Writing Style Guide
Introduction
Consistency of style and usage makes reading easier. When a publication is easy to read, it is more likely to be read, remembered, and used. This style guide is designed to increase the effectiveness of University of Utah publications by encouraging stylistic consistency and sensible usage campuswide.
This guide tries to address common questions about U of U and higher education terminology. It also standardizes campus usage of some terms new to English, especially those dealing with electronic communication.
This guide does NOT attempt to address topics where correct and incorrect usages are well established: lie vs. lay; its vs. it’s; affect vs. effect; colons vs. semicolons. An excellent reference on these matters is The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law. See also Webster’s New World Dictionary, especially to determine if a word is one word, two words, hyphenated, or capitalized. Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style is a classic resource for English usage. Another standard reference is The Chicago Manual of Style.
Special thanks to University Printing and Copying Services for providing the foundation for this style guide. In general, the AP stylebook served as our first reference; some of the entries below have been taken verbatim from it. Webster’s is our other reference. Some entries are idiosyncratic, ignoring both references; they represent the best judgment of communications professionals regarding what works well at the U.
This style guide is a work in progress; entries will be added, deleted, and changed in accordance with input from readers and the evolving campus environment. To suggest a modification to this style guide, contact: Fran@ucomm.utah.edu or 581-7190
Publications professionals occasionally permit the wishes and needs of a client to supersede established standards. When that is necessary, the objective becomes consistency of usage within the publication.
Quick Index
A
a lot - Two words.
AAC - Acronym for Art and Architecture Center. Avoid the term; it’s not a designation that appears in keys to official University maps. Use instead Architecture Building or Art Building.
abbreviations - See building names entry.
academic titles - Lowercase when the title is a description: Claudio Larsen, professor of anthropology. Initial capital letter (cap) only when a formal title (not simply a job description) precedes a name: Associate Professor Jacob Smith in anthropology. In order to minimize capitalization, generally follow this order: professor’s name, rank, and department; dean’s name, rank, and college; vice president’s name, rank, and area.
ACCESS - All uppercase when referring to the College of Science’s program for young women interested in science and technology careers. The word is not, however, an acronym.
acronyms - Well-known acronyms can be used on first reference: Use SAT, ACT, AOCE, SCUBA, ROTC, TIAA/CREF, without periods. For less immediately recognizable acronyms, spell out on first reference, then use the acronym on second reference.
acting - Lowercase. Use initial cap on title that follows, if the title normally would have an initial cap: acting Dean Boris Kuznetsov.
addresses - In text, it’s 250 S. 500 (not 5th) West. Spell out Tenth (not 10th) Avenue. Spell out North (not N.) Temple and South (not S.) Campus Drive (because they are the full names of those streets). Use the abbreviations Ave., Blvd., and St. only with a numbered address: 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Spell them out and use initial caps when part of a formal street name without a number: Pennsylvania Avenue. All similar words (alley, drive, road, terrace, etc.) are always spelled out in full. Spell out Utah, except when writing an actual mailing address that requires use of the two-letter state abbreviation (UT).
All U of U mailing addresses printed on anything that must be physically read by U.S. Postal Service machines (e.g., a preaddressed return envelope) must be all uppercase, use a sans-serif font (e.g., Helvetica), lack articles or conjunctions, include a street address, use standard postal abbreviations, and (for ZIP code 84112) include a four-digit extension to the ZIP code. The campus directory contains a list of U of U departmental mailing addresses. Example:
FRAN OLSON
PRODUCTION MANAGER
UNIVERSITY MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS
201 PRESIDENTS CIRCLE
SALT LAKE CITY UT 84112-9400
When writing an office’s mailing address in text (i.e., NOT when writing for a preaddressed envelope or anything else where a postal machine might read it), it is acceptable to use both uppercase and lowercase, commas, periods, conjunctions, articles, and any font you choose in order to make the address legible and expressive of your particular program or office. So, the above address could be written in a brochure, for example, as:
Fran Olson, Production Manager
University Marketing & Communications
201 Presidents Circle
Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-9400
If the audience is external to the University and there’s any chance that readers will need to know the mailing address, then include it in the publication. If an audience is purely internal to the University and campus mail would likely be the only means of response, then the room number and building name may be sufficient. Thus, the above address could be written for a strictly internal audience as 201 Park Building. With that address, U of U people could consult a campus map, if necessary, to determine physical location. Often in publications it is advisable to include BOTH the mailing address and the campus location, with the mailing address clearly designated as such.
administration - Lowercase: the central administration, the Young administration.
admissions index - Initial caps for both words. First word is plural. Second reference can be AI.
advanced placement - Initial caps for this program of the College Board. Second reference can be AP.
adviser - Not with an -or.
