How Do I Format a Chicago-Style Title Page?

For Fun Friday, how about some official Chicago style?

Here’s how to set up a Chicago-style title page following the guidelines in Kate Turabian’s Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. (You will find this advice in section A.1 in the appendix called “Paper Format and Submission” at the back of the book.)

OK, we know that doesn’t sound like a lot of fun. So for the fun part, we made a video set to music that’s guaranteed to make you feel heroic for getting your paper off to a good start!

How to Set Up a Chicago-Style Title Page (Student Paper)

Begin about one-third of the way down the page.
Don’t put a page number on the title page.
Use a widely supported, legible font, such as 12 pt. Times New Roman or Calibri or 11 pt. Arial (some fonts appear larger than others).
Center the text.
Use headline-style capitalization. (See Turabian, chapter 22, under “Titles of Works” for guidelines on which words to capitalize.)
Double-space everything.
Make the title and subtitle bold. The font size may be two or three points larger than the main text.
Put a colon at the end of the main title.
Add any information your instructor requests, such as your name, the title of the course, and the date.

IMPORTANT: Your instructor’s requirements may overrule Chicago’s formatting recommendations!

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#ChicagoStyle
Many libraries provide free access to The Chicago Manual of Style Online. If you aren’t sure whether your school subscribes, ask your librarian. In the meantime, click here for a free trial.

#ChicagoStyle for Students
Kate Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations is a smaller version of The Chicago Manual of Style written specifically for students.