A Harvard-referenced paper follows the author-date system throughout — every claim you borrow from a source gets a parenthetical or narrative citation in the text, and every citation points to a full entry in the reference list at the end. The formatting conventions (margins, font, spacing, headings) are not standardised by a single manual, so the example below follows the rules most commonly required by UK, Australian, and international universities.
Use this annotated sample as a template. Compare each section against your own paper before you submit.
Overview — What This Sample Demonstrates
The sample paper below is a short essay on sleep deprivation and academic performance. It demonstrates:
- A properly formatted title page
- Body text with parenthetical and narrative in-text citations
- A short inline quotation
- A block quotation
- Headings and subheadings
- A correctly formatted reference list
Each section is annotated with callout notes explaining the formatting choices. Your actual essay won't include these annotations — they're here to make the rules visible.
Annotated Title Page
Most Harvard-using institutions require a title page, though the exact layout varies. Here's a typical example:
[Centred, upper half of the page]
The Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Academic Performance in Undergraduate Students
Jane R. Thompson
Student Number: 20231456
Introduction to Health Psychology (PSY1020)
Dr Michael Osei
University of Manchester
28 February 2026
Formatting notes:
- Title — Bold, sentence case, centred. Some institutions prefer title case — follow your guide.
- Your name — Full name, no bold.
- Student number — Required by most institutions.
- Module name and code — Identifies the assignment.
- Supervisor / lecturer name — Some institutions require this; others don't.
- Institution — Your university name.
- Date — Submission date, typically in day–month–year format.
Note:A few Harvard guides don't require a separate title page — instead, you place the title at the top of the first page of text. Check what your department expects.
Annotated Body Pages
Here is the opening of the sample essay, annotated to highlight Harvard formatting conventions:
The Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Academic Performance in Undergraduate Students
Sleep deprivation among university students is widely recognised as a growing public health concern (Lund et al., 2010). Despite its prevalence, many students underestimate the cognitive costs of insufficient sleep, particularly its effects on memory consolidation and decision-making (Walker, 2017, p. 133). This essay examines the relationship between sleep deprivation and academic performance, drawing on recent evidence from cognitive psychology and neuroscience.
The Neuroscience of Sleep and Learning
Walker (2017, p. 108) argues that sleep plays a critical role in transferring newly acquired information from short-term to long-term memory. Without adequate sleep, this consolidation process is disrupted, leading to measurable declines in recall and comprehension. As Diekelmann and Born (2010, p. 115) note:
'Sleep has been identified as a state that optimises the consolidation of newly acquired information in memory, depending on the specific conditions of learning and the timing of sleep within the consolidation period.'
This block quotation illustrates the depth of evidence supporting the sleep–memory link. Studies consistently show that students who sleep fewer than six hours per night perform significantly worse on memory tasks than those who sleep seven to eight hours (Curcio, Ferrara and De Gennaro, 2006).
What to notice in the body text:
| Element | Convention Used |
|---|---|
| Font and spacing | 12 pt, double-spaced, with 2.54 cm margins |
| Heading | Bold, sentence case, on its own line |
| Narrative citation | Walker (2017, p. 108) argues that… |
| Parenthetical citation | (Lund et al., 2010) |
| Short quotation | Inline, single quotation marks — not shown separately here, but the block quote uses the same marks within paragraphs |
| Block quotation | Indented, no quotation marks around the block, single quotation marks retained inside |
| Page numbers | Included for direct quotes and specific claims |
| Et al. | Used for 4+ authors in text; all authors listed in reference list |
| Multiple authors in text | (Curcio, Ferrara and De Gennaro, 2006) — all three listed on first use |
Short Quotations vs. Block Quotations
In the sample above, note the difference:
- Short quotations (under ~40 words) are enclosed in single quotation marks and woven into the sentence:
Thompson and Liu (2019, p. 72) describe sleep deprivation as 'a silent epidemic across university campuses.'
