay
Private School Application Essay Tips
Ideal College Application Essay Length
Bad Essay Topics for College Admissions
Examples of Great Introductory Paragraphs
The Title in Composition
The Five Steps of Writing an Essay
How to Write and Format an MBA Essay
Should an Application Essay Be Single-Spaced or Double-Spaced?
The 2021-22 Common Application Essay Prompts
Tips for an Application Essay on a Significant Experience
2020-21 Common Application Essay Option 4—Solving a Problem

📕 Studying HQ

Guide on how to write a good essay title plus essay title examples, bob cardens.

August 3, 2022
Essay Topics and Ideas , Samples

This article provides a guide on how to write a good essay title. It covers the features of a good essay title and examples of essay title for different types of essays.

There are many similarities between essays and blog posts, one of which is that the title must be concise and clear in order to be effective. It should also include one or more keywords that indicate the essay’s primary topic .

What You'll Learn

Purpose of an Essay Title

A title for an essay tells the reader what the essay is about. This gives them an idea of what the essay will be about and, if they are reading it to conduct their own research, whether it is relevant to their field of study.

Ideally, an essay’s title will attract readers’ attention and pique their interest, compelling them to read the essay. This depends on the type of essay you’re writing; if it’s an assigned essay and your instructor has to read it, a captivating title is not your top priority.

However, if you are submitting your essay to a contest, submitting it as part of an application to college or graduate school, or pitching it for publication, it must have a catchy, intriguing title, as the title is the first part of your work that the editor or admissions committee will see.

Depending on the catchiness of the title and other aspects of your submission, it may be the deciding factor in whether they read your essay.

You can also check out Argumentative Essay Topics About Social Media

Features of a Good Essay Title

Attractive – this goes without saying. We all prefer reading something that is not boring.
Believable – most students try to make their titles catchy in such a way that they stray away from the truth, therefore making the headline inaccurate. Nothing will anger your professor more than a title that doesn’t deliver.
Easy to read – nobody likes complicated and difficult-to-understand titles, not even your professor. Stay away from strange phrases, jargon, and complicated structures.
Active voice – if your title contains verbs, always make sure they’re in the active voice, rather than passive.
Short – make your essay title brief because long headlines can be confusing. ‍
Accurate – regardless of the topic or niche, under no circumstances should you ever write an inaccurate essay title.

Coming up with a Good Essay Title

Titling an essay can be easy, but there are a few core principles to be taken into account.

The following tips will help you stay on track and avoid any common pitfalls.

Essay Goes First

Re-read the finished paper several times to decide on the title.

The last thing to create is a title – such a strategy will give more time to spend on crafting an essay outline, conducting research, or writing the paper itself.

Take the Style of Your Paper into Account

What are you writing about? What is the style of your paper, and is it an academic essay or a free-form essay like a narrative essay?

If the topic of your essay is “Do people who commit heinous crimes deserve the death penalty?” your title should not be humorous; it should be strict and to the point.

If your topic is “Why do people like watching funny cat videos?” feel free to craft a funny title.

Determine the tone of your essay and base your title on it—in consideration with the essay’s topic .

The tone can be:

Serious – “The implications of global warming”
Funny – “How cats and dogs love their masters”
Amiable – “Ways to fight depression”
Persuasive – “Why positive thinking is a must-have skill for every person”
Informative – “Ten rules for creating a chemical at home”

Keep It Short and Simple

The main goal of a title is to name its paper. There is no need to tell an entire story in the title or provide any useless details. Sum up your paper in a few words!

Another way to do this is, to sum up your thesis statement, as it represents the main idea of your essay.

Take your thesis and squeeze it into 3-4 words. Imagine that you are creating a title for your favorite newspaper or a slogan for Coca-Cola.

Use Relevant Words

Don’t use fancy words! Take 2-3 main words (keywords), put them together, and stop wasting your time. Avoid jargon and abbreviations.

You can also check out Top Literature Research Topics

Types of Essay Titles and Examples

Examples of argumentative essay titles.