Affect / effect - Affect as a verb means “to influence,” affect as a noun is best avoided.
Effect as a verb means “to cause.” Effect as a noun means “result.” What effect did the
blast have? How could he affect the situation? He effected a change in policy.
African American - No hyphen. See Black or African American entry.
AIDS - All uppercase because it’s an acronym. Not necessary to spell out on first reference. See also HIV.
AirMed - One word, uppercase M.
Alaskan Native - Initial caps. Term for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
alma mater - Lowercase.
alumni, alum - Use alumnus (singular male); alumna (singular female); alumni (plural male or plural of both genders); alumnae (plural female). Alum, alums are informal unisex terms.
When identifying University alumni, you may use degree and class year (without periods in the degree abbreviations, without commas around the degrees, and without a space between the degree and year abbreviations): LaDawn Smith Jones BA’60 MA’63; Martin Gomez BS’75 PhD’80. Note the direction of the apostrophe. When it’s not possible to ascertain a person’s degree, use just the class year—the first class year in the case of multiple degrees: Darnell Harris’75. See also degrees entry.
For a married alumna, use her married and maiden names, if appropriate: LaDawn Smith Jones BA’60 MA’63. This practice aids recognition by people who may have known her before her name changed upon marriage.
a.m., p.m. - Lowercase, with periods but no spaces.
American Indian - Initial caps. Term for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
American institutions requirement - Lowercase except for initial cap for American.
among, between - Between introduces two items and among introduces more than two.
ampersand (&) - Use only when it is part of an organization’s formal name; otherwise, use and in text. Not used, for example, in full names of U of U departments. An ampersand is part of the formal name of University Hospitals & Clinics.
AOCE - uppercase without periods. For off-campus advertising, use Continuing Education.
archaeology - Not archeology.
Asian - Initial cap. Term for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action. Also, Asian is preferred over Oriental for inhabitants of the Far East nations of Asia and nearby islands.
associate degree - Not associate’s degree (unlike bachelor’s below).
ASUU - All uppercase because it’s the acronym for Associated Students of the University of Utah. (ASUU is the U’s student government.)
Athletics Department - Note “s” at the end; at the U, it’s not Athletic Department.
attribution - Use present tense (he says, she says) unless the reference is specifically time-related.
auditoriums - Their names can be tricky because usually they are not shown on maps. Here are some commonly used auditorium names, followed by the abbreviation of the building in which they are located:
Waldemar Read Auditorium (OSH)
Mark H. Greene Hall (FAMB)
Social and Behavioral Science Lecture Hall (S BEH)
Social Work Auditorium (SW)
Fine Arts Auditorium (FINE A)
Union Theatre (UNION)
Eccles Institute of Human Genetics Auditorium (EIHG)
B
babysit, babysitting - Never hyphenate.
bachelor’s - Use an apostrophe (possessive) when referring to the degree: bachelor’s program, bachelor’s degree, a bachelor’s in communication.
biannual - Twice a year.
biennial - Every two years.
Black or African American - Initial caps. Term (all four words as a unit) for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
Board of Trustees, Board of Regents - Lowercase on second reference when omitting board: to the trustees, from the regents.
Bountiful/U of U - Correct use for advertising purposes.
branch campuses - Do not use. For advertising purposes, U of U educational facilities in Bountiful, Sandy, and Park City are correctly referred to as Bountiful/U of U, Sandy/U of U, Park City/U of U.
building names - Generally, in text write out on first reference the building’s full name, which is found in the key of the campus map or online at www.map.utah.edu. First reference: Eccles Health Sciences Library, S.J. Quinney Law Library, Marriott Library. On second reference: Eccles Library, Quinney Library, Marriott Library, or the library. On third reference: the library. In text, avoid the six-letter building abbreviations found in the printed and online campus map; these official abbreviations, however, may be appropriate in address or location listings. It is the Marriott Library, the Eccles Library, the Quinney Library, the Alumni House.
C
Cabinet - Initial cap for a specific body of advisers heading executive departments for a president or governor: The U of U president met with her Cabinet.
Campus - NEVER use to define extension locations: not Sandy Campus. Use “site,”
“extension,” or “location” instead.
campus directory - Lowercase. This is the University’s phone book. Initial caps only when referring to a specific volume: the 2001 Campus Directory, the current University of Utah Campus Directory.
campuswide - One word, lowercase.
capitalization - Avoid unnecessary capital letters. Too many capitals detract from your message by slowing and distracting the reader. Use a capital letter only when principles in this style guide or other references justify your doing so. Do not capitalize a word simply because you consider it important.