- Block quotations (40+ words) are indented from the left margin, with no quotation marks around the entire block. A page number or paragraph number is included:
(Diekelmann and Born, 2010, p. 115)
For detailed quoting rules, see How to Use Direct Quotes in Harvard Referencing.
Annotated Reference List
The reference list starts on a new page. Entries are alphabetical, double-spaced, and use a hanging indent:
References
Curcio, G., Ferrara, M. and De Gennaro, L. (2006) 'Sleep loss, learning capacity and academic performance', Sleep Medicine Reviews, 10(5), pp. 323–337. doi:10.1016/j.smrv.2005.11.001.
Diekelmann, S. and Born, J. (2010) 'The memory function of sleep', Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 11(2), pp. 114–126. doi:10.1038/nrn2762.
Lund, H.G., Reider, B.D., Whiting, A.B. and Prichard, J.R. (2010) 'Sleep patterns and predictors of disturbed sleep in a large population of college students', Journal of Adolescent Health, 46(2), pp. 124–132. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2009.06.016.
Thompson, J. and Liu, W. (2019) 'Sleep hygiene interventions for university students: a systematic review', British Journal of Health Psychology, 24(3), pp. 65–88. doi:10.1111/bjhp.12345.
Walker, M. (2017) Why we sleep: the new science of sleep and dreams. London: Penguin Books.
What to notice in the reference list:
| Rule | Example in the List |
|---|---|
| Alphabetical order | Curcio → Diekelmann → Lund → Thompson → Walker |
| Hanging indent | First line flush left; subsequent lines indented 1.27 cm |
| All authors listed | Lund, H.G., Reider, B.D., Whiting, A.B. and Prichard, J.R. — no et al. |
| Journal article format | Author (Year) 'Title', Journal, Volume(Issue), pp. Pages. doi: |
| Book format | Author (Year) Title. Place: Publisher. |
| Sentence case for titles | 'Sleep loss, learning capacity and academic performance' |
| Title case for journal names | Nature Reviews Neuroscience |
| DOI | doi:10.1038/nrn2762 |
For a complete breakdown of reference list formatting, see Harvard Reference List.
Key Formatting Details
Here's a summary of the formatting conventions demonstrated in the sample paper:
| Element | Convention |
|---|---|
| Font | 12 pt Times New Roman or Arial |
| Line spacing | Double throughout (body, quotes, references) |
| Margins | 2.54 cm (1 inch) on all sides |
| Title page | Centred; includes title, name, student number, module, institution, date |
| Headings | Bold, sentence case |
| Page numbers | Top-right or bottom-centre (institution-dependent) |
| In-text citations | (Author, Year) or (Author, Year, p. X) |
| Short quotes | Inline, single quotation marks, page number |
| Block quotes | Indented, no quotation marks, 40+ words |
| Reference list | New page, alphabetical, hanging indent, double-spaced |
Pre-Submission Checklist
Before you hand in your essay, run through this checklist:
- Title page includes all required elements (title, name, student number, module, institution, date)
- Font is 12 pt Times New Roman or Arial (or your institution's specified font)
- Margins are 2.54 cm / 1 inch on all sides
- Line spacing is double throughout the document
- Page numbers appear on every page (check position — top-right or bottom-centre)
- Every in-text citation has a matching entry in the reference list
- Every reference list entry has at least one corresponding in-text citation
- Direct quotes include page numbers (or paragraph numbers / sections if no pages)
- Block quotes (40+ words) are indented with no quotation marks
- Reference list is on a new page with the heading "References" or "Reference List"
- Reference list is in alphabetical order by author surname
- Reference list uses a hanging indent (1.27 cm / 0.5 inch)
- No et al. in the reference list — all authors are spelled out
- Titles use sentence case (except journal and newspaper names)
- You've checked your institution's specific Harvard guide for local variations
What's Next?
Now that you've seen a complete Harvard paper, dive into the specific formatting topics:
- Harvard General Format — detailed rules for margins, fonts, headings, and page layout
- Harvard In-Text Citations — the complete guide to parenthetical and narrative citations
- Harvard Reference List — formatting rules and examples for every source type