The Importance of Family Ties
Prostitution Should Never be Legalized
The Trojan Horse: A Closer Look at the Event
It is just a Painting: When Art Matters
The Drinking Age should be Higher
There’s No Point in Sentencing Juveniles
Gun Ownership is Legal to Protect Our Lives
Cameras in Public Places: Security Measure or Violation of Privacy?
Why is Cosmetic Surgery a Threat to Modern Teenagers?
Why Euthanasia is Unethical

Examples of Persuasive Essay Titles

Atheism is the Most Adequate Religion
When Sorrow feels better than Excitement
Adventures of an Introvert: Life is better off Alone than with Other People
A Tale of Love and Allergies: Reasons to Avoid Flowers in Spring
Never Judge an Employee by their Tattoos
Illegal Immigrants have a right to stay in the US
Heinous Crimes deserve nothing but the Death Penalty
How Schools can use Video Games in the Learning Process
It is Time for Women to start wearing Less-revealing Clothing to curb Men’s Catcalling
Hiring a Candidate who Smokes: Pros and Cons

Examples of Creative Essay Titles

The day I left my Childhood Behind
The Power of Music: The way Heavy Metal changed my Life
Why Buffy the Vampire Slayer is my Hero
The Appropriate Age to start discussing Sex
Would Children Be better Students if Be Paid for Good Grades?
What is the True Age of the Personal Computer?
Which Parenting Styles Work?
The Various Dialects of the English Language: The Bridge Between Different Worlds
The Impact of Same-Sex Relationships on the Modern World
Instagram: Its Influence on Young People

Examples of Catchy Essay Titles

Elon Musk: Genius or Insane?
Artificial Intelligence: How It Can Potentially Help or Destroy Humanity
Modern Technology can solve Ancient Problems that date back Thousands of Years
Virtual Reality and the Possibility of Time Travel
North and South Korea: The Tale of Two Countries after Years of Conflict
The Position of Mathematics in the History of Humanity
How to Make It Big in the Real Estate Business
How to raise Responsible Children in the 21st Century to be Happy
How to Manage your Business like a Mafia Manager
How to Become a Millionaire in the Age of Computers Without a Physical Business
E-Commerce: Multi-Million-Dollar Virtual Business Empire

Narrative essay titles

Narrative essays share an event from a personal perspective. These are perfect for stories about travel, new experiences, and personal journeys.

Some examples of narrative essay titles are as follows:

The day I discovered my mom used to be a drug addict.
Why I almost missed the trip of a lifetime.
My first day of high school in Japan did not go as expected.
The day my father got arrested for fraud.
How to go camping with a toddler.
My summer at the circus school.
How I survived a car crash.
How to get over your fear of flying.
My experience of being the only black student in an all-white school.
The day my parents got divorced.

Expository essay titles

Expository essays are those that describe something.

You can explore the following examples of expository essay titles:

The history of origami.
The history of the Paralympics.
All about the digestive system.
A detailed explanation of the female reproductive system.
How the internet changed our lives.
All about rainforests.
The history of chocolate.
The functions of the cardiovascular system, the nervous system, and the immune system.
The different types of flowers.
A detailed explanation of the teenage brain

Academic essay titles

When you’re writing an academic essay, your title should reflect that. You can write about different things when it comes to academic essays.

The following are examples of academic essay titles:

Ten reasons why sports are stupid.
Twelve ways to get better grades without studying.
A letter to my high school principal about the lack of food in the cafeteria.
Five reasons why education is pointless.
The benefits of setting goals.
A list of five ways to make money as a student.
The possible pros and cons of online education.
Five reasons why high school is the best time of your life.
Benefits of having group studies
Ten reasons why male tutors shouldn’t tutor female students

As you continue, thestudycorp.com has the top and most qualified writers to help with any of your assignments. All you need to do is place an order with us. (How to Write a Good Essay Title)(How to Write a Good Essay Title)

Informative essay titles

Informative essays are those that explain something. These are great for learning about new topics, sharing research on a topic , or communicating ideas.

Below are some examples of informative essay titles:

How to write a college admissions essay.
Why you should purchase a sewing machine.
The advantages of traveling alone.
Ten tips for starting your own business.
Why you should never use public transportation.
Seven reasons to travel before turning thirty years of age.
A detailed explanation of the life cycle of a butterfly.
Four ways to finance your studies.
A guide on how to build a chicken coop.
Four ways to pass your finals without studying.

Descriptive essay titles

Descriptive titles use adjectives and give the reader a sense of what to expect. They often start with “how, why, what, when, or where.

