A Comprehensive Guide on How to Title an Essay

What Makes A Title "Perfect"

No matter how much effort you put into writing an essay and polishing it, if your title is weak, no one will want to read it. A good essay title is made up of several components. These include the main topic, the keywords, and a catchy phrase. 

Here are some qualities of a good essay title:

• Is Engaging - It must be engaging and attractive. You would not want to read anything boring, neither do your readers
• Is Believable - Instead of making your essay’s title fancy and difficult to believe, make it accurate and relevant to the essay.
• Is Easy to Read & Understand - No one likes to read complicated and hard sentences and phrases. Stay away from strange and weird phrases, jargon, and use simple language.
• Uses Active Voice - Use active voice and avoid using passive voice.
• Is Short & Brief - A good title must not be too lengthy. It should be short, brief, and easy to understand.
• Is Accurate - Do not mislead your readers and maintain accuracy in your essay’s title.
• Includes a Hook – A hook is the secret sauce of a perfect title. It can be a question, a surprising fact, or a thought-provoking phrase that piques interest right away. For example, instead of "The Importance of Exercise," try "What Happens to Your Brain When You Skip Exercise?"

When you have all of these elements combined, you have come up with a perfect title for your essay. 

How Do You Write A Good Title For An Essay?

Creating an effective title for your essay is easier said than done. Fortunately, there are a few simple steps you can follow to make sure that your title is attention-grabbing. 

Here’s how to make a good title:

Step 1. Understand Your Topic

Make sure you know exactly what your essay is about. Let's say your essay is on how remote work is changing the traditional office environment.

Example: You’re exploring how remote work has changed how businesses operate and what this means for office culture.

Step 2. Highlight Key Points or Themes

Identify the main themes in your essay. For this example, you might focus on themes like flexibility, work-life balance, and the decline of the traditional office space.

Key Themes: Remote work, flexibility, changing office culture.

Step 3. Make It Specific

A specific title is better than a vague one. Instead of a general title like "The Future of Work," you should focus on what your essay really covers, like remote work's impact on office dynamics.

Example: "How Remote Work is Transforming Office Culture."

Step 4. Be Creative, but Not Too Complex

You want your title to stand out and grab attention, but it should still be easy to understand. Try adding a bit of flair without making it confusing.

Example: "From Desks to Dining Rooms: How Remote Work is Transforming Office Culture."

Step 5. Use a Two-Part Title (If Necessary)

If your topic is multifaceted, a two-part title can help. In this case, the first part ("From Desks to Dining Rooms") is catchy, and the second part clarifies the essay’s focus ("How Remote Work is Transforming Office Culture").

Example: "From Desks to Dining Rooms: How Remote Work is Transforming Office Culture."

Step 6. Incorporate Keywords

Make sure to use important keywords related to your topic, like "remote work" and "office culture." This helps readers quickly understand the subject.

Example: The keywords “remote work” and “office culture” are already in the title, making it clear and informative.

Step 7. Consider Your Audience

Think about who will be reading your essay. If your audience is professionals or business students, the title should sound professional and relevant to their interests.

Example: "From Desks to Dining Rooms: How Remote Work is Transforming Office Culture" speaks to both office workers and students interested in workplace trends.

Step 8. Keep It Short and Simple

Even though the title has two parts, it’s still clear and easy to understand. It’s around 10-12 words, which is ideal for keeping it concise yet informative.

Example: The final title is short, simple, and straight to the point.

Step 9. Refine and Edit

Once you have a draft title, tweak it for clarity or impact. In this case, the title flows well, but if you wanted to simplify it more, you could edit it down.

Final Example: "From Desks to Dining Rooms: The Rise of Remote Work and Its Impact on Office Culture."

You can watch this YouTube video that breaks down the title creation steps comprehensively.

Different Essay Formats You Can Use

When writing an essay, there are a number of different formats to choose from. The three main types of formatting styles are MLA, APA, and Chicago style. 

Each of these essay formats has its own set of rules for creating the title, citing sources, formatting the paper, and creating citations.

How to Title an Essay in MLA Format

The MLA Format is the most commonly used format for research papers and essays in the humanities and liberal arts disciplines. It uses parenthetical citations within the text to direct readers to a ‘Works Cited’ page at the end of the paper. 

