how to create a title for a college essay

How to Title an Essay, With Tips and Examples

If you read this blog regularly, you’ll notice something about our blog posts’ titles: They all summarize what their post is about. This is so you know exactly what you’ll find in the post, so if you’re looking for specific tips, you know exactly which post to read. 

An essay title does the same thing. There are a lot of similarities between essays and blog posts , and one of those similarities is that for the title to be effective, it needs to be concise and clear. It should also contain one or more keywords, which tells readers the essay’s main topic.  Write papers with confidence Grammarly helps you make the grade Write with Grammarly

What is the purpose of an essay title?

An essay title tells readers what your essay is about. This gives them a heads up on what to expect from the essay and, if they’re reading it to conduct their own research, whether it’s relevant to their area of study. 

Ideally, an essay title also catches readers’ attention and stokes their curiosity, prompting them to read your work. How important it is to achieve this depends on the kind of essay you’re writing—if it’s an assigned essay and your instructor has to read it, an engaging title isn’t your top priority. But if you’re submitting your essay to a contest, as part of an application to college or graduate school, or pitching it for publication, it needs a catchy, intriguing title because the title is the first part of your work the editor or admissions committee will see. And depending on the title’s catchiness and other circumstances of your submission, it could be the deciding factor in whether they read your essay. 

As we mentioned above, a strong essay title gives a clear preview of what the reader will find in your writing . You don’t have to give it all away, but it should act as a general briefing on what to expect from your work and make them want to continue reading it. 

>>Read more: How to Start an Essay: 7 Tips for a Knockout Introduction

What are the rules for essay titles?

Guidelines for essay titles in mla format.

In MLA format , your essay’s title should be in title case. That means every principle word— words that aren’t articles , prepositions , coordinating conjunctions , or the word “to” paired with an infinitive —is capitalized. The only exception to this is when one of these words is the first or last word in the essay’s title. Here’s a quick example: 

Looking Through the Rear Window: Perspective in Hitchcock’s Films

Guidelines for essay titles in APA format

Similarly to MLA format, APA format requires essay titles to be in title case. In addition to this formatting requirement, APA requires that essay titles be succinct and specifically not contain any abbreviations or unnecessary words. Here is an example of how an essay title looks in APA format:

Effects of Blue Light on Boston Lettuce Crops

See how straightforward this essay title is? You know exactly what the essay is going to be about: How exposure to blue light impacts growing Boston lettuce crops. Keep in mind that APA format is typically used for scientific and technical work, so it’s unlikely you’ll use figurative language in your title. 

Guidelines for essay titles in Chicago Manual of Style format

Chicago style also requires that essay titles be in title case. Other than that, Chicago style doesn’t have specific guidelines for what a title should or shouldn’t include. Here is an example of an essay title in Chicago style:

2021 Returns: What We Projected vs. Actual Returns

How to brainstorm your essay title

When you’re brainstorming for your essay, think about the potential titles you can choose. Jot down your keyword and the kind of essay you’re writing, such as an analytical or compare-and-contrast essay . This won’t only help you determine an effective title, but it can also help you determine the best way to structure your essay .

Stay away from punny or otherwise funny titles unless you’re writing a humorous or personal piece—your creative writing class is probably the only course where that kind of title is appropriate. 

Here’s what your essay title should include

• One or more relevant keywords to your subject
• Any other necessary words or phrases that tell the reader what to expect from your essay
• When applicable, a catchy phrase or figurative language

Let’s take another look at the example essay titles from the section above. In the first example, Looking Through the Rear Window: Perspective in Hitchcock’s Films , we have the following elements:

• An attention-grabbing phrase that references one of Hitchcock’s most well-known films
• The keyword “perspective,” which tells us immediately what this essay is about
• Clarity around how the essay specifically explores perspective in Hitchcock’s films and instances where Hitchcock used perspective as a storytelling device

Now take a look at the example APA title essay, Effects of Blue Light on Boston Lettuce Crops. This one is more straightforward and technical. But still, it’s got the key elements that make up a strong essay title: 

• A clear preview of exactly what’s in the essay: data on how an environmental factor affects specific crops
• Clear keywords: “blue light” and “Boston lettuce crops”

Additionally, notice how the tone is different from the tone in the MLA essay title. This essay title feels more objective and detached from its subject, giving a preview of the tone the reader will find in the essay. 

What not to include in your essay title

It’s usually best to stay away from negative or controversial terms. Do this even if your essay is taking a stand against something or arguing that another position is harmful. Instead, reframe your position using neutral or positive words to avoid potentially offending a reader or undermining your own position by coming across as aggressive or bitter. Compare these two essay titles:

• Why Rerouting Campus Traffic Is a Terrible Idea
• Finding Solutions to Campus Traffic Challenges 

See how the second option, the one that avoids negative language, sounds more engaging and promises a more resolution-oriented read? Remember, your reader is supposed to draw their own conclusions from your essay—don’t attempt to do their work for them by telling them what to think in your title. 

As you brainstorm titles, write them down so you can revisit them after you complete your first draft. Once you have a finished draft , it can be a lot easier to determine the title that fits your essay best. 

Essay title examples

Take a look at these example essay titles and take note of how the tones and vocabulary vary between essay types. A title that’s perfect for a persuasive essay might not be right for a college application or expository essay . And similarly, a title that works for a comparative essay might be too lackluster for a personal or argumentative essay . 

Personal essays

Why I’ll Never Wear a Blue Baseball Cap Again

How 20 Years in Corporate America Made Me a Better Parent

Analytical essays

What is Love? How Romantic and Modern Artists’ Answers Differ

Three Reasons Why We Won’t See a Repeat of the 2008 Bubble

Argumentative essays

The Correlation between New School Buildings and Higher Test Scores—Three Stats You Can’t Ignore

Are We Using the Right Success Metrics for Students?

Persuasive essays

Four Ways Free Wi-Fi Will Boost the City’s Economy

Unless We Take Action, This Heat Wave Is Just the Beginning

Compare-and-contrast essays

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 

College application essays

What Scooping Ice Cream Taught Me about Human Nature

Dancing and Math Are More Similar than You Realize

Essay title FAQs

What is an essay title.

An essay title concisely states what an essay is about.

Why is an essay title important?

An essay title is important because it accomplishes a few things:

• Tells readers what the essay is about
• Catches potential readers’ attention
• Helps researchers sort essays and find the ones most relevant to their work

What should you consider when creating an essay title?

When creating an essay title, think about the essay’s purpose. Then, explain the essay’s subject and purpose in a brief clause or short sentence, making it appropriately intriguing to draw readers’ attention. 

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.

• Sample Common Application Essay for Option #5
• College Application Essay - The Job I Should Have Quit
• "My Dads" - Sample Common Application Essay for Option #1
• Should an Application Essay Be Single-Spaced or Double-Spaced?
• Sample Application Essay - Porkopolis
• "Handiwork" - Sample Common Application Essay for Option #1
• How to Write an Outstanding College Application Essay
• "Gym Class Hero" - a Common Application Essay Sample for Option #3
• Ideal College Application Essay Length
• Bad Essay Topics for College Admissions
• Striking Out: Sample Common Application Essay
• The Length Requirements for the Common Application Essay in 2020-21
• Sample College Admissions Essay - Student Teacher
• "Grandpa's Rubik's Cube"—Sample Common Application Essay, Option #4
• How to Ace Your University of Wisconsin Personal Statements
• Tips for an Admissions Essay on an Influential Person

Essay Title: Rules, Tips, Mistakes to Avoid

Table of contents

• 1 What Makes a Good Title?
• 2.1 Use your essay to develop your topic
• 2.2 Identify keywords and take advantage of them
• 2.3 Use Multiple Titles
• 3.1 MLA Format
• 3.2 APA Format
• 3.3 Chicago Format
• 4 What to Avoid When Writing a Title for an Essay?
• 5 Take into account Your Paper Style
• 6 Types Of Papers and the Best Titles For Them
• 7.1 Questions make Catchy
• 7.2 Describe the Paper in 5 Words
• 7.3 Use One Direct Word
• 7.4 Extract a Sentence from the Paper
• 7.5 Take advantage of Pop-Culture
• 7.6 Put “On” at the beginning
• 7.7 Start with a Verb in “-ing”
• 7.8 Give a Mental Visualization of Your Topic
• 7.9 Modify a Title that was Rejected
• 7.10 Choose 2 Variants That Were Considered and Declined; Then Join Them Together
• 8.1 Why is an essay title important?
• 8.2 Can a title be a question?
• 8.3 How long should the title be?

Good paper titles could be the difference between the audience viewing or ignoring your essays. When chosen carefully, essay titles could well capture the attention of someone who would not typically read the topic. Learning the proper method for titling an article can work wonders in creating an attention-grabbing heading. A well-titled article will also tell readers what to expect. Knowing how to create a topic for an essay that commands the reader’s attention is important. That is why this piece is designed to help you write just that.

What Makes a Good Title?

The importance of a great title cannot be overemphasized in the essay-writing process . And that is where you question yourself – what makes good essay headlines?

• A good title for an essay must be memorable. You want to think up something that stands out as much as possible to capture the audience’s eyes and minds. Remember – your title is the first thing your reader sees.
• Your essay name must possess a near-perfect degree of accuracy. Titling an essay like a clickbait heading could have the viewer on strings at the beginning, but they may not be disposed towards reading it to the end. Even so, it might not leave them with the desired impression.
• A good essay title has to be written in a language the target audience would understand easily. You might want to keep the language of your essay headline simple, but it should reflect as much expertise as the target audience would reasonably expect.
• A proper heading for an essay must be easy to read. The main idea is that your title gives a brief insight into what the audience should expect. Keep it concise and eye-catching, and ensure it is in active voice.

How to Title an Essay?

Having understood the importance of creative essay titles, you also know what features they are supposed to contain. The next item on the agenda is for you to know how to make a title for a write-up. This is not an arbitrary undertaking. It is a multi-step ritual that helps you ensure you are on the right track to connect with your audience using a catchy essay title.

Use your essay to develop your topic

This may seem rather confusing, but it is a very efficient step to follow while coming up with great naming ideas. You should start writing your essay once you have a subject matter identified. By the time you finish writing your essay, you can use the write-up details to construct the most suitable title. It would also give you much more clarity on the subject matter and what the audience wants from it since you would have conducted more research on the issue. As such, your title can be more precise and connected to the paper.

Identify keywords and take advantage of them

Your essay’s title must scream “This is what you want” to the reader. And no matter how fun and memorable it may be, it might not be as successful if it does not capture what the audience is exactly looking for. This is where keywords will work for you. They are terms that would let readers know that your essay is relevant to what is in question.

For instance, imagine trying to research articles on symptoms of pregnancy – but the name you see has nothing like “symptoms” or “pregnancy” in them. They might be catchy essay headers and even end up being related to the search, but they don’t exactly strike you like that is what you seek. You don’t need to stuff your title with key phrases. Just two or three core ones will do the trick.