Capitol Reef - Correct spelling.
catalog - Lowercase. Initial caps only when referring to a specific volume: the 2000-2002 General Catalog, the current University of Utah General Catalog, AOCE Fall 2001 Catalog.
Caucasian - Initial cap. Term for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
CD-ROM - All uppercase because it’s the acronym for compact disc acting as a read-only memory device. CD-ROM disc is redundant; avoid.
centuries - Use numerals unless it is the first word in a heading or sentence: Reviews 20th century literature. Twentieth century poetry is discussed. Only hyphenate centuries when it helps readability.
chair - Use it as a noun and as a verb: He is the committee chair. She chairs the committee. Avoid chairperson.
child care - Two words, hyphenated when used as a modifier. Examples: He works in child care. He’s a child-care specialist.
Class Schedule - Not Day Schedule. Should be Class Schedule/Student Handbook in all
publications, no “Day.”
college names - Initial cap for the formal name of a U of U college: College of Law, School of Medicine, Graduate School of Social Work. Lowercase for informal references: the law school, the medical school.
colon (:) - Use to introduce a series (see “Series”). Also use to set off an important phrase: You just need one thing: an elbow. If a colon is followed by a complete sentence capitalize the first word after the colon. Do not use in a sentence after include or including unless the sentence reads: The course will include the following:
commas - Use a comma before “and” in a series. Example: “Salt Lake, Davis, and Summit County” and “Developing realistic expectations, reconnecting and functioning as a couple, and enhancing the good times.” Commas go inside quotation marks. No commas before an ampersand.
commencement - The U of U event has an initial cap.
composition titles - Use italics for titles of magazines, newspapers , books, movies, plays, record albums. Use quotes for scholastic papers and articles, art, newspaper and magazine articles, speeches, lectures, seminars, presentations and song titles. Use
quotes for names of programs on which telecourses are based: “Out of the Past.”
computers - Beginning with first reference, a personal computer is a PC, plural PCs (lowercase s and no apostrophe).
course names - Proper nouns (e.g., languages) should be initial caps in all instances. Others (e.g., history, mathematics) should be initial caps only when referring to a specific course: He enrolled in Physics 1010. She is taking Graphical Communication this semester. (Note that no quotation marks are necessary here.) All students should take a course in graphical communication. She is in an American history class. A list of the official U of U course abbreviations (e.g., BIO C for Biochemistry, BLCHM for Biological Chemistry) is available in the printed and online versions of the general catalog and class schedule.
course work - Two words.
curriculum, curricula - avoid curriculums.
dash - Use the em dash (—) without space on either side.
database - One word.
dates - Leave a space between each day abbreviation when a day is missing: M W F, not MWF and MT Th, not MTTh. The abbreviation for Thursday is “Th” not “H.” Use the three letter abbreviation for months with a period: Dec. In text, a date should be set off with commas: January 12, 1999, the class meets. When abbreviating days use Mon., Tue., Wed., Thur., Fri.
day care - Two words as a noun, hyphenated when used as a modifier. Examples: She’s at day care. The day-care bill is expensive.
dean - Initial cap when used as a formal title before a name: Dean Gloria Chang, Deans Gloria Chang and Jason Martinez. Lowercase in other uses: Gloria Chang, dean of the college; the dean.
dean’s list - Lowercase in all uses.
degrees - Use bachelor’s degree or master’s degree, but bachelor of science degree or master of arts degree. (Not bachelor’s of science degree or master’s of arts degree.) Use doctoral degree or doctorate, but not doctorate degree. Abbreviated degrees generally take periods: B.A., B.S., M.A., M.S., Ph.D., Pharm. D. However, in text MBA and MPA commonly don’t take periods. Also, omit periods from degree abbreviations when identifying a university alumnus: J. James Whitby-Jones BS’83; see alumni, alum entry. See “degrees” in the general catalog for names and abbreviations of U of U degrees. If you must make an abbreviation plural, add s but no apostrophe: B.A.s, Ph.D.s.
department names - Initial caps in formal and informal references to a specific department. Lowercase when you mean the academic discipline generally: the Department of Modern Dance; the U’s Modern Dance Department; modern dance departments across the country envy the U’s Marriott Center for Dance.
disability, disabled - Not handicap, handicapped. Emphasize the person rather than the disability by mentioning the person first: people with disabilities.
Distance Education - No longer used. See ULEARN.
Distinguished Professor - Always initial caps when referring to this formal, U of U-specific title which a few of our professors have earned. Lowercase when simply describing a professor as “distinguished”: There are many distinguished professors in the U’s College of Science, but only a few of the U’s science faculty have been given the title of Distinguished Professor. The speaker is a Distinguished Professor of psychology.
diversity requirement - Lowercase.
dorm, dormitory - Avoid the terms. See residence hall(s) entry.
