Chicago 17th Edition Citation Guide

General Guidelines for an Chicago Style Paper

• Font Times New Roman, 12 point
• Double spaced (except for block quotes, notes, and citations)
• 1" margins
• Page numbers in upper right corner (excluding title page)
• Title Page:
  • Papers title should be 1/3 of the way down the page in Bold 
  • Name, Class Information, and Date placed 2/3 of the way down the page

Chicago Template in Word

Click the document below to access the Microsoft Word template for Chicago style formatting. 

• Save the document
• Rename the document as your current assignment/paper
• Use the template for all of your Chicago style papers

Your professor's directions for Chicago style are more important that the settings on this template.  You need to make any necessary changes to match your instructor's assignment. 

General Citation Guidelines

1. If there is no date for your citation put (n.d.)

2. Make sure your citations have the correct indentations:

• Footnote/endnotes are indented in the first line.
• The Bibliography has a hanging indent

3. After citing a source the first time as a note, it is appropriate to use a shortened version of the citation when citing the same resource. If you cite citing the same source three or more times in a row, you can use Ibid. followed by page number.

Footnote/Endnote Example:

• Full citation: 16. T. Coraghessen Boyle, The Tortilla Curtain (London: Bloomsbury, 1995), 98. 
• Shortened Citation: 17. Boyle, The Tortilla Curtain, 52-65.   

Chicago Citation Practice Activity

The Library has created a brief Chicago Citation Activity to help you practice double checking and creating your own citations. Open the activity and then use the pages in this guide to help you edit the practice citations.