Examples are:

Why you should visit Australia.
How to find your way home in a new city.
What it’s like to attend a party in Thailand.
When to go to the beach in Costa Rica.
Where you should visit when in Germany.
How a day in the life of a veterinarian technician goes.
How to paint a masterpiece.
Where to go in Greece.
How to travel on a budget.
What it’s like to attend a party in Mexico.

You can also check out Expository Essay Topics Ideas

Compare and Contrast Essay Title

Dynamite, Profit, and the Pursuit of Power: Chasing White Whales in Moby Dick and Jaws
Outdoor Growth Patterns of Shiitake and Lion’s Mane Mushrooms
Shakespeare’s sonnets and the romantic poetry of Russia
Your household and the household of your friend
An online campus or a physically located campus
Having a cousin or a sibling
A transformational leader and a transactional leader
A tropical vacation and an arctic vacation
A beginner in swimming and a professional
Segregation and slavery
George Bush and Donald Trump
Telling truth or telling a lie
Going to the cinema or watching a movie at home
Attending a museum or watching paintings online
The New Year Eve and the Christmas Eve
Doing and telling – how different are they?
Telling gossips and sharing misleading information
Having a wild pet or a domestic pet
Going to a private hospital or a public hospital
Spending a day in the country or having an urban vacation
Keeping to a diet or being physically active – which is better?
Living in an inner city neighborhood or living in a suburb?
Football and soccer – are they different?
Going to the beach or going to the country for a vacation

Related FAQs

1. how do you format an essay title.

Format . Example. Paper title . Place the title three to four lines down from the top of the title page . Center it and type it in bold font. Capitalize major words of the title . Place the main title and any subtitle on separate double-spaced lines if desired. There is no maximum length for titles ; however, keep titles focused and include key terms.

2. How to write a catchy hook in an essay?

We want to know if it’ll answer that question.
Or we want to hear new information about something important to us.
Or we want to hear the story teased at the beginning. We care about how it ends.

As you continue, thestudycorp.com has the top and most qualified writers to help with any of your assignments. All you need to do is place an order with us. (How to Write a Good Essay Title)

3. How to make a catchy title for an essay?

A catchy title can make your paper stand out from the pile and give your reader a sense of the content, slant, and perspective of your essay . To craft a strong title , you need to focus on the three elements of a standard title : the hook, the key terms, and the source or location.

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Creative essay title generator for students

Type a few relevant keywords in the relevant section of the tool to describe your paper.

Pick the subject that fits you.

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What is an academic essay title generator?

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With a creative essay title generator by Studyfy.com, creating winning headlines is made easy! Our tool allows you to find the best titles for your papers. But even that’s not all! Here are the top benefits that make our tool the best choice for students:

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To get even more accurate results, choose the subject category that suits your needs most from the list. The tool will use both your keywords and the chosen category to find relevant titles. There are plenty of categories to suit every user’s needs. Try to use different ones to find even more interesting and catchy ideas.

Get many great ideas

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Tips for Writing an Effective Application Essay

How to Write an Effective Essay

Writing an essay for college admission gives you a chance to use your authentic voice and show your personality. It's an excellent opportunity to personalize your application beyond your academic credentials, and a well-written essay can have a positive influence come decision time.

Want to know how to draft an essay for your college application ? Here are some tips to keep in mind when writing.

Tips for Essay Writing

A typical college application essay, also known as a personal statement, is 400-600 words. Although that may seem short, writing about yourself can be challenging. It's not something you want to rush or put off at the last moment. Think of it as a critical piece of the application process. Follow these tips to write an impactful essay that can work in your favor.

1. Start Early.

Few people write well under pressure. Try to complete your first draft a few weeks before you have to turn it in. Many advisers recommend starting as early as the summer before your senior year in high school. That way, you have ample time to think about the prompt and craft the best personal statement possible.

You don't have to work on your essay every day, but you'll want to give yourself time to revise and edit. You may discover that you want to change your topic or think of a better way to frame it. Either way, the sooner you start, the better.

2. Understand the Prompt and Instructions.

Before you begin the writing process, take time to understand what the college wants from you. The worst thing you can do is skim through the instructions and submit a piece that doesn't even fit the bare minimum requirements or address the essay topic. Look at the prompt, consider the required word count, and note any unique details each school wants.

3. Create a Strong Opener.

Students seeking help for their application essays often have trouble getting things started. It's a challenging writing process. Finding the right words to start can be the hardest part.