Dumke Auditorium – the proper usage on promotional materials is Dumke Auditorium at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts in the Marcia and John Price Museum Building
E
e.g., i.e. -The abbreviation “e.g.” means “for example.” The abbreviation “i.e.” means “that
is” and should be used when expanding on a topic. Always use a comma after e.g. or i.e.
earth - Lowercase, except in conjunction with other planets without a definite article.
The planets Earth and Venus are closer to the sun. Uppercase when saying Mother
Earth or Mother Nature.
ellipsis - Written as three periods with a space on either side ( … ).
e-mail - Lowercase, with hyphen. Short form of electronic mail. In text, italicize (don’t underline) the e-mail address: Contact John Richards, director of Publications and Printing Services, at jrichards@printing.utah.edu. It is not necessary to italicize the address if it’s part of obvious address and phone information at the beginning of an entry, for example. In dictating e-mail addresses, the @ is pronounced at, the _ is pronounced underscore, and the ~ is pronounced tilde (til-d). At the end of an e-mail address, punctuate as normal in the sentence, e.g., end with a period or comma (no extra spaces), if appropriate.
em-dash - This is the long dash indicated by typing two hyphens, —. Used to separate two parts of a sentence. Use with no spaces one either side. Also called m-dash. Use to separate course names from locations. Short dash makes two words become one: Two-day Riverboating Trip—Gray Canyon.
emeritus - Place this adjective after the title. Use professor emerita (singular female); professor emeritus (singular male); faculty emeritae (more than one, all female); faculty emeriti (more than one, all male or both genders).
emphasis - To emphasize text, use bold or italics, not underlining.
English - Always capitalize.
Exclamation point - Use with discretion!
F
FAQ - All uppercase because it’s the acronym for frequently asked questions. Spell it out on first reference in text.
fax - Lowercase. It’s not an acronym; it’s short for facsimile.
financial aid - Not financial aids.
flier - Use for a handbill or an aviator. Not flyer.
former - Lowercase. Do not abbreviate the former title of a person. Use initial cap on title that follows, if the title normally would have an initial cap. Use former Governor Shinika Brown, not former Gov. Shinika Brown.
forum, forums - Avoid fora.
freshman, freshmen - Use freshman as an adjective or singular noun; use freshmen as a plural noun: the freshman class, an incoming freshman, incoming freshmen. A more gender-neutral term is first-year.
Frisbee - A trademark for a plastic disc thrown as a toy. Use Frisbee disc for the trademark version and flying disc for other generic versions.
FTE - All uppercase because it’s the acronym for full-time equivalent. The term FTE employee is not redundant.
full time - Two words, hyphenated when used as a modifier. Examples: She works full time. He’s a full-time artist.
fund raising - Two words, hyphenated when used as a modifier. Examples: He does fund raising. He heads the fund-raising campaign.
G
general education - Lowercase for the U of U program and requirements.
governance - The U is part of the Utah System of Higher Education, under the leadership of the Utah Commissioner of Higher Education. On second reference, the system of higher education.
grades - No quotation marks around them and no apostrophes when plural: He received an A, two Bs, and three Cs.
grammar - Correct spelling.
Greek - Initial cap because it’s a proper noun. To avoid confusion with the nationality, it’s preferable to use the term Greek-letter (rather than Greek) regarding fraternities and sororities. If it’s not too cumbersome, for example, it’s preferable to use members of Greek-letter organizations rather than Greeks.
H
handicap, handicapped - Avoid. See disability, disabled entry.
health care - Two words, hyphenated as modifier. Examples: He needs better health care. She’s a health-care provider.
Health Sciences Center - This U of U organization (not a building) consists of the School of Medicine, College of Nursing, College of Pharmacy, College of Health, Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library, Student Health Service, Regional Dental Education Program, University of Utah Health Network, and University Hospitals & Clinics. Health Sciences Center replaces the obsolete term Medical Center. See also the entry for University Hospitals & Clinics.
Heritage Center - The complete name for use on first reference is the Chase N. Peterson Heritage Center. The center is part of Heritage Commons at Fort Douglas.
high-tech - Hyphenate this modifier.
Hispanic - Initial cap. Term for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
HIV - Not necessary to spell out on first reference. All uppercase because it’s an acronym. HIV virus is redundant because the V already stands for virus; avoid. People are either HIV-positive or HIV-negative.
home page - Two words. The front page of a particular Web site.
holidays - Plural, so no apostrophe. (per AP Style).