Use Multiple Titles

Nobody said you have to use just one main topic. Segmenting your paper and sub-titling each makes your essay much more readable.

Essay Title Formats and Punctuations

It is perfectly fine if you would rather freestyle your essay heading. After all, a little creative license never hurts as long as you craft a good essay title. Though, you might want to play it safer by defining parameters, especially if your essay is formal. In that case, you should opt for an essay title format. These are internationally recognized sets of prescribed guidelines for titling your papers. There are three main essay title styles – the MLA, the APA, and the Chicago.

The rules of MLA style  emphasize that your essay topics should be centralized on the page. Perhaps the most important rule of this style is that the title must be written in “title case”. This means every word should begin using capital letters except prepositions, coordinating conjunctions, “to” when it is alongside a verb in its infinitive form, and articles. However, the first and last words must have capital letters, no matter what they are. This style also discourages italicizing, underlining, or placing the topics in quotation marks.

This formatting APA style is particular about the brevity of the title, stipulating a maximum of 12 words. It emphasizes a short and straight-to-the-point without abbreviations or redundancies. A title in this style aims to share as much information with the audience in as few words as possible. It does not encourage the use of figurative words because it is used in technical and professional writing. Thus, expect to see it deployed toward a research paper title and formal articles. It also supports centralizing the title toward the top of the page.

Chicago Format

Like the other two formats, this style is particular about having the title in the title case. However, it gives more leeway and license to the writer than the others. In fact, the Chicago style prescribes no further guidelines beyond title casing.

What to Avoid When Writing a Title for an Essay?

Developing interesting titles for essays can be a challenge for some. Tips include avoiding negativity and offensive or controversial terms and keeping it professional. Even the cover page could be done properly thanks to a writing service like the APA title page generator, which can also help you write a good title for an essay.

Making a good start means staying positive. Even when the essay topics are dreary, attempt to write less negatively. Good headlines for essays also use appropriate language to attract more possible readers to the paper. Lastly, its image should remain neutral – don’t overshare.

Take into account Your Paper Style

The style of your essay is essential to your topic. Identify and study what kind of essay it is, e.g., an argumentative essay or narrative essay, and ensure that the essay topic reflects it. Essays have tones depending on their kind, the audience, and the subject matter. For instance, academic writing would likely assume a formal tone. Having identified the tone of your essays, you should ensure your essay topics don’t go off-key. It should complement the tone of the essay itself in order to have the desired effect on the readers.

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Types Of Papers and the Best Titles For Them

There are several situations that could involve you writing an essay paper. And depending on the situation or the target of the piece, several kinds of papers exist as well. These may include a narrative paper, expository essay, business paper, and thesis statement in academic writing, among others. Some of the most creative examples of titles include:

Research Paper

The Role of COVID-19 in the Growth of Digital Services

Impacts of Climate Change on Developed Countries

Business Paper

Why Franchising Is the Way for New Small Business Owners

How Digital Services Can Influence the Global Supply Chain

College Essay

The Golden Rule of Wholesome Studentship

Finding Success in My Failures

Reflective Essay

The Time I Met My Mentor

My First Surgery

Personal Statement

My Nine Lives as an Immigrant Student

The Three Horsemen of Ambition

Literary Analysis

The Use of Symbolism in The Pulley

Thematic Preoccupations of Shakespeare’s Othello

Report Titles

Earlier Vaccinations Would Not Have Subsided the Coronavirus Pandemic

Students Want Mixed Dormitories in American Universities

Good Titles for Essays about Yourself

Why I Am the Way I Am

A Letter To the 7-Year-Old Me

Good Titles for Narrative Writing

The Day the World Stood Still

My Perfect Birthday Party

MLA Essay Title Format

The Old Man and the Sea: A Critical Analysis of Ernest Hemingway

Why You Can Do What You Do Without Knowing Who You Are

Argumentative Essay

Are Electric Cars the Solution To Carbon Emissions?

Should Reparations Be Paid To Marginalized Groups?

Compare and Contrast Essay

Left Wing Versus Right Wing: What Ideologies Do We Need?

Good Versus Bad: The Constant Clashes of Morality

Persuasive Essay

Why Dogs Make Better Pets Compared to Cats

Digital Banking: The Peak of Fintech

Scholarship Essay Titles Examples

What Can You Contribute to the Student Community?

Narrate a Defining Experience in Your Life

Nursing Essay

COVID-19 and the Growing Demand for Nursing Staff

Prioritizing Ethical Education in the Nursing Profession

Title The Government’s Role in Poverty Alleviation

Myths and Facts about Tuberculosis

10 Tips to Create an Exceptional Title

There are numerous ways in which a writer can craft a quality naming experience. Unless you use a title generator for an essay , titling an essay is as simple or as hard as the writer makes it. It is often necessary to edit the essay online multiple times. Finding their own style is dependent on the type of essay and the purpose of the writing. In the quest to title an essay, here are some tips for arriving at a really creative title.

Questions make Catchy

Titles Interesting headings for essays can be created by using a cause-and-effect approach. Start considering a common problem and think about what question does that paper answers. You can compose a title out of it.

Describe the Paper in 5 Words

If you were, to sum up the entire paper in 5 words, what words would be chosen? Not only does this unique creation bring some fun to the process, but it can also birth a catchy phrase – which translates to a highly effective title.

Use One Direct Word

Sometimes the best essay title ideas are simpler than we think. For some essay topics, one idiom could be all you need. Though it might not be easy how to come up with one, it may give your research paper an edge over others.

Extract a Sentence from the Paper

It’s usually a good solution to pick the heading after the text is drafted. At this point, there are many title options. Just pick one that sums up your concepts better than the others.

Take advantage of Pop-Culture

Don’t be shy to use something related to pop culture. Titles for papers may definitely contain references to songs, books, or movies as long as they fit the paper topic. This could be especially powerful for college essay titles and other essays for younger readers. You just need to ensure that the audience can recognize it easily.

Put “On” at the beginning

Depending on what you’re writing, this option might be a bit tricky. It works very well for books, songs, or movie reviews. Just name the object of your research paper or article. For example, “On The Importance of Being Earnest.”

Start with a Verb in “-ing”

Especially persuasive essay types can greatly benefit from titles for papers starting like this. Be sure to find a verb straightforward enough to grab the attention.

Give a Mental Visualization of Your Topic

This works wonders when the topic you write about is art-oriented. Even if the mental image brings something that is not seen by most people, it could go far for those that grab it.

Modify a Title that was Rejected

Using old, rejected essay topics to design new ones is usually possible. All it takes is a bit of creativity and a decent name.

Choose 2 Variants That Were Considered and Declined; Then Join Them Together

Although 2 separate entities did not work out, it does not mean that those phrases can’t work together for your new paper. So keep that list of paper titles!

Why is an essay title important?

Can a title be a question, how long should the title be, readers also enjoyed.

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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.

Need Some Help With Your Essay's Title?

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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How To Title An Essay?

How to title an essay in mla format, what are some good titles for an essay.

Daniel Parker

is a seasoned educational writer focusing on scholarship guidance, research papers, and various forms of academic essays including reflective and narrative essays. His expertise also extends to detailed case studies. A scholar with a background in English Literature and Education, Daniel’s work on EssayPro blog aims to support students in achieving academic excellence and securing scholarships. His hobbies include reading classic literature and participating in academic forums.

is an expert in nursing and healthcare, with a strong background in history, law, and literature. Holding advanced degrees in nursing and public health, his analytical approach and comprehensive knowledge help students navigate complex topics. On EssayPro blog, Adam provides insightful articles on everything from historical analysis to the intricacies of healthcare policies. In his downtime, he enjoys historical documentaries and volunteering at local clinics.

How To Write An Essay

How To Title An Essay

Learn How to Title an Essay Like a Professional Writer

14 min read

Published on: Mar 1, 2023

Last updated on: Jul 23, 2024

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A title is the one thing that makes your essay and all academic papers impressive. This is because it is the first thing that a reader looks at and decides whether to give your essay a shot or not. 

Naturally, things with amusing and interesting titles tend to be more read-worthy.  A right and accurate title can either make your essay a success or a complete disaster. 

It might sound easy to give a title to your essay, but it can be daunting in reality. Creating a title is an art, and not everybody knows how to do it. 

This writing guide is provided to know how important it is to give a correct title to your writing and polish your writing skills. 

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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 reader's 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 "where" and "when" 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 essay's 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 don't 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 instructor's 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 cliche 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

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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Ultimate Guide to Writing Your College Essay

Tips for writing an effective college essay.

College admissions essays are an important part of your college application and gives you the chance to show colleges and universities your character and experiences. This guide will give you tips to write an effective college essay.

Want free help with your college essay?

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Writing a strong college admissions essay

Learn about the elements of a solid admissions essay.

Avoiding common admissions essay mistakes

Learn some of the most common mistakes made on college essays

Brainstorming tips for your college essay

Stuck on what to write your college essay about? Here are some exercises to help you get started.

How formal should the tone of your college essay be?

Learn how formal your college essay should be and get tips on how to bring out your natural voice.

Taking your college essay to the next level

Hear an admissions expert discuss the appropriate level of depth necessary in your college essay.

Student Stories

Student Story: Admissions essay about a formative experience

Get the perspective of a current college student on how he approached the admissions essay.

Student Story: Admissions essay about personal identity

Get the perspective of a current college student on how she approached the admissions essay.

Student Story: Admissions essay about community impact

Student story: admissions essay about a past mistake, how to write a college application essay, tips for writing an effective application essay, sample college essay 1 with feedback, sample college essay 2 with feedback.

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Your chance of acceptance, your chancing factors, extracurriculars, how to title a college essay.

Hi everyone, I'm kinda stuck on how I should title my college essay. Can you give me some advice on how to come up with an interesting and relevant title? Thanks in advance!

Hi there! Coming up with a title for your college essay can be tricky, but it's an opportunity to showcase your creativity and the primary theme you're exploring. Here are some tips to help you generate an interesting and relevant title:

1. Reflect your essay's theme: Your title should give readers a clear idea of what your essay is about and capture its main message. Think about the central theme of your essay and try to highlight it in your title. For example, if your essay is about overcoming a personal challenge, your title could be something like "Rising Above the Storm."

2. Keep it concise and impactful: Aim for a title that is short and to-the-point. Using a few powerful words can leave a strong impression, and it's easier for readers to remember.

3. Use literary devices: You may consider using literary devices like alliteration, puns, metaphors, or irony to make your title more engaging and memorable. Just make sure it's not overly complicated or confusing that the readers don't understand its relevance.

4. Get personal: If your essay is about a personal experience, try to hint at that experience in the title. It can give the reader a glimpse into your essay, which can make them more eager to read it. For example, if your essay is about learning to play the piano, you might choose a title like "Finding Harmony on the Keys."

5. Avoid clichés and generalizations: Try to steer clear of generic phrases or clichéd titles that won't set your essay apart. Focus on what makes your essay unique and let that guide your choice of title.