Spending more time working on your opener is always a good idea. The opening sentence sets the stage for the rest of your piece. The introductory paragraph is what piques the interest of the reader, and it can immediately set your essay apart from the others.

4. Stay on Topic.

One of the most important things to remember is to keep to the essay topic. If you're applying to 10 or more colleges, it's easy to veer off course with so many application essays.

A common mistake many students make is trying to fit previously written essays into the mold of another college's requirements. This seems like a time-saving way to avoid writing new pieces entirely, but it often backfires. The result is usually a final piece that's generic, unfocused, or confusing. Always write a new essay for every application, no matter how long it takes.

5. Think About Your Response.

Don't try to guess what the admissions officials want to read. Your essay will be easier to write─and more exciting to read─if you’re genuinely enthusiastic about your subject. Here’s an example: If all your friends are writing application essays about covid-19, it may be a good idea to avoid that topic, unless during the pandemic you had a vivid, life-changing experience you're burning to share. Whatever topic you choose, avoid canned responses. Be creative.

6. Focus on You.

Essay prompts typically give you plenty of latitude, but panel members expect you to focus on a subject that is personal (although not overly intimate) and particular to you. Admissions counselors say the best essays help them learn something about the candidate that they would never know from reading the rest of the application.

7. Stay True to Your Voice.

Use your usual vocabulary. Avoid fancy language you wouldn't use in real life. Imagine yourself reading this essay aloud to a classroom full of people who have never met you. Keep a confident tone. Be wary of words and phrases that undercut that tone.

8. Be Specific and Factual.

Capitalize on real-life experiences. Your essay may give you the time and space to explain why a particular achievement meant so much to you. But resist the urge to exaggerate and embellish. Admissions counselors read thousands of essays each year. They can easily spot a fake.

9. Edit and Proofread.

When you finish the final draft, run it through the spell checker on your computer. Then don’t read your essay for a few days. You'll be more apt to spot typos and awkward grammar when you reread it. After that, ask a teacher, parent, or college student (preferably an English or communications major) to give it a quick read. While you're at it, double-check your word count.

Writing essays for college admission can be daunting, but it doesn't have to be. A well-crafted essay could be the deciding factor─in your favor. Keep these tips in mind, and you'll have no problem creating memorable pieces for every application.

What is the format of a college application essay?

Generally, essays for college admission follow a simple format that includes an opening paragraph, a lengthier body section, and a closing paragraph. You don't need to include a title, which will only take up extra space. Keep in mind that the exact format can vary from one college application to the next. Read the instructions and prompt for more guidance.

Most online applications will include a text box for your essay. If you're attaching it as a document, however, be sure to use a standard, 12-point font and use 1.5-spaced or double-spaced lines, unless the application specifies different font and spacing.

How do you start an essay?

The goal here is to use an attention grabber. Think of it as a way to reel the reader in and interest an admissions officer in what you have to say. There's no trick on how to start a college application essay. The best way you can approach this task is to flex your creative muscles and think outside the box.

You can start with openers such as relevant quotes, exciting anecdotes, or questions. Either way, the first sentence should be unique and intrigue the reader.

What should an essay include?

Every application essay you write should include details about yourself and past experiences. It's another opportunity to make yourself look like a fantastic applicant. Leverage your experiences. Tell a riveting story that fulfills the prompt.

What shouldn’t be included in an essay?

When writing a college application essay, it's usually best to avoid overly personal details and controversial topics. Although these topics might make for an intriguing essay, they can be tricky to express well. If you’re unsure if a topic is appropriate for your essay, check with your school counselor. An essay for college admission shouldn't include a list of achievements or academic accolades either. Your essay isn’t meant to be a rehashing of information the admissions panel can find elsewhere in your application.

How can you make your essay personal and interesting?

The best way to make your essay interesting is to write about something genuinely important to you. That could be an experience that changed your life or a valuable lesson that had an enormous impact on you. Whatever the case, speak from the heart, and be honest.

Is it OK to discuss mental health in an essay?

Mental health struggles can create challenges you must overcome during your education and could be an opportunity for you to show how you’ve handled challenges and overcome obstacles. If you’re considering writing your essay for college admission on this topic, consider talking to your school counselor or with an English teacher on how to frame the essay.