Honors - Initial cap when referring specifically to U of U Honors Program courses, requirements, and the degree. If used generically (e.g., high school honors courses), then lowercase.
hospital - See University Hospitals & Clinics entry.
HTML - Uppercase. Acronym for hypertext markup language.
HTTP - Uppercase. Acronym for hypertext transport protocol.
hyphens - Use hyphens after prefixes such as non-, pre-, and re- when: (1) the second element must be capitalized: pre-Columbian, non-LDS. (2) Compound words must be distinguished from homonyms: recover, re-cover. (3) Second element consists of more than one word: non-English-speaking people. (4) The last letter of the prefix and the first letter of the following word are the same: pre-engineering.
Hyphens are used to connect compound modifiers to enhance clarity: well-known author, bluish-green color. Hyphens are not used after the adverb and adverbs that end in -ly: very good report, easily remembered rule.
I
initials - No space between two initials preceding last name: C.J. Nguyen, not C. J. Nguyen.
in memoriam - Commonly misspelled.
interim - Lowercase. Use an initial cap on title that follows, if the title normally would have an initial cap: interim Vice President Peter Higuchi.
intermountain - See regions, directions entry.
Internet - Initial cap. On second reference, the Net, also initial cap, is acceptable.
Internet address - See Web address entry.
intranet - Lowercase. A private electronic network inside a company or organization, only for internal use.
IT - All uppercase because it’s the acronym for information technology. Spell it out on first reference in text. No periods.
italics - Use italics for the titles of magazines, newspapers, books, movies, plays, record albums. See also quotation marks entry.
J
Jacuzzi - Initial cap because it’s a trademark. Generic terms are whirlpool bath or whirlpool spa.
Jr., Sr. - Precede with a comma: Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. No comma precedes a Roman numeral: Joseph P. Kennedy III.
K
kickoff - (noun/adjective), kick off (verb)
KUER - Please use "KUER 90.1" or "KUER 90.1 FM/HD "
L
Latino(a) - Initial cap. Term for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
LDS - Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On second reference, the Church of Jesus Christ, or the LDS Church, or the Church. Note the lowercase d in Latter-day. Mormon Church is not acceptable.
Legislature - Initial cap when preceded by the name of a state: the Utah Legislature. Retain initial cap when referring specifically to that state’s legislature: the Legislature meets in Salt Lake City. Lowercase when used generically: No legislature in America has approved such a bill.
LGBT – Stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender; see LGBT Resource Center, www.sa.utah.edu/lgbt/about/mission.htm
lifelong - One word.
lifestyle - One word.
login, logoff, logon - Each is one word.
M
mailing addresses - See addresses entry.
majors - Lowercase the names of majors unless they contain a proper noun: Middle East studies, English, exercise and sport science, theatre.
master’s - Use an apostrophe (possessive) when referring to the degree: master’s program, master’s degree, a master’s in communication.
medical doctors - You may use M.D. after the name on first reference. Do not use professor or Dr. before the name when also using M.D. after the name. Do not use redundant titles and descriptions before a name. Incorrect: Team physician Dr. Marco Smith.
midnight - Use instead of 12 a.m., which is a confusing term.
mission - the University of Utah Mission Statement (initial caps because it’s the name of a specific document) is available on the Web at www.admin.utah.edu/president/mission.html.
months - Always capitalize. Spell out when used in text. Use three letter abbreviation for class dates. Use a comma between the date and year: January 12, 1999. Do not use a comma when only the month and year are noted: January 1999.
Mormon Church - Not an acceptable term, but the full name (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or Church of Jesus Christ) is usually preferable, at least on first reference. See LDS entry.
mountain bike - Two words, hyphenated when used as a modifier. Examples: She got a new mountain bike. She won the mountain-bike competition.
multicultural - One word, no hyphen.
Museum of Fine Arts, Utah—the proper usage on promotional materials is the Utah Museum of Fine Arts in the Marcia and John Price Museum Building
MWC - All uppercase because it’s the acronym for Mountain West Conference. Spell out on first reference. No periods.
N
names - Use a person’s full name: first name, middle initial (at least), and last name. Or, if the person prefers, use first initial, middle name, and last name. Use the campus directory as a reference. Double check with the individual if there’s any doubt.
national parks - Capitalize all words when a single park is mentioned. When more than one park is mentioned, national park is lowercase while the proper names remain uppercase: Zion National Park, Zion and Bryce national parks. This rule is also true for rivers, lakes, mountain ranges, etc.