Here’s how you would title your essay in MLA format:

• Centered and Capitalized: The title should be centered on the page and all major words should be capitalized (e.g., "Exploring the Themes of Freedom and Identity").
• No Underline, Bold, or Italics: Do not underline, italicize, or put your title in quotation marks. Just use plain text.
• Use the Same Font and Size: The title should be in the same font and size as the rest of the essay (usually 12-point Times New Roman).
• Double-Spaced: Make sure your title is double-spaced with the rest of the essay, but don’t add extra space above or below it.

How to Title an Essay in APA Format

The APA Format is primarily used for social sciences papers such as psychology, sociology, education, nursing, and public health. In APA style, in-text citations are used, which direct readers to a ‘References’ page at the end of the paper.

Format your title in APA style according to the following rules:

• Centered and Bold: The title should be centered on the page and bolded. For example, "The Impact of Climate Change on Marine Ecosystems."
• Title Case: Capitalize major words (all words except articles, conjunctions, and prepositions, unless they start the title).
• No Underline or Italics: Do not underline, italicize, or use quotation marks for the title.
• Use the Same Font and Size: The title should be in the same font and size as the rest of the essay (usually 12-point Times New Roman or a similar font).
• Double-Spaced: Make sure the title is double-spaced with the rest of the document, and there’s no extra space above or below it.

How to Title an Essay in Chicago Format

Chicago Format is mainly used in history and other humanities disciplines. It uses footnotes or endnotes to cite sources, as well as using a bibliography page at the end of the paper. 

Here’s how to title your essay in Chicago Style:

• Center the Title: Place it at the top of the first page, centered, without bold, italics, or underlining (except for italicizing titles of works).
• Headline Capitalization: Capitalize the first and last words, as well as major words (nouns, verbs, etc.), but lowercase articles, prepositions, and conjunctions unless they start or end the title.
• Avoid Special Formatting: No bold, underline, or quotes for the title (except for works within the title).
• Subtitle: Add a subtitle after a colon if needed.
• Spacing: Leave two blank lines before starting your text.

How To Title An Essay For College Application?

Like any other essay, the title of a college application essay is also the very first thing that the reader would notice and read. Therefore, a strong and impactful title is a must for a lasting and impressive effect.

Here are some tips to form an interesting title for your college application essay:

• Write Your Essay First - This way your ideas will form a proper structure and crafting the title will be easy and simple.
• Brainstorm with Fellow Applicants - It is a great way of coming up with new and engaging ideas. These ideas could be used to develop a title for your essay.
• Make a List of Possible Ideas - This is the advantage of brainstorming. You will be able to form a list of ideas and themes that you can use to form the title of your essay.

How to Title an Essay for a Scholarship?

Scholarship essays do not usually need titles, but it depends on the submission format of the essay. If there is a text box only, copy and paste the essay there without any title. However, if you are attaching the essay as a Word or PDF document, you can include the title.

If adding the title, keep the following points in mind:

• Brainstorm - It is important that you create a title before writing the essay. Doing so will help in giving you a clear idea of what to add to your essay. Once you are done writing the essay, revert back to the title and see if it is relevant and according to it.
• Write the Complete Essay First - Write the essay before adding the title to it. You will have written down all the ideas, which will help you form a good and engaging title for your essay.

Essay Titles Examples

Here are some English essay titles that you can use to write different types of essays:

Personal Essays

Below is a list of essay titles for personal essays:

• Exploring My Identity Through My Experiences
• How I Overcame Adversity to Become the Person I Am Today
• Understanding and Reconciling Cultural Differences in My Life
• The Impact of Divorce on my Childhood Development 
• Navigating Loss and Grief in a Difficult Time

Analytical Essays

Some sample short titles for analytical essays are given below: 

• Exploring Theories of Human Development Through My Experiences
• Examining the Impact of Social Media on Society 
• Investigating Gender Roles in Popular Culture
• Analyzing Global Immigration Patterns and Their Impact 
• Deconstructing Current Political Ideologies

Argumentative Essays

Following are some titles for argumentative essays: 

• Should School Uniforms Be Mandatory?
• Is Social Media Hurting or Helping Society? 
• Are Video Games to Blame for Increased Aggression in Children?
• Does the Death Penalty Act as a Deterrent to Crime? 
• Should All Citizens Have Access to Free Healthcare?