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How to Title an Essay: Tips and Examples
How to Title an Essay: Tips and Examples
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How to Title an Essay: Guide with Creative Examples [2023]
How to write the best Essay Titles?

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How to Title an Essay: Tips and Examples
Here are other rules for how to create a good title: Title every section of writing: In the process of writing, create interesting subheadings to give your paragraphs an identity. Also, they make your text look ordered and clear. The title must bear the theme of the text: choose a title that summarizes the essay. Capitalize all words with certain exceptions: Capitalize the first letter of ...
How to Title an Essay: Tips and Examples
To create an effective title, consider the following tips: Brainstorm Ideas: Begin by brainstorming keywords, phrases, and concepts related to your essay topic. Explore different angles and perspectives that encapsulate the essence of your argument or analysis. Consider the Audience: Reflect on your target audience and their interests ...
How to Find a Catchy Title for Your Paper/Essay: 10 Steps
The hook can be collection of keywords, an image, a play on words, or a quote from your essay. 2. Choose one or two key terms. These are crucial words or phrases that apply to your topic and give your reader a sense of the content and angle of your paper. These key terms should act like a brief one to two word summary of the essay.
Forging good titles in academic writing
Writing effective headings. Although similar, headings are not the same as titles. Headings head paragraphs and help structure a document. Effective headings make your paper easily scannable. Common high level headings in dissertations and research papers are "Methods", "Research results", and "Discussion". Lower level headings are ...
How to Title an Essay
Don't get too personal - Your title should entice the reader. Whatever strong arguments you want to make should be made in the body of the essay. ‍. Make sure your title reflects the content of the essay - This often happens when the title is written first and then the essay.
PDF WRITING AN EFFECTIVE TITLE
17. Think of a familiar saying, or the title of a book, song, or movie, that might fit your essay. 18. Take the title you just wrote and twist it by changing a word or creating a pun on it. 19. Do the same with another saying or title of a book, song, or movie. 20. Find two titles you've written so far that you might use together in a double title.
How to Title an Essay: Effective Tips for Catchy Headings
The best practice is to divide the thesis statement into 4-5 words. Try to be as specific as possible; a good essay title should be short and simple. Avoid using fancy words; start writing with a couple of keywords and put them together. No one likes complicated and tricky essay titles.
How to Title an Essay: Examples and Tips
A good essay title serves as a preview of the essay's content and should be engaging and informative. Here are the characteristics of a good essay title: Clarity: The title should clearly convey the topic or subject matter of the essay. It should give the reader a sense of what to expect when they read the essay.
How to Title an Essay? The Complete Guide to Essay Title
Below are the main components of your essay's title: Topic keywords - the "core" of your essay. This component identifies concepts you'll be exploring. Focus keywords - the "where/when" of your essay. Together with topic keywords, these are vital for your headline and provide more info that makes it professional.
writing an effective title : quick help : student writing support
8. Write a title beginning with an -ing verb (like "Creating a Good Title"). 9. Write a title beginning with On (like "On the Titles of Essays"). 10. Write a title that is a lie about the essay. (You probably won't use this one, but it might stimulate your thinking.) 11. Write a one-word title—the most obvious one possible. 12.
Full Guide on How to Title an Essay Successfully
The steps described below will afford you the ability to craft creative titles for essays like a professional. Do read on to discover more: 1. Write your essay as the first step but the title as the last: The first step is to write it in the first place and for this, you may consider using an essay writing service.
Crafting an Effective Essay Title: A Comprehensive Guide
In summary, creating an effective title for an essay requires a thoughtful approach. By understanding the purpose, identifying the type, considering the audience, and brainstorming ideas, you can craft a title that grabs attention, accurately represents your essay, and ultimately leads to success. Crafting a captivating title for your writing ...
How to Write Good Essay Titles That Are… Good
1. A good essay title identifies the subject. It probably seems obvious that a title should give the reader at least a hint about the essay's subject, but you'd be surprised how often it doesn't! I've edited plenty of essays with titles like "Analysis Essay," "History," or "Assignment 5.".
Get Creative: Learn How to Title an Essay That Stands Out
The most common and basic technique is to get a title from the summary of your essay. A writer can summarize the entire essay or the central idea and thesis statement in three words and write a title. This can be a title by putting it in a headline, inserting a colon, and stating the purpose of your essay. 7.
How to Create an Essay Title: 7 Best Practices
The key is to get straight to the point. 5. Keep it simple. Don't use fancy or complicated words that might confuse your readers, instead go for straight-to-the-point words and avoid adding any unnecessary details in the title of your essay. Pick out important and useful keywords from your essay to frame a great title.
How to Come up With a Good Title (with Pictures)
7. Seek ideas from your own writing. Reread your work to find sentences or phrases in which you refer to your main ideas. Often the introductory or concluding paragraphs of your work will have a phrase that would work well as a title. Highlight or make a note of any words or phrases that explain your ideas.
How to Title an Essay: Guide with Creative Examples [2024]
Still, some formatting rules are to be strictly followed. The MLA paper should start one inch from the top of the document, flush left. Write the author's name, then the instructor's name, the course number, and the date. Each item should be on a separate double-spaced line. Add the title of your paper.
How to Title an Essay: In-Depth Guide With Title Ideas
Expository Essay. Yes: My Favorite Under-30-Minutes Cooking Recipes No: The best dishes that I can cook in less than 30 minutes Explanation: Your title should be catchy and creative. A good title can have a pivotal role in the final judgment about your writing. Your title should be responsible for the first impression of your writing, so it is extra important.
How to Write a Great College Application Essay Title
Essay Title Examples . A good title can be clever or play with words, such as "Porkopolis" by Felicity or "Buck Up" by Jill. "Porkopolis" is a nonsense word, but it works well for an essay on becoming a vegetarian in a meat-centric world, and "Buck Up" employs both a literal and figurative meaning of the phrase. However, don't try to be too clever.
How To Write A Good Essay Title Plus Essay Title ...
Determine the tone of your essay and base your title on it—in consideration with the essay's topic. The tone can be: Serious - "The implications of global warming". Funny - "How cats and dogs love their masters". Amiable - "Ways to fight depression". Persuasive - "Why positive thinking is a must-have skill for every ...
Generate Titles for Your Essay with our Title Generator
You are only three steps away from getting your brilliant essay title: or. How to use: 1. Type a few relevant keywords in the relevant section of the tool to describe your paper. 2. Pick the subject that fits you. 3. Hit the Generate button to get plenty of fresh and catchy ideas and pick the perfect one!
Tips for Writing an Effective Application Essay
Writing an essay is a critical part of the application process. Use these tips to write an essay for college admission that could earn you an acceptance letter. ... If all your friends are writing application essays about covid-19, it may be a good idea to avoid that topic, unless during the pandemic you had a vivid, life-changing experience ...
Free Research Title Generator: Create a Title for Your Research
Want to Write a Research Essay? EssayGPT 's Research Title Maker is Here to Help. Having an impressive research idea is good, but crafting a title that catches the attention of your audience at first glance is even better. In some other cases, you may have different possible research options, but need a title to help streamline your thoughts.
How to Get a Car Title Replacement
In states where you can get a title the same day you file all the appropriate paperwork, you must apply in person and will have to pay an extra fee. For example; in South Carolina, the expedited ...