6. Don't stress too much: Remember that your essay itself is the most important part of your application, so don't stress too much about the title. It's meant to enhance your essay, not overshadow it.

Once you have a few ideas, try them out on friends or family members to see which ones resonate the most. It always helps to get some outside opinions during the creative process. Good luck with your college essay!

About CollegeVine’s Expert FAQ

CollegeVine’s Q&A seeks to offer informed perspectives on commonly asked admissions questions. Every answer is refined and validated by our team of admissions experts to ensure it resonates with trusted knowledge in the field.

How to Write Your College Essay: The Ultimate Step-by-Step Guide

Getting ready to start your college essay? Your essay is very important to your application — especially if you’re applying to selective colleges.

Become a stronger writer by reviewing your peers’ essays and get your essay reviewed as well for free.

We have regular livestreams during which we walk you through how to write your college essay and review essays live.

College Essay Basics

Just getting started on college essays? This section will guide you through how you should think about your college essays before you start.

• Why do essays matter in the college application process?
• What is a college application theme and how do you come up with one?
• How to format and structure your college essay

Before you move to the next section, make sure you understand:

How a college essay fits into your application

What a strong essay does for your chances

How to create an application theme

Learn the Types of College Essays

Next, let’s make sure you understand the different types of college essays. You’ll most likely be writing a Common App or Coalition App essay, and you can also be asked to write supplemental essays for each school. Each essay has a prompt asking a specific question. Each of these prompts falls into one of a few different types. Understanding the types will help you better answer the prompt and structure your essay.

• How to Write a Personal Statement That Wows Colleges
• Personal Statement Essay Examples
• How to Write a Stellar Extracurricular Activity Essay
• Extracurricular Essay Examples
• Tips for Writing a Diversity College Essay
• Diversity Essay Examples
• Tips for Writing a Standout Community Service Essay
• How to Write the “Why This Major” Essay
• How to Write a “Why This Major” Essay if You’re Undecided
• How to write the “Why This College” Essay
• How to Research a College to Write the “Why This College” Essay
• Why This College Essay Examples
• How to Write The Overcoming Challenges Essay
• Overcoming Challenges Essay Examples

Identify how each prompt fits into an essay type

What each type of essay is really asking of you

How to write each essay effectively

The Common App essay

Almost every student will write a Common App essay, which is why it’s important you get this right.

• How to Write the Common App Essay
• Successful Common App Essay Examples
• 5 Awesome College Essay Topics + Sample Essays
• 11 Cliché College Essay Topics + How to Fix Them

How to choose which Common App prompts to answer

How to write a successful Common App essay

What to avoid to stand out to admissions officers

Supplemental Essay Guides

Many schools, especially competitive ones, will ask you to write one or more supplemental essays. This allows a school to learn more about you and how you might fit into their culture.

These essays are extremely important in standing out. We’ve written guides for all the top schools. Follow the link below to find your school and read last year’s essay guides to give you a sense of the essay prompts. We’ll update these in August when schools release their prompts.

See last year’s supplemental essay guides to get a sense of the prompts for your schools.

Essay brainstorming and composition

Now that you’re starting to write your essay, let’s dive into the writing process. Below you’ll find our top articles on the craft of writing an amazing college essay.

• Where to Begin? 3 Personal Essay Brainstorming Exercises
• Creating the First Draft of Your College Application Essay
• How to Get the Perfect Hook for Your College Essay
• What If I Don’t Have Anything Interesting To Write About In My College Essay?
• 8 Do’s and Don’t for Crafting Your College Essay
• Stuck on Your College Essay? 8 Tips for Overcoming Writer’s Block

Understand how to write a great hook for your essay

Complete the first drafts of your essay

Editing and polishing your essay

Have a first draft ready? See our top editing tips below. Also, you may want to submit your essay to our free Essay Peer Review to get quick feedback and join a community of other students working on their essays.

• 11 Tips for Proofreading and Editing Your College Essay
• Getting Help with Your College Essay
• 5 DIY Tips for Editing Your College Essay
• How Long Should Your College Essay Be?
• Essential Grammar Rules for Your College Apps
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How to Title an Essay: Tips and Examples

(Last updated: 5 April 2024)

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Crafting an essay title is like designing the cover of a book – it's the first thing your professors see, setting the stage for what's inside. As such, the title is crucial because it's the reader's first impression. In this guide, we'll explore why a good essay title matters, offer tips to help you learn how to title an essay and provide examples to illustrate which titles work and which don't.

The Importance of a Good Essay Title

The significance of a good essay title cannot be overstated. Beyond its role as a mere label, a compelling title serves as a powerful tool for drawing your professor’s attention. A good title not only encapsulates the essence of the essay but also reflects the author's voice and perspective. It sets the tone for the entire piece, guiding readers in their interpretation and understanding of the content. Moreover, a well-crafted title can enhance the credibility and authority of the essay, signalling that the author has invested thought and care into their work.

How to Write a Good Title for Your Essay

Crafting a good title requires a blend of creativity, precision, and strategic thinking. 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, preferences, and expectations. Tailor your title to resonate with your intended readership, striking a balance between familiarity and intrigue.
• Capture the Essence : Reports often incorporate tables, charts, graphs, and other visual aids to enhance the presentation of data and facilitate understanding.
• Evoke Emotion or Intrigue : Tap into the emotional or intellectual curiosity of your readers by crafting a title that evokes emotion, prompts reflection, or poses a compelling question. Consider using provocative language, vivid imagery, or rhetorical devices to capture readers' attention.
• Revise and Refine: : Once you've generated potential titles, take time to revise and refine them. Experiment with different word choices, phrasings, and structures until you find a title that resonates and feels cohesive with the content of your essay.

Characteristics of a Good Title

A good title shares several key characteristics:

Descriptive : Clearly communicates the topic or main idea of the essay. Engaging : Captures the reader's attention and sparks curiosity. Concise : Succinctly summarises the content without being overly long or verbose. Relevant : Directly relates to the content and theme of the essay. Original : Avoids clichés and generic phrases. Try to strive for originality and creativity.

Essay Title Examples (Good vs. Bad)

Let's examine additional examples of good and bad essay titles to illustrate these principles:

Good Title : "Exploring Identity: The Intersection of Culture and Self-Perception" Bad Title : "Essay on Identity"

The good title invites readers to explore complex questions surrounding identity and self-perception, fostering curiosity and engagement. In contrast, the bad title lacks specificity and fails to capture the richness and depth of the essay's subject matter.

Good Title : "Breaking Barriers: The Evolution of Women's Rights in the 21st Century" Bad Title : "Essay on Women's Rights"

The good title is engaging and suggests a narrative, while the bad title is a little bland and lacks imagination.

Writing a Catchy Title for Your Essay

To craft a catchy title, consider employing the following strategies:

Wordplay and Alliteration : Incorporate puns, alliteration, or clever wordplay to make your title memorable and attention-grabbing.

Question or Provocation : Pose a thought-provoking question or statement that challenges readers' assumptions or prompts them to reconsider their perspectives.

Use of Imagery and Metaphor : Invoke vivid imagery or metaphorical language that evokes emotion, stimulates the senses, or conveys abstract concepts in concrete terms.

Surprise Element : Introduce an unexpected twist or element of surprise that captures readers' attention and leaves them eager to learn more.

Elevate Your Essay with An Engaging Title

Writing a good title for your essay requires time, skill, and a keen understanding of your subject matter. Crafting an essay title is more than just a formality—it's an art that can set the stage for the narrative that follows. With practice and attention to detail, you'll master the art of essay titling and unleash the full potential of your written creations.

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How to Write College Application Essays

Use the links below to jump directly to any section of this guide:

College Application Essay Fundamentals 

How to prepare to write your essay , how to approach different essay types, how to structure your essay , how to revise your essay, how to find essay writing help , resources for teaching students how to write a college essay, additional resources (further reading).

Of all the materials in a college application, the essay provides the greatest opportunity for you to set yourself apart. Unlike the transcript or resume, the essay is creative and expressive; in it, you can show the admissions counselors who you are and what you can do (that is, how well you can write!). A good application essay should have a memorable main idea, a cohesive structure, and a strong introduction and conclusion. Although essay topics can vary by college, the most common prompts deal with personal experiences and aspirations for the future. This guide   contains a diverse set of resources to help you orient yourself to the college application essay and, ultimately, to write the most competitive essay possible. 

The college application essay is a requirement for admission to almost all institutions of higher learning. Though in some ways it resembles essays you've written in class or on standardized tests, in other ways it's a unique writing exercises with its own particular requirements. Use the resources below to help you understand how the essay should be structured and what kind of content to include. 

"How Long Should College Application Essays Be?" (Learn.org)

This webpage guides you through some basic tips on writing the college essay—including essay length, sticking to the prompt, and maintaining an original tone. 

"College Application Essay" (College Board)

This webpage from the College Board discusses the different types of application essays, what length you should aim for, and most importantly, why colleges value this aspect of the application so much. 

"College Essays, College Applications" (College Board) 

The College Board's website is a great resource for any student looking to apply to college. This webpage contains several links to helpful resources, including sample essays and genuine student interviews. 

"Timeline for College Applications" (College Essay Guy)

This colorful, one-page guide from a college application specialist offers an illustrated timeline for high school students looking to apply for college. 

Before putting your ideas down on paper, it's important to conceptualize your essay, to craft strategically your tone and style, and,  crucially, to choose a topic that suits you and the school to which you're applying. The resources in this section include writing tips, lists of common mistakes you should avoid, and guides dedicated to the college application essay.

How to Plan Your Essay

"3 Common College Essay Mistakes to Avoid" (CNBC)  

This article from CNBC broadly outlines the most common mistakes students make when writing their college application essays. Although these mistakes may seem obvious, even the most experienced writers can fall into these common traps.

"7 Effective Application Tips" (Peterson's)

This article from Peterson's (a company providing academic materials for test prep, application help, and more) lists seven pieces of advice designed to make your writing pop. 

"The Secret to Show, Don't Tell" ( The Write Practice Blog)  

You've heard it before: show, don't tell. This is a great writing tip, but how do you pull it off? Here, the writing blog  The Write Practice  outlines how you can make your writing more descriptive and effective. 

"Passive Voice" (University of North Carolina)  

Avoiding passive construction is a subtle yet effective way to upgrade any piece of writing. Check out this webpage from a university writing center for some tips on recognizing and avoiding passive voice. 

"Using Appropriate Words in an Academic Essay" (National University of Singapore)

There are many ways to upgrade your vocabulary. Often, words can be replaced with more impressive substitutes, phrases can be shortened or lengthened depending on context, and transitions can be used for a smoother flow. The link above expands on these strategies and offers several others. 

How to Brainstorm Topic Ideas

"Bad College Essays: 10 Mistakes to Avoid" (PrepScholar)

This article from a well-known tutoring service and test prep program describes what to avoid when writing your essay. Essays that are too graphic, too personal, or too overconfident are all problematic, and this article explains why. 