Persuasive Essays

Some short essay titles examples for persuasive essays are:

• The Pros and Cons of School Choice Programs
• Is Climate Change a Real Threat?
• Should Vaccines Be Mandatory in Schools?
• Are We Becoming Too Reliant on Technology?
• Can Social Media Help Us Connect with Others More Effectively?

Compare-and-Contrast Essays

Take inspiration from the same titles below to title your compare and contrast essay:

• Comparing the Benefits and Drawbacks of Online Learning vs. Traditional Education 
• Contrasting the Merits of Small Classroom Settings Versus Large Group Classes 
• Exploring the Advantages and Disadvantages of Public Transportation vs. Personal Cars 
• Investigating How Technology Has Impacted Communication in Recent Years Compared to Past Decades 
• Examining Global Warming Trends in Developed Countries Versus Undeveloped Nations

College Application Essays

College application essays require titles only if the applicant is required to do so. Here are some essay titles for students:

• Reflecting on my Life Experiences and How They Impacted My Academic Goals
• Unveiling the Journey of Success: How I Achieved My Dream of Becoming a Physician
• Overcoming Adversity to Reach My Highest Potential: Growing Up in an Underserved Community
• Exploring the Impact of Art on My Personality: Balancing Creativity and Logic
• Fostering Self-Awareness Through Service Learning Projects: How I Became an Advocate for Social Change.

Good vs. Bad Essay Titles H2 

The title of your essay can either draw readers in or turn them away. A good title is clear, specific, and engaging, while a bad title is vague, confusing, or dull. Here’s a quick comparison to help you understand the difference:

Avoid clichés, unnecessary complexity, or being overly broad with your essay title. Instead, aim for something concise and creative that reflects your essay’s focus!

More Tips to Perfect Your Essay Title

Here are 8 tips for creating an essay title that grabs the reader's attention from the get-go!

1. Alliteration Matters:
   Playing around with alliteration is a great way to bring attention to your title. For example, “The Winning Writer” or “Writing with Wisdom.”
2. Powerful Word Choice:
   Choose words that have strong connotations and evoke a certain emotion from your readers. Instead of “Winning the Grade”, try something like “Acing the Exam.”
3. Use Rhetorical Questions:
   Titles that are phrased as questions can be effective in drawing readers in and making them want to find out more.
4. 5-Word Summary: Pick five words that sum up your essay. This helps create a concise, focused title.
5. Use a Strong Sentence: Take a powerful sentence or phrase from your essay and turn it into your title, or rephrase it for a fresh twist.
6. Incorporate Famous Titles: Reference well-known books, movies, or phrases if they fit your topic, but make sure they’re relevant.
7. Use an ‘-ing’ Word: List out -ing words that fit your topic, and choose one that makes the title engaging and active.
8. Rework Rejected Titles: If you’ve rejected some title ideas, see if tweaking them could give you a stronger option. 

What To Avoid When Writing A Title For An Essay?

When it comes to writing a great title for an essay, there are some things that should definitely be avoided.  Here are a few of them:

• Don't make the title too long

A good rule of thumb is to keep it brief and concise! You don't want to lose your reader's attention before they even get to the main content.

• Avoid clichés

Clichés are phrases that are overused and lack originality. It's best to avoid them as they can make your title seem unoriginal or outdated. 

• Don't be too vague

You want your reader to know what to expect from your essay simply by reading the title. Try to be specific and avoid using general or ambiguous terms that may leave your reader confused. 

• Don't use too many words

Keep it simple and straightforward. You don't need a long, complicated title for an essay; a few words can get the job done!

• Steer clear of puns or jokes

While humor is an effective way to draw readers in, keep it out of your title. You want the title to be serious and professional so that your reader takes your essay seriously.

In Last Words,

Titling an essay could be both challenging and time-consuming. But, following the guidelines mentioned in this blog will help you do it successfully in less time. We’re confident that now you know how to write a catchy title in an essay.

If you’re struggling to come up with an attractive title for your essay, then just hire professionals. Trust our college papers writing service, and let go of the stress of writing.

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