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How to Make a Good Title for an Essay

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How to Choose a Good Title for an Essay: Important Qualities

Student’s Guide on How to Come Up with a Title for an Essay

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How to Title an Essay and Grab the Reader’s Attention Right From the Word Go

Basic Elements of an Essay Title

What Makes a Great Essay Title?

Grabs Attention and Engages Readers

Clearly Stated and Concise

Written in Active Voice

Promises Advantages to the Readers

Still having problems with writing an essay title?

Avoids Acronyms and Jargons

How to Come up with a Title for an Essay in 5 Easy Steps?

Think About Your Audience

Go Through Your Essay Assignment Guidelines Again

Read through Your Essay Again

Restate Your Title

Write Your Title Last

You have nothing to worry about!

Essay Title Formats

Essay Title Page in APA

Essay Title Page in MLA

Good Essay Title Examples

APA Essay Title Examples

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Final Thought

How to Title an Essay - A Detailed Guide

Why is it Important to Have a Good Essay Title?

What are the Basic Components of an Essay Title?

How To Make A Good Title For An Essay?

Write Essay First, Title in the Last

Utilize Your Thesis

Take into Account the Tone of Your Paper

Use Relevant Keywords

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Essay Titles in Different Formats

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MLA Format for a Book or Film Title Within the Essay

AMA Format (American Medical Association)

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How to Title an Essay About Yourself - Examples

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