Editorial policy

The two-stage review

Every guide and format page is drafted by one editor and reviewed by a second before publication. Drafting and reviewing never share the same person. The reviewer checks three things: factual accuracy of every format claim against the cited style manual or official university page, completeness against the assignment types US programs actually assign, and clarity for a first-year student who has never written the genre.

University-specific pages carry a third check by our citation librarian (James Parker, MLS), because campus style rules are where most online advice quietly goes wrong.

Sources we accept — and reject

Format requirements must trace to one of: the current edition of a style manual (APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 18, IEEE, AMA), an official university writing-center or registrar page, or a state system document. We reject as sources: essay-mill blogs, uncited "expert roundups," and forum threads — including our own comment sections. Statistics (enrollment, tuition, degree counts) come from IPEDS, institutional factbooks and state system reports, and are always labeled as approximate with a "verify with the institution" note where they could move.

Corrections and update cadence

Each page shows its last-updated date; style rules and statistics are re-verified at least annually, and immediately when a style manual publishes a new edition. Found an error? Email [email protected] with the page URL and, if possible, the official source that contradicts us. Verified corrections are applied within five business days and the page date changes — we do not silently edit.

AI use, disclosed

We use AI tools for drafting assistance and code, the way spreadsheets are used for arithmetic. Every published page passes human editorial review under the standards above, and no tool writes a paper for a student — ours or anyone's. Where tools on this site process your input, that processing happens in your browser; the privacy policy explains the details.

Advertising and affiliate independence

The site is funded by advertising and affiliate partnerships, and both are visibly labeled. Affiliate placements never appear inside instructional steps, never rank "best services" lists, and are marked with an FTC-compliant disclosure at the placement itself. Our editors do not know which partners pay more; the commercial team does not edit content. If a conflict ever slips through, the correction policy above applies with priority.

What we will never publish

• Ghostwritten essays, or links to services selling them as "models" for submission.
• University format claims without a checkable official source.
• "Guaranteed grade" claims of any kind.
• Content designed to help evade a school's academic-integrity detection.