"5 Tricks for Choosing Your College Essay Topic" (CollegeXpress)

Lost on how to choose a topic? This webpage from CollegeXpress outlines five sources of inspiration you can mine for ideas as you're getting started.

"The College Admission Essay: Finding a Topic" (The Choice Blog)

This article from New York Times  blog The Choice  breaks down three essential questions to ask yourself when choosing a topic for your college essay. 

"COLLEGE ESSAY GUIDE: Choosing a Prompt for the Common Application" (YouTube)

In this five-minute video, a Yale student discusses how to choose a college essay prompt and how to approach the essay writing process. His channel is filled with original videos on the college application process. 

"Where to Begin? 3 Personal Essay Brainstorming Exercises" ( CollegeVine Blog)

Approaching the Common App essay prompts can be difficult. This blog post explains several tactics you can use to narrow down your options, such as writing down a list of your greatest convictions.

"Using First Person in an Academic Essay: When Is It Okay?" (WritingCommons.org)

Most high school students are told to avoid using the first person point of view; this can be confusing when writing college essays, which typically ask what  you  think. This article breaks down when (and why) it's acceptable to write in the first person. 

Although all college essays serve the same purpose - articulating why you should get into a college - they come in different kinds. While topics on the Common Application are relatively consistent from year to year, personal statements and so-called "supplemental essays" vary by institution. Each of these essays requires a slightly different approach. The resources in this section will prepare you to answer the various types of essay prompts you're likely to encounter. 

Common Application Essays

CommonApp.org

The Common Application's official website is the best place to start getting acquainted with the service to which the majority of US colleges and universities now subscribe - a service which allows you to streamline your application process and minimize duplication of materials.

"What's App-enning" Blog (Common App)  

The Common App runs a blog with a wealth of information on common application-related news, including periodic updates on common application essay prompts for each application cycle. You can practice brainstorming with old prompts, or even start preparing your application by looking at this year's prompts.

125 College Essay Examples (PrepScholar Blog)

Here, PrepScholar provides a variety of Common App essays that got their respective applicants into their desired schools. Along with the body text of the essays, the website provides analysis on  what  makes the essays so great. 

A Few Essays That Worked (And a Few That Didn't) (NYTimes Blog)

This article analyzes unsuccessful essays, illuminating the ways in which they fell short. Although you should exercise caution and adjust your approach to your specific school, it's always good to pick up on general things to avoid. 

Personal Statements

What Is a Personal Statement? (PrepScholar Blog)

Although personal statements and Common App essays are similar, not all personal statement essays are administered through the Common App. This article from PrepScholar's blog will provide you with everything you need to know about writing a personal statement.

Examples of Successful Statements (Purdue OWL)

The Purdue OWL online writing lab collate links on this page to several successful personal statement. It can be useful to read successful statements and to consider how and why the statements made an impact on their readers. 

Past Threads on Advice for Writing Your College Essay (Reddit Post)

Although not about the personal statement  per se , this Reddit post has links to several past threads that may be of use to any prospective college applicant. 

What 10 Things Should Your Personal Statement Include? (Which University UK)  

This site outlines ten things to consider when writing a personal statement, including outlining what you will bring to the course, not what the course will bring to you. 

Supplemental Essays

How to Write Great Supplemental College Essays (IvyWise Newsletter)

Supplemental essays can often be challenging, asking a range of questions from the mundane to the oddly specific. This article from college application site IvyWise will break down example prompts to make them more approachable. 

Write Your Supplemental Essays (College Essay Guy)

Looking for a comprehensive guide to supplemental essays? Look no further than this page provided by the "College Essay Guy," who breaks down how to write supplemental essays that ask different kinds of questions. 

An Awesome Guide to the UChicago Supplement (Dyad)

Dyad, a college mentoring service, walks you through how to approach UChicago's supplemental essay question. Although the article is specific to UChicago, it contains general tips that are helpful to any college applicant. 

Reading My Yale Supplement Essay (YouTube)

Josh Beasley is back in this short YouTube video, where he reads the supplemental essay that got him into Yale and extrapolates advice for current and prospective applicants. 

A college application essay (like any academic essay) should have an introduction, a conclusion, and body paragraphs. Additionally, it should have overall coherence (that is, it should make a point) and cohesion (that is, it should flow well from paragraph to paragraph). We've collected the most relevant resources here to help you structure your college essay correctly and efficiently. 

How to Make Your Essay Stand Out 

College Essays That Stand Out From the Crowd (NYTimes)

This NYTimes article includes links to several recent essays that caught the eyes of the admissions readers by taking risks. You can even listen to an essay being read aloud by a current Princeton student.

50 Successful Ivy League Application Essays (Gen / Kelly Tanabe)  

If you have some time on your hands, this hefty PDF document contains 50 essays from successful Ivy League applicants. After reading these essays, consider what they have in common and how they might be a model for your own essay.

Make Your Application Essay Stand Out (CampusExplorer.com)

In this article from CampusExplorer, you'll find general tips on how to make your essay more appealing to the admissions readers. The writers include general writing tips as well as more targeted advice for the tone and audience of the application essay.

How to Write a College Application Essay that Stands Out (Boston University)

This short video from BU's own admissions department touches briefly on what impresses their admissions readers, including risk-taking, memorable stories, and honesty. 

Essay Structure (Monash University)

This chart from Monash University visually demonstrates how your content should be organized in order to keep your argument or story on track. 

How to Write an Introduction

How to Start a Personal Statement: The Killer Opening (Which University UK)  

Any good introduction both forecasts what your essay will be about and catches the reader's attention. This page will give you some helpful advice on starting your essay with a bang. 

How to Start a College Essay Perfectly (PrepScholar Blog)

This article from PrepScholar shows you how to "hook" your reader at the start of your application essay with colorful language, a vivid story, and an "insightful pivot" to your main point.

Let Me Introduce Myself (Stanford University)

This article from Stanford U's alumni page details the first-line openings of the essays for some current Stanford undergrads. 

Five Ways to NOT Start Your College Application Essays (PowerScore)

In this article, you'll learn five techniques to avoid, as they typically land a college application essay in the "reject" pile; these include beginning with dictionary definitions or famous quotations. 

How to Write a Conclusion 

Ending the Essay: Conclusions (Harvard University)

Harvard's writing center suggests bringing closure to your essay (that is, wrapping up your argument) while still expanding outward to broader applications or insights in your final paragraph.

Concluding Paragraph (Easybib)  

Although you may have used Easybib to make a bibliography before, did you know they have many resources on how to write a good essay? Check out this page for succinct advice on what your conclusion should entail. 

5 Ways to Powerfully End Your College Essay (College Greenlight)

This blog post instructs you to end with action (that is, a story or anecdote) rather than summary, giving you five ways to do this effectively, including addressing the college directly.

How to Write the Best Conclusion for a College Application Essay and Supplement (Koppelman Group)

The Koppelman Group, a college application consulting firm, warns you, above all, not to end "in conclusion" or "to conclude." They also provide targeted advice for the Common App and Supplement essays, respectively. 

No essay is perfect in its first-draft form; college application essays in particular are limited by word counts that can be difficult to meet. Once you've communicated your ideas, you'll want to edit your essay in order to make sure it's the best it can be. You'll also need to cut or add words to make sure it's within the specifications set by the institution. The resources in this section include tips and tricks for revising your college application essay. 

3 Ways to Increase Word Count (WikiHow)

Complete with illustrations, this WikiHow page outlines several ways you might go about substantively expanding your essay. These tips include clarifying points, reworking your introduction and conclusion, adding new viewpoints and examples, and connecting loose threads. 

Admissions 101: What an Essay Word Limit Really Means (Veritas Prep) 

In this blog post, Veritas Prep's college preparation tutors assure you that being a little over or under the limit is acceptable, recommending ways you can think about the word limit's purpose.

College Essay Word Limit - Going Under? (College Confidential) 

In this College Confidential discussion forum, students discuss the possible ramifications of writing under the word limit for a college essay. 

How to Increase Your Essay Word Count (WordCounter)

This article from WordCounter outlines different ways you might go about meeting word count, including addressing different viewpoints, adding examples, and clarifying statements. 

Hitting the Target Word Count in Your College Admissions Essay (Dummies.com)

This article details how to hit the target word count. Scroll down to the middle of the article for advice on where you should cut words from to meet word count. 

Some Tricks to Reduce Word Count (EastAsiaStudent.net)

This article recommends simplifying your style, deleting adverbs, deleting prepositions, and revisiting connectives and adjectives to reduce word count. 

Advice on Whittling Your Admissions Essay (NYTimes) 

In this New York Times article, Andrew Gelb discusses how to go about cutting down your admissions essay in order to meet the requisite word limit.

How to Shorten an Essay Without Ruining the Content (Quora) 

This Quora post from a concerned student yielded useful community responses on how to effectively shorten an essay without losing the original message. 

Feel like you've hit a wall revising your essay on your own? You're not alone, and there are plentiful resources on the web through which you can connect with fellow college applicants and/or professional tutors. The links in this section will take you to free services for improving your college application essay, as well as two of the top paid writing tutor services.

College Confidential Forums 

College Confidential is a free, public forum in which you can post your essay and receive feedback from current college students, current college applicants, and even teachers or other experienced users. 

/r/CollegeEssays (Reddit)

This subreddit is a great place to look for crowdsourced help on your essay, ask questions about college essays, or even find a private tutor. 

Essayforum.com

Essayforum.com provides another platform for students to share their application essays. Although this link takes you to the site's forum for applicants to undergraduate degree programs, you can submit and review essays in other categories as well.  Varsity Tutors

Varisty Tutors offers tutoring services from freelance tutors based on location. Prices and services vary, but their site is easy to use and there are many tutors available to choose from.

Princeton Review

Princeton Review, one of the largest providers of college preparation tutoring (ranging from standardized test preparation to essay help) offers online essay tutoring services with a free trial period. 

Using in-class time to prepare your students to write college application essays is, of course, rewarding, but can also be challenging. If you're a teacher looking to incorporate the college essay into your curriculum but you're not sure where to start, take a look at the useful resources below.

TeachersPayTeachers

College Essay Writing

This product includes material for more than one full lesson plan, including powerpoint presentations, assessments, and homework on the topic of college essays. 

Narrative Writing Ideas and Prompts

Appealing to students 9th grade and up, this product includes lesson plans, handouts, and homework for developing narrative writing for the college essay process. 

College Essay: Comprehensive 7-Session Workshop Series

This PDF includes entire courses, manuals, and handouts designed to teach students the ins and outs of the college essay process, either in an individual or group setting. 

College Essay Revision Forms & Rubrics

These PDFs provide students with visual organizers and rubrics to assess their own writing and learn how to become better college essay writers. 

Free Resources

Teaching the College Essay (Edutopia) 

Teaching your students about writing the college essay can be incredibly intimidating -- as a teacher, how should you approach the process? This article from Edutopia outlines how to go about introducing the college essay to your students. 