Native Hawaiian - Initial caps. Term for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
non - See hyphens entry. Common U of U non- words include noncredit, nonmajor, nonmatriculated, nonrefundable, nonresident, nonthesis, nontraditional.
noon - Use instead of 12 p.m., which is a confusing term.
not-for-credit - Hyphenate when referring to AOCE not-for-credit programs.
numbers - Spell out whole numbers below 10, use figures for 10 and above. Spell “first” through “ninth,” use figures for 10th and above. Physical quantities, such as distances, lengths, area, volumes, etc. are expressed in figures, whether for whole number or
fractions: 45 miles, 10.5 pounds, 2 2/3 full. Numbers expressed as adjectives before a noun or as substitutes for a noun, need to be hyphenated: The five-year-old program or the two-and-a-half hour course.
O
off campus - Two words, hyphenated when used as a modifier. Examples: Many U of U students live off campus. Off-campus living requires a commute to classes.
OK, OK’d, OK’ing, OKs - Often, approve is a better verb. Avoid okay.
Olympics - Initial cap in all references to the international athletic contests held every four years: the Olympic Winter Games of 2002, the Olympic Winter Games, the Games. The word Olympics alone in text refers to the summer Games, so it likely doesn’t belong in U of U publications. CAUTION: Much Olympic terminology is trademarked; it is heavily and strictly regulated. Be extremely careful in using such terms, especially if the usage has any commercial (rather than news or information) implication.
On - Do not use “on” prior to a date or day of the week when its absence would not lead to confusion: The meeting will be held Monday. The class is held January 20.
on campus - Two words, hyphenated when used as a modifier. Examples: More freshmen are choosing to live on campus. The convenience of on-campus living can’t be beat.
online - One word, no hyphen.
P
Pacific Islander - Initial caps. Term for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
Parenthesis - When the phrase within the parentheses stands alone the punctuation should be within the end parenthesis. When the parenthetical phrase is part of a larger sentence, punctuation falls outside of the end parenthesis. Bring tap shoes (used shoes available). Basics of winter survival. (Equipment is provided at no charge.)
Park City/U of U - Correct use for advertising purposes.
Parks, Recreation and Tourism - No comma after Recreation. This is the official name of the U of U academic department.
part time - Always hyphenate as an adjective, but otherwise is two words. She is a
part-time student and she also works part time.
PeopleSoft - One word, uppercase S.
Percents - Write out in text, use % sign only in charts or graphs.
period - Only one space between a period and the beginning of the next sentence.
phone numbers - Avoid repeating the area code throughout a publication. If appropriate, specify at the beginning of a publication that all phone numbers are in area code 801, for example. Utah soon will have three area codes: Salt Lake County will have the 801 area code; Davis, Morgan, Utah, and Weber counties will have the 385 area code; and the rest of the state will keep the 435 area code. Consult your current Qwest phone book for details.
post - See hyphens entry. Common U of U post- words: postdoctoral, postgraduate, postsecondary.
postal regulations - See addresses entry.
pre - See hyphens entry. Common U of U pre- words: prearchitecture, prearrange, predental, pre-engineering, pre-exist, prelaw, premajor, premed, premedicine, prenursing, preprofessional, pretest. Because they are words in their own right (listed in the dictionary), omit the hyphen in preempt and preeminent, for example.
prerequisites - In the Catalog use prereq: “With instructor’s consent” or “Departmental permission” Do not include “for more information” in the prerequisite field; include at the end of the description or as a NOTE:
Presenter’s Office - Full name is ASUU Presenter’s Office. Note placement of the apostrophe.
president - Never abbreviated. Use President Victoria Doe; Victoria Doe, U of U president. Avoid making a place name part of a title: It’s U of U president Victoria Doe (lowercase president because with the U of U place name president is used in the occupational description sense). It’s former President Smith, interim President McIntyre, acting President Malik. Do not use U president Victoria Doe (see University of Utah entry). On second reference to the U of U president, use President Doe or the president (lowercase) (see academic titles entry). It is, however, the President’s Office or the Office of the President.
Presidents Circle - Plural, so no apostrophe.
Presidents Day - Plural, so no apostrophe.
Principal, principle - A principal as a noun is a person holding high rank, generally in a school or as an adjective, it means “leading.” It also has specific meanings in law and finance. It can be used as a noun or an adjective. A principle is a basic truth, law or assumption. It is only used as a noun.
professor - Do not abbreviate to Prof. in titles. See academic titles entry.
Q
quotation marks - Use quotation marks around the titles of scholarly articles and papers, newspaper and magazine articles, speeches, seminars, presentations, and songs. See also italics entry.
R
RAM - Uppercase because it’s the acronym for random access memory.
re - See hyphens entry. Common U of U re- words: readmission, reapply, reaward, re-enlist, re-enter, re-entry, re-establish, re-examine.
