General Leadership Essay Guidelines
Topic: Army Noncommissioned Officers Drive to Discipline and Standards
1. Margins: One inch on all sides (top, bottom, left, right).
2. Font Size and Type: 12-pt. Times New Roman.
3. Indent first sentence of each paragraph. Line Spacing: Double-space throughout the
paper, introduction/abstract, body of the document, references, appendixes, footnotes, tables, and figures.
4. Spacing after Punctuation: Space once after commas, and semicolons within sentences;
two spaces after colons and punctuation ending sentences.
5. Alignment: Flush left.
6. Paragraph Indentation: 5-7 spaces.
7. Active voice: As a general rule, use the active voice rather than the passive voice. For
example, use “We predicted that …” rather than “It was predicted that …”
8. Order of Pages: Title page, Abstract, Body, Conclusion, References.
9. Length: No less than three and no more than five pages.
10. Must use transition words/phrases
11. Must include at least two military references and one additional creditable source.
12. Must include examples.
Title page and reference pages do not count towards the length of the paper.
Abstract
(Do not indent) Beginning with the next line, write a concise summary of the key points of your
research. Your abstract should contain at least your research topic, research questions,
participants, methods, results, data analysis, and conclusions. You may also include possible
implications of your research and future work you see connected with your findings. Your
abstract should be a single paragraph double-spaced. Your abstract should be between 150 and
250 words.
Introduction
The introduction begins on the page following the abstract. Briefly outline the topic and major elements and issues. This area should serve as an introduction for the main body and conclusion of your paper. Typically, the word limit is between 100 and 200 words.
Body
The body of the paper begins after the introduction. Subsections of the body of the paper do
not begin on new pages. Frame the subject of discussion while providing your thoughts and
recommendations concerning the topic in a uniformed and organized manner. Use paragraphs to
separate general areas of discussion. Provide information and recommendations based on
research and/or personal experiences.
Conclusion
Briefly summarize your thoughts and ideas on the topic of the paper, to include any historical
lessons learned. The conclusion restates the intent of the paper and can offer areas for further
research.
References
All lines after the first line of each entry in your reference list should be indented one-half inch
from the left margin. This is called a hanging indentation.
Authors’ names are inverted (last name first); give the last name and initials for all authors of a
particular work for up to and including seven authors. If the work has more than seven
authors, list the first six authors and then use ellipses after the sixth author’s name. After
the ellipses, list the last author’s name of the work.
Reference list entries should be alphabetized by the last name of the first author of each work.
For multiple articles by the same author, or authors listed in the same order, list the entries in
chronological order, from earliest to most recent.
Present the journal title in full.
Maintain the punctuation and capitalization that is used by the journal in its title.
Capitalize all major words in journal titles.
When referring to books, chapters, articles, or Web pages, capitalize only the first letter of the
first word of a title and subtitle, the first word after a colon or a dash in the title, and
proper nouns. Do not capitalize the first letter of the second word in a hyphenated
compound word.
NOTE: Refer to the APA format for more information about the reference page.