diff --git a/src/features/Search/Search.tsx b/src/features/Search/Search.tsx
index 9794d66f..5bbccc55 100644
--- a/src/features/Search/Search.tsx
+++ b/src/features/Search/Search.tsx
@@ -179,6 +179,15 @@ class SearchContainer extends React.Component<{}, ISearchState> {
     return search ? decodeURIComponent(search) : '';
   }
 
+  // If the value contains a tab, wrap it in double quotes to make sure 
+  // it is correctly interpreted when parsed as a tab-separated value (TSV).
+  private escapeTSV(value: string): string {  
+    if (value.includes('\t')) {
+      value = `"${value}"`;
+    }
+    return value;
+  }
+
   private downloadData(): void {
     const headers = [
       { label: CONSTANTS.FIRST_NAME_LABEL, key: 'accountId.firstName' },
@@ -276,27 +285,51 @@ class SearchContainer extends React.Component<{}, ISearchState> {
       headers.push({label: CONSTANTS.DIETARY_RESTRICTIONS_LABEL, key: 'accountId.dietaryRestrictions'});
       headers.push({label: 'Authorize MLH to send emails', key: 'application.other.sendEmail'})
     }
+
     const tempHeaders: string[] = [];
     headers.forEach((header) => {
       tempHeaders.push(header.label);
     });
-    const csvData: string[] = [tempHeaders.join('\t')]; // actually in tsv format
+    
+    const csvData: string[] = [tempHeaders.join(',')]; 
+
     this.filter().forEach((result) => {
       if (result.selected) {
         const row: string[] = [];
         headers.forEach((header) => {
           let value;
+          let free_response = false;
+
           if (header.key.indexOf('.') >= 0) {
+
+            // Check if the field is a free-form response
+            if (header.key == "application.shortAnswer.question1" || header.key == "application.shortAnswer.question2" || header.key == "application.shortAnswer.comments") {
+              free_response = true
+            }
+            
+            // Get the value of the field by navigating the nested structure of the hacker object,
+            // using the header key to determine the path 
             const nestedAttr = header.key.split('.');
             value = getNestedAttr(result.hacker, nestedAttr);
+
+            // Format free responses to be properly parsed as tab-separated value (TSV)
+            if (free_response == true){
+
+              // If the value contains a tab, wrap it in double quotes 
+              if (value.includes('\t')) {
+                value = `"${value}"`;
+              }
+            }
+            
           } else {
-            value = result.hacker[header.key];
+            value = result.hacker[header.key]
           }
           row.push(value);
         });
         csvData.push(row.join('\t'));
       }
     });
+
     fileDownload(csvData.join('\n'), 'hackerData.tsv', 'text/tsv');
   }