Red Butte Garden - Note that Garden is singular.
red rock - Two words, hyphenated when used as a modifier. He awoke surrounded by red rock. She loves Utah’s red-rock country.
regions, directions - In general, lowercase north, south, northeast, northern, etc., when they indicate compass direction. Initial caps when these words designate regions: the Northeast, the West, Western states, Intermountain West. A storm system that developed in the Midwest is spreading eastward. It’s intermountain area (all lowercase because no specific region is indicated).
requirement(s) - Lowercase: intellectual explorations, foundation course, integration course, quantitative reasoning.
residence hall(s) - Lowercase unless part of a proper name. Avoid dorm. Here are the proper names of the Heritage Commons communities: Shoreline Ridge, Benchmark Plaza, Chapel Glen, Gateway Heights, Sage Point. Do not refer to Van Cott, Ballif, and Austin as the old residence halls; use original residence halls or some similarly positive term.
résumé - Note accent marks in two places.
river rafting - Two words, hyphenated when used as a modifier. Examples: She taught river rafting. She leads river-rafting trips.
room number - Generally, do not use room; write 206 Park Building. If you must use room before a number, use an initial cap: Go to Room 206 in the Park Building.
S
Sandy/U of U - Correct use for advertising purposes.
says - See attribution entry.
screen saver - Two words, no hyphen.
scuba - Lowercase, even though originally it was an acronym.
seasons - Lowercase: in fall, during summer.
Sections - The entire three digit section number is always included when referencing a course (1010-001, not 1010-1 or 1010-01).
semesters - Use fall (not autumn) semester; spring semester; summer term (not semester), which comprises two summer sessions. Initial cap-but no comma in between-if year is given: Spring 2001, Fall Semester 2002.
Semicolon (;) - Used to separate a series of complex phrases (it functions like a comma with a series of simple items). Also used to join two separate sentences that have a connecting thought: Opera is not just a bunch of loud fat ladies who sing; it is a unique art form with historical significance.
Series - When listing seminar topics by day, use the following format: Day One: The Healing Hands. Description of the day’s activities. When listing items in a series, use commas to separate simple series (see commas). When listing more complex series of
phrases use semicolons (;) to separate the phrases: Learn nursing theory-the function and skills of organization; nursing management-steps in stress reduction, motivation and communication; and human resource management. To introduce a series of items
use a colon (:). If you have other punctuation within the series use a colon.
service-learning - Always hyphenated. Generally lowercase, but initial caps (including Learning) for the U’s officially designated Service-Learning Scholars.
signature - Always obtain the express permission of an individual before using his/her signature in print. If you have access to a signature that is available electronically, get permission before putting it on a new document or on one that has been changed in any way from a previously approved version.
silk screen - Two words as a noun, not hyphenated. When it is a verb or adjective it is hyphenated.
Social Security - Initial caps in all references to the U.S. system.
software titles - Initial caps, but no quotation marks. Consult the software manual to determine capitalization and punctuation; these are trademarks, so it’s important to get them right. Use quotation marks around computer game titles.
state of Utah - Lowercase state in this usage. Usually, just Utah is sufficient.
statewide - Lowercase, one word, no hyphen.
student body - Two words, hyphenated when used as a modifier. Examples: The student body voted. She ran for student-body president. Students is usually preferable.
syllabus, syllabuses - Avoid syllabi.
T
tense - See attribution entry.
theater, theatre - Use theater, amphitheater (both with -er ), unless the proper name is spelled with -re. Examples: several campus theaters, Pioneer Memorial Theatre. For the U, use Department of Theatre, Theatre Department. Thus, a U of U student majors in theatre (referring to the U of U department and major), but a student plans a career in theater after graduation.
The University of Utah - Use full name. On second reference, these terms may be used for The University of Utah: U of U (note spaces, not condensed into UofU), University, the U. Do not use a period after each U (unless the U falls at the end of the sentence). Use U of U rather than U as a modifier: She’s a U of U faculty member. Not: She’s a U faculty member. Lowercase when used generically: Across the country, university tuition costs are rising. In titles, addresses, and other instances where the name stands alone, “The” in the wordmark should be used and capitalized. However, when the University’s name is used as an adjective (e.g., University of Utah Professor Robert K. Avery), the article is not necessary. When used in text, “the” can be lowercased as appropriate.
tickets - Local performing arts ticket outlets (with tricky spellings) include ArtTix, Smith’s Tix.
titles - In general, do not use Dr., Mr., Mrs., Miss, Ms. Use degrees after a name on first reference only. Use last name alone on second reference. (For example, on first reference: Sarah Goldberg, M.D., teaches anatomy. On second reference: Goldberg lectures today.) Titles that serve as occupational descriptions rather than proper titles are lowercase: chemistry professor Bob Beaker, coach Beth Jones. Proper titles preceding names are initial caps: Executive Director Billy Bobb, but lowercase after the name: Billy Bobb, executive director. See academic titles entry.