Essay Lesson Plan Ideas for College Applications (EssayHell)

If you're a teacher looking for a concrete lesson plan on college essays, this guide recommends using the first day to discuss the importance of the essay, the second day for brainstorming, and so on. Click on the link above to examine their full guide. 

Help Your Students Write a Killer College Essay (EdWeek Blog)

This blog post goes over various techniques designed to help your students choose an appropriate topic and write their essay with passion. 

The Biggest College Essay Mistakes & How to Fix Them (Talks With Teachers)

Looking to help your students avoid the minefield of mistakes in the college essay field? Check out this post from Talks With Teachers, a journal that shares "inspiring ideas for English teachers." 

Curious to read more about college application essays, or to see fun and unusual examples of what students have written? The articles, blog posts, and books in this section are a good place to start surveying the field.

One Over-the-Top Admissions Essay (Huffington Post)

This piece from the Huffington Post talks about a humorous response to a Stanford supplemental essay topic, the so-called "letter to my future roommate."

College & University - Statistics and Facts (Statista.com) 

In the process of writing your college essay, you may find yourself wondering who exactly goes to college, how many colleges there are in the United States, etc. This site gives the up-to-date statistics for various US demographics, both in aggregate and by university, as well as other information.

Who Made That College Application? (NYTimes)

This piece from the NYTimes outlines the history of the college essay from its origins in the 1800s, to the first "modern" college application, produced by Columbia University in 1919, to the present.  

How They Got Into Harvard (Staff of the Harvard Crimson)

This highly-rated collection of successful Harvard application essays, available on Amazon, is both an entertaining read and an instructive resource for anyone looking for exemplary essays to use as models. 

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Essay Writing Guide

How To Title An Essay

Last updated on: Jun 28, 2024

How to Title an Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide for Effective Titles

By: Nova A.

Reviewed By: Chris H.

Published on: Feb 5, 2019

Are you tired of struggling to create captivating titles for your essays? It can be frustrating to spend hours only to end up with a lackluster title that fails to engage your readers.

But here's the thing: a weak title can significantly impact the success of your essay. It's the first thing your readers see, and it sets the tone for their expectations. A dull or generic title may cause your audience to lose interest before they even start reading.

Luckily, there is a simple yet effective solution to this problem. By following a few key strategies, you can learn how to title an essay that captures attention and piques curiosity.

In this blog, we will guide you through creating engaging essay titles step by step. 

Whether you're a student or a writer, these tips will help you to craft titles that make your essays shine.

On this Page

What Is The Purpose Of An Essay Title?

An essay title serves a crucial purpose in the world of writing. It goes beyond being a formality and plays a strategic role in captivating readers and enhancing the impact of your work.

The purpose of an essay title can be summarized into four key objectives.

•  Attention Grabbing:

A creative title instantly grabs the reader's attention, acting as a hook that sparks curiosity. It entices them to explore your essay further.

• Setting Expectations:

An essay title communicates the main theme, subject matter, or argument of your writing. It sets the tone and prepares readers for what lies ahead.

• Creating Interest and Relevance:

A carefully chosen title makes your essay relatable and interesting to your target audience. It also establishes a connection between their interests and your topic.

• Reflecting the Essence:

The title of your essay should reflect its core essence and purpose, acting as a concise representation of the ideas.

What Are The Rules For Essay Titles?

When it comes to creating essay titles, different formatting styles have specific rules and guidelines to follow. In this section, we will explore the rules for essay titles in three commonly used formats: MLA, APA, and the Chicago Manual of Style.

Guidelines for Essay Titles in MLA Format

In MLA format, essay titles have the following rules:

Capitalization

• Capitalize the first and last words of the title.
• Capitalize all principal words, including nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs.
• Do not capitalize articles (a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or), or prepositions, unless they are the first or last word of the title.

Italics or Quotation Marks

• Italicize the titles of complete works (books, journals, movies, etc.). Place titles of shorter works (articles, essays, poems) in quotation marks.

Example: 

Guidelines for Essay Titles in APA Format

In APA format, essay titles have the following rules:

• Capitalize the first word of the title and any subtitles.
• Capitalize all proper nouns.
• Only capitalize the first word after a colon if it begins a subtitle. 
• Italicize the titles of longer works (books, journals, movies, etc.).
• Do not use quotation marks for titles.

Guidelines for Essay Titles in Chicago Manual of Style Format

In the Chicago Manual of Style format, essay titles have the following rules:

• Capitalize all nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and subordinating conjunctions.

Italics or Quotation Marks:

• Italicize the titles of larger works (books, journals, movies, etc.).
• Use quotation marks for titles of shorter works (articles, essays, poems).

How To Make Your Essay Title Eye Catching

Finding the perfect essay title can be a creative challenge. In this section, we will explore effective strategies for brainstorming your essay title to ensure it captures the essence of your work and engages your readers.

Here's What Your Essay Title Should Include

When brainstorming your essay title, consider including the following elements:

Identify key terms or concepts related to your essay's topic or main argument. These keywords should be relevant, descriptive, and reflective of the content.

• Tone and Style:

Determine the appropriate tone and style for your essay. Consider whether your title should be formal, academic, creative, or catchy, depending on the purpose and audience of your essay.

• Focus and Scope:

Reflect on the main focus and scope of your essay. Consider the specific angle, perspective, or aspect you are exploring in your writing.

• Engaging Language:

Use language that captivates and intrigues readers. Employ strong verbs, vivid adjectives, or thought-provoking phrases to make your title stand out.

Example of an Effective Essay Title: "Unveiling the Hidden Wonders: Exploring the Biodiversity of the Amazon Rainforest"

What Not to Include in Your Essay Title

While brainstorming your essay title, it's important to avoid certain elements that may weaken or confuse your title. Consider the following:

• Vague or General Terms:

Avoid using generic terms or phrases that lack specificity. Instead, opt for precise and descriptive language that accurately represents your essay's content.

• Abbreviations or Acronyms:

Unless widely recognized, avoid using abbreviations or acronyms that may confuse readers. Aim for clarity and ensure that your title can be easily understood by a broad audience.

• Excessive Length:

Keep your title concise and avoid unnecessary wordiness. A long, convoluted title may overwhelm readers and fail to capture their attention.

• Clichés or Overused Phrases:

Steer clear of clichés or overused phrases that may make your title appear unoriginal or uninspiring. Strive for creativity and uniqueness to make your title memorable.

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Essay title examples

Here are three examples of essay titles for each of the given topics:

How to Title an Essay for College

"From Dreams to Reality: Navigating the Path to College Success" "Unveiling the Future: Crafting an Essay Title that Defines Your College Journey" "Beyond the Application: The Power of a Compelling College Essay Title"

How to Title an Essay about a Book

"Unveiling the Literary Tapestry: Analyzing [Book Title] through an Engaging Essay Title" "Pages of Wisdom: Crafting an Essay Title that Unveils the Depths of [Book Title]" "Beyond the Cover: Exploring the Themes of [Book Title] through an Evocative Essay Title"

How to Title an Essay for a Scholarship

"Dreams Rewarded: Crafting an Essay Title that Shines for Scholarship Success" "Unveiling Potential: Illuminating Your Journey to Scholarship with an Impactful Title" "Beyond the Application: The Art of Composing a Compelling Scholarship Essay Title"

 How to Title an Essay about Yourself

"Unveiling the Layers: Crafting a Reflective Essay Title that Defines Me" "The Journey Within Exploring Identity through an Introspective Essay Title" "Beyond the Mirror: Unraveling My Story through a Captivating Essay Title" 

Essay Title Examples: Bad vs Good

Here are examples of bad and good essay titles to illustrate the difference:

Bad Essay Title:

 "Essay about Cats"

This title is too vague and lacks creativity. It does not give any indication of the specific focus or purpose of the essay.

Good Essay Title: 

"Paws and Purrs: Exploring the Mysterious Charms of Domestic Cats"

This title is more engaging and intriguing. It captures the attention of the reader by using playful language.

 "Climate Change"

This title is overly broad and does not provide any insight into the specific aspect of climate change that the essay will address.

"Melting Point: Understanding the Devastating Impacts of Arctic Ice Loss on Global Climate"

This title is specific and highlights the focus of the essay: the connection between Arctic ice loss and the broader issue of global climate change. It indicates a deeper exploration of the subject matter.

 "My Trip to Europe"

This title is generic and lacks creativity. It fails to convey any unique perspective or aspect of the trip.

Good Essay Title:

 "Wanderlust Unleashed: A Journey through Europe's Enchanting Landscapes and Timeless Culture"

This title is more engaging and captures the essence of the essay. It suggests a personal narrative infused with the exploration of Europe's diverse landscapes.

4 Tips While Choosing an Essay Title

Choosing the right essay title is essential for capturing the interest of your readers and accurately representing your work. 

In this section, we will provide four valuable tips to consider when creating a title for your essay. 

Reflect the Content:

Ensure that your essay title accurately reflects the main theme and tone of your essay. It should provide a clear indication of what readers can expect to find in your writing. 

Avoid misleading or ambiguous titles that may confuse or disappoint your audience.

Example: If your essay explores the impact of social media on society, a suitable title could be

 "The Digital Revolution: Unraveling the Influence of Social Media on Modern Society."

Engage and Intrigue:

Craft a title that captivates your readers and piques their curiosity. Use strong verbs, and catchy hooks, to make your title stand out from the crowd. Aim to evoke an emotional response or generate interest in your topic.

Example: Instead of a generic title like "The Importance of Exercise," opt for a more engaging title such as

 "Unleashing the Power Within How Exercise Transforms Mind, Body, and Soul."

Keep it Concise:

Keep your title concise and avoid excessive wordiness. A long and convoluted title may confuse or overwhelm readers. 

Aim for clarity and brevity, while still capturing the essence of your essay. Shorter titles are often more memorable and impactful.

Consider Your Audience:

Take into account the target audience for your essay. Consider their interests, knowledge level, and expectations. Tailor your title to resonate with your specific readership. 

A title that speaks directly to your audience's needs and desires will be more effective in capturing their attention.

Example: If your essay targets parents seeking parenting advice, a relevant title could be 

"Raising Resilient Kids: Nurturing Strength and Confidence in Today's Challenging World."

Choosing the perfect essay title is a critical step in creating a captivating and impactful piece of writing. 

It serves as a gateway to your essay, capturing the attention of your readers and setting the tone for what lies ahead. 

By following the four tips outlined in this blog, you can craft a title that reflects your essay's content, engages your audience, and leaves a lasting impression. Start your essay off on the right foot with a title that shines boldly and confidently.

Ready to take your essay writing to the next level? Visit 5StarEssays.com today and experience top-notch academic assistance. 

Our team of expert writers is here to help you with all your essay needs. Whether you're looking for essay writing, editing, or proofreading services, we've got you covered. 

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As a Digital Content Strategist, Nova Allison has eight years of experience in writing both technical and scientific content. With a focus on developing online content plans that engage audiences, Nova strives to write pieces that are not only informative but captivating as well.

