Here they are:

1. Set your word processing program to A4 and not that weird American letter size.
2. Set your margins at 2.5 cm.
3. White paper only.
4. Use only Times New Roman 12 point font.
5. 1.5 line spacing.
6. Print on one side of the paper only. (I want plenty of space to be able to write sarcastic comments in red ink. It is one of the few small pleasures of academic life, and I do not like to be deprived of it.)
7. One blank line between paragraphs.
8. All text to be fully justified.
9. A university assignment cover sheet.
10. No title page.
11. No borders.
12. No pictures of flowers, fairies, or fluffy kittens anywhere.
13. The title of the essay and the name of the author should be on the first page. This is the page with the first paragraph on it.
14. All pages must be numbered.
15. List of references at the end.
16. Pages to be securely stapled. If you haven’t got a stapler, buy one now. Essays held together by spit, paper clips, or weird tear and fold arrangements will not be accepted.
17. No plastic envelopes or folders. Contrary to popular belief, they will not improve your grade. They are merely an irritant. (A $100 bill stapled inside might or might not improve your grade. I do not know whether I am incorruptible or merely uncorrupted, since no one has, as yet, tried the experiment. I do not recommend trying it, since the Dean would be very upset were I to end up being neither.

Let’s go through those one by one.

Set your word processing program to A4 and not that weird American letter size.
A4 is the international standard paper size, and it is the size your instructor will want. If you use American letter-size, the text will be badly formatted when it is printed. Only Americans should have their word processors set for American letter. A4 is not used in America.

If you’re using Word, click “File”, go to “Page setup” and click that. In the Page Set Up dialogue box, click the “Paper” tab, and then choose A4 in the “Paper size” menu.

Set your margins at 2.5 cm.
And make sure you haven’t set them at 2.5 inches!

White paper only.
Boring, I know, but stick to it.

Use only Times New Roman 12 point font.
I know it can be fun to play around with lots of different types of fonts, but the end result will almost certainly be irritating. Ariel is good for websites, but on paper Times New Roman 12 point is easy to read, and looks professional.
In the toolbar at the top of your word processor, choose Times New Roman 12 point, and nail it down.

1.5 line spacing.
At least!  Many instructors actually want double spacing. (Double spacing makes me feel as though I am r-e-a-d-i-n-g s-l-o-w-l-y.)

In Word, click on “Format”, click on “Paragraph”, and choose from the “line spacing” menu.

Print on one side of the paper only.
I am not the only one who likes to write comments on the blank side.

One blank line between paragraphs.
This, rather than indentation, is the modern standard.

All text to be fully justified, as in the opening paragraphs of this guide.
Your conclusions should be justified, in the sense that you give good reasons for them, but I like to see text justified in the typographic sense. This means that both margins are straight lines. I find it much easier to read when the lines are of equal length, as in this paragraph.

There are people who actually seem to prefer lines of unequal length. If you know that Dr. Blenkinsop is one of those people, then click the “Align Left” button on the toolbar of your word processor, and you’ll get the ragged edge that you see on this paragraph. This paragraph is unjustified.

A university assignment cover sheet.
Lots of universities require these. If yours doesn’t, you can forget about it.

No title page.
Don’t waste paper on a page that has nothing but the title of your essay and, perhaps, your name and student number, unless you are certain that this is what Dr Blenkinsop requires.

No borders.
Some students hand in essays in which each page is surrounded by a black border. It looks like an invitation to a funeral!

No pictures of flowers, fairies, or fluffy kittens anywhere.
Diagrams might be useful, but leave the pictures out.

The title of the essay and the name of the author should be on the first page. This is the page with the first paragraph on it.
Self explanatory.

All pages must be numbered.
Then Dr Blenkinsop will know he hasn’t lost one, or used it to mop up cat vomit.

List of references at the end.
Even if you put every reference in a footnote as well. Let Dr. Blenkinsop see at a glance the full scope of your reading.

Pages to be securely stapled.
Otherwise, the pages will come apart, and Dr Blenkinsop will use them to mop up cat vomit.

No plastic envelopes or folders. Contrary to popular belief, they will not improve your grade. They are merely an irritant.
Dammit, Dr Blenkinsop has got 67 papers to go through! If s/he has to pull them out of plastic envelopes or folders in order to read them, s/he is going to get really ratty. Is that what you want?
And if you expect him/her to fiddle around putting them back into the plastic thingies, your optimism far exceeds your understanding of human nature.

If you follow these instructions, you will present a neat, professional-looking, paper to your instructor. Simply seeing that will make him/her more favourably disposed to of your paper. Of course, if what you have written is utter tripe, then presentation won’t make up for it. But if what you have written is brilliant, why spoil it with poor presentation?