help with APA format for personal statement

There's also a software you can buy that will format it for you. May be worth the investment now.

The software is called Perrla. I had some classmates use it, but they kept getting marked down on their actual references, so it's not 100% accurate. I've never been marked down using the OWL/Purdue website or the APA manual.

To the OP: You can download a sample APA paper from the OWL/Purdue site. This is the formatting you'll use to write your personal essay. You'll need an intro and a concluding paragraph with 3 or more supporting paragraphs in between. You'll need to look up some actual references and cite them properly, plus add a reference page. I used 3 citations from 3 separate authors when I wrote my personal statement. I looked up info from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to support the demand for NPs, and then found 2 peer-reviewed journal articles regarding my specialty track. If you use Google Scholar to look up your references, you can click on the "cite" link and copy/paste the APA link for the articles you're using. I still have to tweak them to make them 100% correct, but it helps save time. There are YouTube tutorial videos about writing APA format essays that can help make it a bit more clear, too.

University of South Alabama expects that you already know how to write correctly in APA format before starting the program. They do have an online writing tutor service available to help check your papers for correct formatting (they won't edit the contents of the paper).

Good luck :)