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An academic title is probably the first thing your readers will experience about your paper. This handout will show you two approaches to creating paper titles, one that is more informative, and another that is more creative. The first is most often used for formal academic papers. The second is more likely to be used for narratives or personal essays, but it can sometimes be used for academic papers as well.

General Considerations

Before deciding on a title, be sure to think carefully about your audience. Who will be reading this paper and what are their motivations? Do they want to be entertained? Are they concerned with acquiring information as clearly and concisely as possible? How do you want your reader to feel about the content of your paper? Asking questions such as these will help you determine the appropriate tone for your title.

A great academic title should tell your readers as much as possible about your paper’s central claim and its significance. Good titles often include:

• A set of key terms

Approach #1: Titles for Academic Papers

Good academic titles reveal not only the topic of the paper but some idea of your specific approach, argument, and area of discussion. Here are some typical and useful academic titles:

• Good Bye Lenin!: Free Market Nostalgia for Socialist Consumerism
• The Artful Thunder as Dramatic Technique in Shakespeare’s The Tempest

The Effects of Light and Temperature on the Growth of Populations of the Bacterium, Escherichia coli

“The Machine-Language of the Muscles”: Reading, Sport and the Self in Infinite Jest

Though representing a range of disciplines, each of these titles is clear, independent and self-explanatory. Notice how each title is relatively long and contains multiple phrases. Academic writing is complex and demands equally complex and purposeful titles. If you look carefully at the sample titles, you will notice that each has three separate elements:

• The hook – This is a creative element that draws in the reader. Typically this is a catchy, readable phrase that advertises the paper’s specific subject. The hook is sometimes a direct quotation from a text or a sudden introduction of a new and exciting element of your topic.
• Key terms – These are crucial words or phrases that are indispensable to the topic at hand. In academic writing, scholars are often asked to identify a few select terms that will identify their paper in an index. Similarly, the use of key terms in a paper’s title will make the paper more searchable in a database. You want to load your title with important terminology as a way to orient the reader to the concepts under discussion in the paper to follow. The best titles are like very brief summaries of the paper itself.
• The source – Sometimes called a “location,” this is the place in the title where the concepts under discussion are to be found. Depending on the discipline, your source might be a piece of writing, the name of a text, a geographical place, a person, an existing debate, an organism, and so on.

Good titles never state the obvious nor do they apply a generic label to a paper. Titles like “Paper #1” or “Lab Report” are clearly too general and unhelpful. Similarly, titles that rely too much on large abstractions are not welcome: “Society and its Many Problems.” In this title the reader has no idea which society is under discussion, what the particular problems may be, or why this is at all current and significant. Avoid clichés at all costs as well: “A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words”. This title is virtually meaningless. If it feels like a common title to you, it will likely seem as common to another reader. Remember, the assignment may be given by the instructor, but the title is your first chance to make the paper your own. Remember also to center your title at the top of your first page of your text. Use the same font and size as the rest of your paper.

Analyzing an Example of an Academic Paper Title

Consider this title from above:

This title’s parts are all clearly visible. The hook is a direct quotation from the novel under discussion, a well-chosen particular that advances an important theme in the novel. The next part: “Reading, Sport and the Self” contains the title’s key terms. The title is making a promise here to the reader that the paper will engage these three critical concepts. Finally we see the source of the title, prompted by the preposition “in”. Someone reading this title or searching for it in a database would easily identify it as a study of a particular book, in this case, a novel by David Foster Wallace, which is concerned with the ideas of reading, sport and the self. In the humanities, you will often see writers divide their titles into two distinct parts, as in this example, marked by a colon that allows the hook to introduce the rest of the title.

Here is another example, this time from the sciences:

Science writing rarely uses a hook in the same way as papers in the humanities. The hook in a science paper is often simply a highly relevant but exciting and direct introduction of a new approach or discovery. What you mostly find in science writing titles is a catalog of key terms that corresponds directly to the paper’s thesis, significance and methods. Here we see a number of key terms: light, temperature, growth, and the bacterium itself. This title would be highly searchable and is very informative. The final part is the source which simply and clearly identifies the bacterium under discussion.

Approach #2: Titles for Narrative and Personal Papers

Being simple and clear can be very useful in a formal academic essay, but what if you aren’t writing an analytical paper? How do you write a title for a personal essay or statement? How about a title for that English paper that asks you to write a narrative or share an observation? These types of papers might well demand titles that simply sound interesting and creative rather than strictly academic.

In these cases you may want to use an interesting phrase from your paper. Perhaps there is a humorous or dramatic anecdote you offer in your creative paper that sums it all up. Perhaps there is a quotation or phrase that could serve as the title. In these cases you simply want to interest the reader by making the paper seem unique. Here is your opportunity to really put your stamp on the paper and to intrigue the reader. Here are some interesting and intriguing titles for creative essays:

“Why I Screen My Calls” “The Week of Rental Car Disasters” “My Son, the Burglar, Revisited” “What’s So Wrong with the Brady Bunch?”

Each of these titles is provocative. The first two offer the agenda for the paper; presumably you will learn the hilarious and awful history behind each title by reading the paper. The final two titles depend on humorous and contrary bits of information: a father writing about his burglar son, which seems at odds with what we might expect a father to write about his son (and in this case “revisited” is a provocative word since perhaps the son has burgled again). The Brady Bunch title is also funny because it promises a defense of an unexpected position or at least an eminently arguable one, which makes it an intriguing paper title.

In Practice

Imagine you are a student writing a paper for a class on animal behavior. You have a particular species to study, you have done the field work, and you have some conclusions to offer. Here is your first attempt: “Monkey Behavior”.

This is very general and tells us nothing about the kind of monkey or a particular behavior. It does little to attract the reader.

Your second attempt is a little better: “The Effects of Sugar on Monkey Behavior”.

This title is a little clearer and even mildly amusing. Now, at least we have some idea of a cause and an understanding of some important concepts. But can you be more specific? Wouldn’t it make sense to add more key terms from the paper itself? Readers already can conjecture that sugar would have some effect on monkey behavior, so this title needs to be less mysterious and more precise. Here is a better academic title:

“Sugar Stimulates Intensity of Tail-Twitch Social Behavior in Panamanian Monkeys”

Now you have a title that is full of specific key terms, includes a clear location, and provides a bold and specific claim before the text of the paper begins. This is incredibly helpful to your readers.

Try your hand at creating an academic title for a paper with the following topic:

“Write a 5-7 page paper analyzing any work of the author and illustrator Dr. Seuss. You may make reference to one or more of his books, but you must analyze the text(s) based on at least one of the following: Seuss’s use of metaphor, imagery, symbolism, or rhyme. You must also make a connection between this device and his drawing technique or subject matter. Use quotes to support your argument.”

HINT: This is a tough (though potentially interesting) assignment prompt, but remember the three parts of the academic title: hook, key terms, and source. Your hook could be a quote, perhaps a direct quote that shows either metaphor, imagery, symbolism or rhyme. This would be a smart move because you would reveal in the title which of the four options you chose for the paper topic. In other words, by quoting, you would already have an example before you introduce your argument. Your key terms would likely be lifted from the assignment prompt itself (metaphor, imagery, etc. . .). The source would be just that: the name of the book you chose to explore.

Now challenge yourself to make a creative title for this paper. The possibilities are endless here. Think in terms of being clever and witty and actually making use of the terms and techniques the assignment asks you to consider.

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12 Strategies to Writing the Perfect College Essay

College admission committees sift through thousands of college essays each year. Here’s how to make yours stand out.

Pamela Reynolds

When it comes to deciding who they will admit into their programs, colleges consider many criteria, including high school grades, extracurricular activities, and ACT and SAT scores. But in recent years, more colleges are no longer considering test scores.

Instead, many (including Harvard through 2026) are opting for “test-blind” admission policies that give more weight to other elements in a college application. This policy change is seen as fairer to students who don’t have the means or access to testing, or who suffer from test anxiety.

So, what does this mean for you?

Simply that your college essay, traditionally a requirement of any college application, is more important than ever.

A college essay is your unique opportunity to introduce yourself to admissions committees who must comb through thousands of applications each year. It is your chance to stand out as someone worthy of a seat in that classroom.

A well-written and thoughtful essay—reflecting who you are and what you believe—can go a long way to separating your application from the slew of forgettable ones that admissions officers read. Indeed, officers may rely on them even more now that many colleges are not considering test scores.

Below we’ll discuss a few strategies you can use to help your essay stand out from the pack. We’ll touch on how to start your essay, what you should write for your college essay, and elements that make for a great college essay.

Be Authentic

More than any other consideration, you should choose a topic or point of view that is consistent with who you truly are.

Readers can sense when writers are inauthentic.

Inauthenticity could mean the use of overly flowery language that no one would ever use in conversation, or it could mean choosing an inconsequential topic that reveals very little about who you are.

Use your own voice, sense of humor, and a natural way of speaking.

Whatever subject you choose, make sure it’s something that’s genuinely important to you and not a subject you’ve chosen just to impress. You can write about a specific experience, hobby, or personality quirk that illustrates your strengths, but also feel free to write about your weaknesses.

Honesty about traits, situations, or a childhood background that you are working to improve may resonate with the reader more strongly than a glib victory speech.

Grab the Reader From the Start

You’ll be competing with so many other applicants for an admission officer’s attention.

Therefore, start your essay with an opening sentence or paragraph that immediately seizes the imagination. This might be a bold statement, a thoughtful quote, a question you pose, or a descriptive scene.

Starting your essay in a powerful way with a clear thesis statement can often help you along in the writing process. If your task is to tell a good story, a bold beginning can be a natural prelude to getting there, serving as a roadmap, engaging the reader from the start, and presenting the purpose of your writing.

Focus on Deeper Themes

Some essay writers think they will impress committees by loading an essay with facts, figures, and descriptions of activities, like wins in sports or descriptions of volunteer work. But that’s not the point.

College admissions officers are interested in learning more about who you are as a person and what makes you tick.

They want to know what has brought you to this stage in life. They want to read about realizations you may have come to through adversity as well as your successes, not just about how many games you won while on the soccer team or how many people you served at a soup kitchen.

Let the reader know how winning the soccer game helped you develop as a person, friend, family member, or leader. Make a connection with your soup kitchen volunteerism and how it may have inspired your educational journey and future aspirations. What did you discover about yourself?

Show Don’t Tell

As you expand on whatever theme you’ve decided to explore in your essay, remember to show, don’t tell.

The most engaging writing “shows” by setting scenes and providing anecdotes, rather than just providing a list of accomplishments and activities.

Reciting a list of activities is also boring. An admissions officer will want to know about the arc of your emotional journey too.

Try Doing Something Different

If you want your essay to stand out, think about approaching your subject from an entirely new perspective. While many students might choose to write about their wins, for instance, what if you wrote an essay about what you learned from all your losses?

If you are an especially talented writer, you might play with the element of surprise by crafting an essay that leaves the response to a question to the very last sentence.