T-shirt - Note uppercase T and hyphen.
U
U.S. - Always use periods to signify the abbreviation for United States.
UCard - One word, uppercase U and C. The U’s new card for identification and various services.
underrepresented - One word, no hyphen.
University Hospitals & Clinics - The correct administrative term for what is commonly thought of as the hospital. Despite the plural name forms, this is a single organization and takes a singular verb form: University Hospitals & Clinics serves patients. It’s Hospitals with an s because the designation includes University Neuropsychiatric Institute. University Hospital is a building name.
University Professor - Always initial caps when referring to this formal, U of U-specific title that a few of our professors have earned. Lowercase when simply indicating that a professor works at a university: David Singh, University Professor of sociology, won the award. The congressional candidate is a university professor.
University of Utah - See The University of Utah entry.
universitywide - No hyphen, and lowercase: She fulfilled the U’s universitywide writing requirement.
URL - Universal Resource Locator. Commonly used as a synonym for Web address, although the terms don’t have exactly the same meaning.
Utah Museum of Fine Arts/Dumke Auditorium – the proper usage on promotional materials is Dumke Auditorium at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts in the Marcia and John Price Museum Building
Utah State Office of Education - On second reference, USOE .
UtahLINK - One word. Note capitalization.
UTES – All caps; use only when Utah will not work. For example, “Go Utah” or “Utah Football” instead of “Go UTES.” Use possessive plural if necessary: UTES’ Summer Tour.
V
Veterans’ Day - Plural possessive.
vice president - Never hyphenated or abbreviated. For rules on capitalization, see academic titles entry.
W
WWW - World Wide Web. All caps—use only before main Web site address in print (www.ucomm.utah.edu) No http:// All other Web sites: refer to “Web site” address (ex: “visit our Web site at ulearn.utah.edu;” no www.
Wasatch Front - The western face of the Wasatch Range.
Wasatch Range - Not Wasatch Mountains.
Web - Initial cap. Acceptable on second reference for World Wide Web.
Web address – Italicize in published documents, rather than underlining. It is not necessary to italicize the address if it’s part of obvious address and phone information at the end of a publication, for example. In text, addresses can be followed immediately by a period, comma, or other punctuation. (Our assumption is that people now are sufficiently familiar with Web address formats that they will know to not enter any textual punctuation that may follow the address.) If an address must break between lines, split it directly before a slash or a dot that is part of the address, and do not insert a hyphen. The http:// portion of the address and the final forward slash of the address are not necessary to include when writing the address; the U of U address, for example, can be written simply as www.utah.edu (rather than http://www.utah.edu/).
Web page - A specific address that refers to a page in an organization’s Web site. For example, www.saff.utah.edu/regist/dates.htm refers to the “Academic Calendar” Web page in the U of U Web site. See also Web address and Web site entries.
Web site - Two words. The address of an organization’s home page (also known as the welcome page, top page, main page, entry page). A Web site is a collection of Web pages. The U of U Web site is www.utah.edu. See also Web address and Web page entries.
Wheel-thrown - Hyphenate before a noun, otherwise use as two words.
White - Initial cap. Term for racial/ethnic group used by the U.S. government and the U’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action.
whitewater - One word, no hyphen.
-wide - In general, hyphenating with -wide is a sign that you’re coining a new term. Avoid it. Acceptable -wide terms include anything listed in the dictionary as one word (e.g., citywide, nationwide, statewide), plus terms in this style guide: campuswide and universitywide.
word processing (adjective) - Do not hyphenate.
World Wide Web - On second reference, the Web is acceptable. Always initial caps.
work-study - Always hyphenated.
writing emphasis - Lowercase.
writing requirement - Lowercase.
X
Xerox - Initial cap because it’s a trademark for a brand of photocopy machine. Generic term is photocopy.
Y
yearlong - One word, no hyphen.
years - Abbreviate as ’02. Note the direction of the apostrophe. Because it’s plural, not possessive, no apostrophe before an s at the end: the 1940s.
Z
Zion National Park - Note that Zion is singular.
ZIP code - All uppercase ZIP because it’s the acronym for Zoning Improvement Plan; lowercase code. At the U of U, 84112 ZIP codes require a four-digit extension.
