Making an MLA format* header using Microsoft Word

1. Put your cursor at the top of page one (not sure it really matters where you have the cursor, but start out on page one, anyway).
   

2. Click View (next to Edit), and then Header and Footer. The Header and  Footer menu will come up.
   

3. First, click on the Align Right icon on the formatting toolbar (the icon to the right of the “center” icon). [Or use CTRL + R]
   

4. Then click on the Insert Page Number icon (it is the first icon, the one with the number sign on a page). The number 1 should appear at the upper right of your header-footer text area.
   

5.  Move the cursor to the left of the number. Then simply type your last name followed by a space.  The header text should now look something like this:  Lastname 1. 
   

6. Now click Close and you should be all set. [Note:  if your header is working, you will see it “grayed out” at the top right of each page of your essay.]

* For an APA format header use the first two or three words of the essay's title instead of your last name (see step 5 above). Everything else stays the same.