You may want to stay away from well-worn themes entirely, like a sports-related obstacle or success, volunteer stories, immigration stories, moving, a summary of personal achievements or overcoming obstacles.

However, such themes are popular for a reason. They represent the totality of most people’s lives coming out of high school. Therefore, it may be less important to stay away from these topics than to take a fresh approach.

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Write With the Reader in Mind

Writing for the reader means building a clear and logical argument in which one thought flows naturally from another.

Use transitions between paragraphs.

Think about any information you may have left out that the reader may need to know. Are there ideas you have included that do not help illustrate your theme?

Be sure you can answer questions such as: Does what you have written make sense? Is the essay organized? Does the opening grab the reader? Is there a strong ending? Have you given enough background information? Is it wordy?

Write Several Drafts

Set your essay aside for a few days and come back to it after you’ve had some time to forget what you’ve written. Often, you’ll discover you have a whole new perspective that enhances your ability to make revisions.

Start writing months before your essay is due to give yourself enough time to write multiple drafts. A good time to start could be as early as the summer before your senior year when homework and extracurricular activities take up less time.

Read It Aloud

Writer’s tip : Reading your essay aloud can instantly uncover passages that sound clumsy, long-winded, or false.

Don’t Repeat

If you’ve mentioned an activity, story, or anecdote in some other part of your application, don’t repeat it again in your essay.

Your essay should tell college admissions officers something new. Whatever you write in your essay should be in philosophical alignment with the rest of your application.

Also, be sure you’ve answered whatever question or prompt may have been posed to you at the outset.

Ask Others to Read Your Essay

Be sure the people you ask to read your essay represent different demographic groups—a teacher, a parent, even a younger sister or brother.

Ask each reader what they took from the essay and listen closely to what they have to say. If anyone expresses confusion, revise until the confusion is cleared up.

Pay Attention to Form

Although there are often no strict word limits for college essays, most essays are shorter rather than longer. Common App, which students can use to submit to multiple colleges, suggests that essays stay at about 650 words.

“While we won’t as a rule stop reading after 650 words, we cannot promise that an overly wordy essay will hold our attention for as long as you’d hoped it would,” the Common App website states.

In reviewing other technical aspects of your essay, be sure that the font is readable, that the margins are properly spaced, that any dialogue is set off properly, and that there is enough spacing at the top. Your essay should look clean and inviting to readers.

End Your Essay With a “Kicker”

In journalism, a kicker is the last punchy line, paragraph, or section that brings everything together.

It provides a lasting impression that leaves the reader satisfied and impressed by the points you have artfully woven throughout your piece.

So, here’s our kicker: Be concise and coherent, engage in honest self-reflection, and include vivid details and anecdotes that deftly illustrate your point.

While writing a fantastic essay may not guarantee you get selected, it can tip the balance in your favor if admissions officers are considering a candidate with a similar GPA and background.

Write, revise, revise again, and good luck!

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About the Author

Pamela Reynolds is a Boston-area feature writer and editor whose work appears in numerous publications. She is the author of “Revamp: A Memoir of Travel and Obsessive Renovation.”

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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:

• 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:

• 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.

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.

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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• Choosing Your College Essay Topic | Ideas & Examples

Choosing Your College Essay Topic | Ideas & Examples

Published on October 25, 2021 by Kirsten Courault . Revised on July 3, 2023.

A strong essay topic sets you up to write a unique, memorable college application essay . Your topic should be personal, original, and specific. Take time to brainstorm the right topic for you.

Table of contents

What makes a good topic, brainstorming questions to get started, discover the best topic for you, how to make a common topic compelling, frequently asked questions about college application essays, other interesting articles.

Here are some guidelines for a good essay topic:

• It’s focused on you and your experience
• It shares something different from the rest of your application
• It’s specific and original (not many students could write a similar essay)
• It affords the opportunity to share your positive stories and qualities

In most cases, avoid topics that

• Reflect poorly on your character and behavior
• Deal with a challenge or traumatic experience without a lesson learned or positive outlook

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

Spend time reflecting on and writing out answers to the following questions. After doing this exercise, you should be able to identify a few strong topics for your college essay.

Writing about yourself can be difficult. If you’re struggling to identify your topic, try these two strategies.

Start with your qualities

After identifying your positive qualities or values, brainstorm stories that demonstrate these qualities.

Start with a story

If you already have some memorable stories in mind that you’d like to write about, think about which qualities and values you can demonstrate with those stories.

Talk it through

To make sure you choose the right topic, ask for advice from trusted friends or family members who know you well. They can help you brainstorm ideas and remember stories, and they can give you feedback on your potential essay topics.

You can also work with a guidance counselor, teacher, or other mentor to discuss which ideas are most promising. If you plan ahead , you can even workshop multiple draft essays to see which topic works best.

If you do choose a common topic, ensure you have the following to craft a unique essay:

• Surprising or unexpected story arcs
• Interesting insight or connections
• An advanced writing style

Here are a few examples of how to craft strong essays from cliché topics.

Here’s a checklist you can use to confirm that your college essay topic is right for you.

College essay topic checklist

My topic is focused on me, not on someone else.

My topic shares something different from the rest of my application.

My topic is specific and original (not many students could write a similar essay).

My topic reflects positively on my character and behavior.

If I chose to write about a traumatic or challenging experience, my essay will focus on how I overcame it or gained insight.

If I chose a common topic, my essay will have a surprising story arc, interesting insight, and/or an advanced writing style.

Good topic!

It looks like your topic is a good choice. It's specific, it avoids clichés, and it reflects positively on you.

There are no foolproof college essay topics —whatever your topic, the key is to write about it effectively. However, a good topic

• Is meaningful, specific, and personal to you
• Focuses on you and your experiences
• Reveals something beyond your test scores, grades, and extracurriculars
• Is creative and original

Yes—admissions officers don’t expect everyone to have a totally unique college essay topic . But you must differentiate your essay from others by having a surprising story arc, an interesting insight, and/or an advanced writing style .

To decide on a good college essay topic , spend time thoughtfully answering brainstorming questions. If you still have trouble identifying topics, try the following two strategies:

• Identify your qualities → Brainstorm stories that demonstrate these qualities
• Identify memorable stories → Connect your qualities to these stories

You can also ask family, friends, or mentors to help you brainstorm topics, give feedback on your potential essay topics, or recall key stories that showcase your qualities.

Most topics are acceptable for college essays if you can use them to demonstrate personal growth or a lesson learned. However, there are a few difficult topics for college essays that should be avoided. Avoid topics that are:

• Overly personal (e.g. graphic details of illness or injury, romantic or sexual relationships)
• Not personal enough (e.g. broad solutions to world problems, inspiring people or things)
• Too negative (e.g. an in-depth look at your flaws, put-downs of others, criticizing the need for a college essay)
• Too boring (e.g. a resume of your academic achievements and extracurriculars)
• Inappropriate for a college essay (e.g. illegal activities, offensive humor, false accounts of yourself, bragging about privilege)

Here’s a brief list of college essay topics that may be considered cliché:

• Extracurriculars, especially sports
• Role models
• Dealing with a personal tragedy or death in the family
• Struggling with new life situations (immigrant stories, moving homes, parents’ divorce)
• Becoming a better person after community service, traveling, or summer camp
• Overcoming a difficult class
• Using a common object as an extended metaphor

It’s easier to write a standout essay with a unique topic. However, it’s possible to make a common topic compelling with interesting story arcs, uncommon connections, and an advanced writing style.

If you want to know more about academic writing , effective communication , or parts of speech , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Academic writing

• Writing process
• Transition words
• Passive voice
• Paraphrasing

 Communication

• How to end an email
• Ms, mrs, miss
• How to start an email
• I hope this email finds you well
• Hope you are doing well

 Parts of speech

• Personal pronouns
• Conjunctions

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• Even Better

This is what admissions officers really want to read in college essays

The important thing is not to overthink it.

by Allie Volpe

One of the most memorable essays college admissions counselor Alexis White worked on with a student wasn’t about a harrowing personal challenge or a rewarding volunteering experience. “It started with the sentence ‘My hair arrives in a room before I do,’” says White, the founder and director of the consultancy firm Alexis College Expert. “It just was the best. And everybody who reads it loves it.”

College application essays have an infamous reputation for being one of the most difficult aspects of the application process. But it remains a crucial way to share details about your life and interests — a way to distinguish yourself beyond your grades, test scores, and extracurricular activities, even in the era of ChatGPT (more on that later).

Vox’s guide to college application season

You got into college. How will you pay for it?

Applying to college? Seven current students on how to stand out and stay sane.

Admissions officers are looking to be entertained when reading application essays, White says. Of course, students should use their essay to showcase their curiosities, character, and point of view, but contrary to popular belief, these personal statements don’t need to recount devastating moments of painful growth. “You can be fun,” White says. “You don’t have to have trauma.”

There are a number of essays students will need to write as a part of their college application. Over seven million students apply to college through the Common App , a streamlined platform that allows students to apply to multiple schools at once. There, students write a personal statement, usually between 500 and 650 words , centered on a student’s identity, beliefs, accomplishments, and interests, and can choose from among seven prompts for the 2024–25 application season. One prompt even allows the applicant to write about a topic of their choice. “Write the essay that your heart wants to write,” says college essay coach Cassandra Hsiao .

Individual colleges also ask for additional shorter pieces ( around 250 words ), also known as supplemental essays, which may ask applicants to explain why they’re applying to this specific school, and about their academic interests and extracurricular activities.

With so much to write, students need to dedicate serious time and effort — White suggests at least eight weeks — into crafting compelling and effective essays. Here’s what college essay pros want applicants to know.

Make sure your essays are unique to you

Students often put pressure on themselves to have a one-of-a-kind essay topic, White says. There are very few unique concepts, she continues, but what will set you apart is your way into the essay. Start strong with an attention-grabbing first sentence, experts say, that immediately hooks the reader.

Can’t decide what to write? Try these exercises.

Look around your house or room and pick 10 items that spark a memory — like a soccer trophy or a painting you made — and write them down. Or recount a typical day in your life in detail, from the music you listen to in the shower to the snack you grab before bed.

The point, Brooks says, is to hone in on things that you may think of as humdrum, but that you can use to tell a story about yourself.

Don’t discount minor details when thinking about extracurriculars and accomplishments. “When my kids are stuck, it’s a lot of chatting about things that they think don’t matter and then we typically come to something really great,” says Tyler.

Another tactic is picking five adjectives would you use to describe yourself, suggests White. Expand on each with an experience or memory.

Focus on developing a unique lens through which to see an event in your life, with an original point of view. These can be small moments, says Stacey Brook, the founder and chief adviser at College Essay Advisors . For example, one student she worked with wrote an essay about bonding with her mother during drives to gymnastics practice. After the student got her license and no longer had these moments with her mother, she wrote, she felt a sense of loss. “She was reflecting on what those drives meant to her and what it means to grow up and to gain things and lose them at the same time,” Brook says. “That’s the tiniest moment, the smallest slice of life out of which you can make an incredible essay.”

Even if you’re writing about a common topic, like school sports or lessons learned from an adult in your life, one way to differentiate your essay is to add dialogue, Hsiao says. “It’s in the specificity that only you can write because you went through that,” she says.

Avoid regurgitating your resume, Hsaio continues. Instead, lead the reader through a narrative arc showing your growth. You don’t need to explicitly state what you learned from the experience. Instead, use descriptive, scene-setting language — about how tense you were during that big game or your excitement when you stepped onto the stage — that shows how you’re different on the other side.

Again, you don’t need to share the worst thing that’s ever happened to you — or try to dramatize your life to make it seem more challenging than it is — but help the reader understand the effort you put in to get a new club off the ground, for example. “What you went through objectively might be really small on a global scale,” Hsiao says, “but because it felt big to you and I care about you as the writer, it will feel big to me.”

Don’t even think about copying from ChatGPT (or other generative AI)

While Brook understands the appeal of ChatGPT, experts say don’t use it to write your essay. College application reviewers will be able to tell.

The purpose of these pieces is to display your personality and writing ability and bots will never produce a unique, personalized essay. These chatbots use a style and tone that is immediately identifiable to readers, one that is rife with cliches and an awkward cadence, experts say.

Appropriate uses of generative AI include spell and grammar check or as a thesaurus. “Once you start pulling full paragraphs, you’re cheating,” White says. “It’s not your work.”

Tailor supplemental essays to each school

Depending on the school, you may be asked to write one or two shorter supplemental essays . These prompts may have similar themes, about your academic interests or how you relate to the people around you . For these essays, experts say you can reuse answers for multiple schools — but make sure you revise your answers to be specific to each school.

To ensure you’re tackling supplemental essays efficiently, Brook says to collect all of the prompts for the schools you’re applying to and see where they overlap. Hsiao suggests brainstorming three or four activities, obsessions or aspects of your life you know you want to showcase and try to match these topics to essay prompts. This can be anything from an extracurricular to your favorite TV show. “We are prioritizing what is important in our lives and then showcasing that by mixing and matching per school for the supplemental essay questions,” she says. For example, if you plan on writing about your future major for one college, adapt that essay to each school. However, make sure you’re researching each university and adding details about their specific program to your piece, Brook says.

For essays asking why you want to attend that specific college, ensure your answers are unmistakably catered to that school. “‘I love Delaware because I can’t wait to go to football games and pledge a sorority, and I’m excited about the business school.’ That is not going [cut it] because you could say that about Rutgers,” says Kyra Tyler , a senior director and college admissions consultant at Bright Horizons College Coach. Instead, pepper your answer with details about school traditions, an honors program you hope to join, interesting research opportunities or what you observed when you went on a tour (whether in person or virtual), Tyler says.

Tell a vivid story — and showcase your writing ability

Not only do your essays need to be of substance, but they should showcase style, too.

Tyler suggests students avoid metaphor: Don’t talk about caring for your younger sibling in the context of a Bluey episode — be straightforward. (“Kids can’t get away from [metaphors],” Tyler says, “and what happens is they get stuck under them, and they can’t write.”) You’ll want to write vividly using concrete examples instead of plainly spelling everything out, White says. For instance, if you were a camp counselor who helped a nervous child come out of their shell, write a scene showing the camper interacting with other kids rather than simply saying the camper was less reserved.

Write as if you were talking to your best friend, Tyler says. Avoid slang terms, but let your personality come through your writing. Try reading your essay aloud to see if it sounds like you.

Don’t forget about the basics, like good grammar, proper spelling, and word choice (make sure you’re not repeating similar words and phrases). You don’t need to focus on the five-paragraph structure, Hsiao says. Just make sure you’re telling a compelling story. Have a trusted adult, like a teacher or parent, read your essay to help point out style and structural issues you may have missed.

After you’ve completed a draft, set it aside for a few days, come back to it with fresh eyes for revisions, Tyler says.

College application essays are your chance to share who you were, who you are, and how this university will shape who you hope to be, Hsaio says. Focus on topics you want admissions officers to know and let your voice and passion carry the essay.

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21 College Essay Topics & Ideas That Worked (Guide + Examples)

You’re looking for a giant list of college essay topics to choose from.

And that’s exactly what you’ll find at the bottom of this page.

Wouldn’t it be nice if I gave you two great brainstorming exercises to help you find your own college essay topics?

I’ll answer that rhetorical question: Yes.

And that’s what you’ll find before we get to that giant list.

How do I know these exercises work? Because over the years I’ve worked with thousands of students, many of whom (like you)...

Have decent grades and a pretty good but not perfect SAT score

Are afraid they don’t have outstanding extracurricular activities to write about

Feel like their essay could make a difference in their college application but aren’t sure where to start.

Sound familiar?

My hope is that, by going through these step-by-step brainstorming exercises, you’ll find a topic that’s elastic, meaning that it’s stretchy enough to talk about lots of different parts of you, which is a characteristic you’ll find in most outstanding personal statements.

Great brainstorming is key to a great application. Want to see an example of a student’s brainstorming exercises, and the essays and application that brainstorming led to? Go here .

Pro Tip: Download your own blank template of that list and fill it in here.

All right, let’s do this.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Topic Brainstorming: The Values Exercise
• Topic Brainstorming: The Essence Objects Exercise
• Topic Brainstorming:"Everything I Want Colleges to Know About Me" List
• Essay Topics and Ideas

The Values exercise

This exercise is useful for identifying both your core values and your aspirations by answering this question: WHAT DO I VALUE?

The Essence Objects Exercise

This is one of my favorite brainstorming activities for generating college essay ideas. Why?

It’s one of the most efficient ways I know to help create a TON of content for your personal statement and also add texture to bring your essay to life.

Also, it’s just fun to do and a great way to reflect.

Ready to do it?

Click here for a list of questions to help you with the exercise.  Then, watch the video below.

What’s one of your essence objects?

The ‘Everything I Want Colleges to Know About me’ Exercise

Make a list of all the things you want colleges to know about you.

How? You can do this either:

in a bulletpoint format (organized, easy to read)

on a blank sheet of paper (with drawings, get creative)

on a timeline

For more detailed instructions, head here .

College Essay Topic Samples

Here’s a list of essay topics and ideas that worked for my one-on-one students:

Essay Topic: My Allergies Inspired Me

After nearly dying from anaphylactic shock at five years old, I began a journey healing my anxiety and understanding the PTSD around my allergies. This created a passion for medicine and immunology, and now I want to become an allergist so no other child will have to feel the same.

To read the full essay, click here.

Essay Topic: My Foreign Exchange Experience

My 28 months in America living with five families helped me develop five values: open mindedness, spending quality time with family, understanding, discipline, and genuine appreciation.

Essay Topic:  Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?

I’ve created my own essay prompt: why did the chicken cross the road? In short, the chicken discovers that her idyllic world is not all it seems, and she must cross the road to discover her true purpose in life. She may come to realize that the world is more terrible and beautiful than she’s ever known.

To read the full essay, click here .

Essay Topic: A Palestinian Hunger Strike Turns Into a Purpose

My experience supporting a hunger strike in my native land, and watching my fellow students slowly lose interest in the strike and my protest, taught me to be passionate about social justice and inspired the creation of my own ethical clothing company.

Essay Topic: Lessons From My Pilgrimage to Mecca

My pilgrimage to Mecca taught me that I am valuable and family is centrally important. Now, I'm proud of my heritage, passionate about languages, and excited to bring all of it to college.

Essay Topic: From Homeschool to the Football Field

Instead of my original plan of playing football in high school, I freed myself of my fear of social interactions and my age gap by discovering a love for coaching.

Essay Topic: My First Flight Failed, But My Love Was Born

While my attempt at flight when I was five years old ended in disaster, my passion only grew as I became older. My love of engineering has taught me collaboration, social justice, curiosity, and diligence.

Essay Topic: Poop, Animals, and the Environment

I don’t mind being pooped on, bitten or scratched because my passion for animals is bigger than all of that. I know the world is rife with environmental problems, and I’m ready to spend my life making a difference.

Essay Topic: A Word a Day, A Life of Imagination

The NYT word of the day reminds me of something: my own imagination. My curiosity has taught me to love playing basketball, the violin, and inventing new words.

Essay Topic: Where I’m Home

I find myself feeling at “home” wherever I am, whether it’s spending quality time eating chicken with my family, diligently working on my chemistry research in the lab, or expanding my world through my college electives at Governor's School East.

Essay Topic: Easter, Travel, and Dad

Despite my abusive father’s wishes, I took a trip abroad and discovered my independence. Now, I want to pursue international relations and women’s studies to help women around the world discover who they are.

Essay Topic: My Cosmetic Journey

Although I initially saw my interest in cosmetics as a superficial obsession, through research and advocacy I’m now a community leader and online advocate for ethical cosmetics testing and labeling.

Essay Topic: Transformers Are Not Just for Boys

Being punished for playing with transformers because they “aren’t for girls” didn’t stop me from becoming passionate about robotics, where I created and fought for an open source platform that educates children about robotics around the world.

Essay Topic: The Instagram Post

Being publicly shamed for my pro-choice stance taught me to be passionate about my point of view, and now I understand that, while dissent and social justice are sometimes painful, they are sometimes necessary.

Essay Topic: My Grandmother Passing

My grandmother is my source of inspiration. When she passed away I couldn’t help but reflect on my love of family, passion for education, and my volunteering experiences at a cancer treatment center.

Essay Topic: My Self-Proclaimed Identity

I love writing, philosophy, speech and debate... and punk rock music. But I am not any one of these things, because I am all of them. I call myself a “punk-rock philosopher.”

Essay Topic: My Grandma’s Kimchi

I’ll always remember the passion and attention to detail my grandmother put into making kimchi. Watching my grandmother eventually lose her ability to make this important dish made me reflect on memory, death, and the importance of family. Now I’m the one who makes the kimchi.

Essay Topic: How Traveling Led to My Love of Language

My experiences traveling around the world influenced my interest in  language and human connection. That interest is what I want to bring into my dual majors of foreign language and linguistics.

Essay Topic: A Girl Muses on a Dead Bird

One day, my cat attacked a bird in the front yard. In my vain attempt at saving its life, I was forced to reconcile with losing one of my best friends in a tragic accident years ago.

Essay Topic: I Shot My Brother

My lifelong jealousy towards my little brother erupted when I shot him with a bb gun. Haunted with guilt, I sought to treat my brother with newfound respect and love, and learned the importance of family.

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Student Life

How to Pick a College Essay Topic: The Do's and Don'ts

Show admissions officers why you are a perfect fit for their college..

Student Contributor, Shagun Srivastava

September 18, 2024

How to Pick a College Essay Topic

Choose a topic that reflects your true self, focus on specificity, show, don’t just tell, reflect on your growth, consider your audience, how not to pick a college essay topic, avoid clichés and overused topics, don’t be overly ambitious, avoid negative or controversial topics, don’t rely on external sources, finding the right topic, you might also like.

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