how to punctuate course names

Names of specific course titles should be capitalized, but general academic subjects are not. In your first example “liberal arts and sciences, chemical technology and computer science” are referred to generically, therefore do not capitalize. Names of academic degrees are not capitalized, however, specific program names are generally capitalized.

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How to properly punctuate titles?

Here are some helpful hints on how to properly punctuate titles using capitalization, italics, underlining, and quotation marks. Capitalize the first and last word in a title and every word in the title except articles and prepositions.

How do I mention a course name in an essay?

I searched this online, and I found only a single site with information regarding how to mention a course name in an essay. There were two conflicting answers: If you prefer to (or need to) say its full name, make the title in italics or underline. Quotation marks are additional characters, and less is better.

How do you capitalize the name of a title?

How to Punctuate Titles. Depending on the type of title, you may need to capitalize the title, underline the title, or use quotation marks around the title to ensure it is punctuated properly. You may also be creating a title for an original work written by you, citing it in a text, or a published work written by someone else,...

How do you apply APA style to in-text titles?

Apply quotations to in-text titles for APA style. APA style is different from MLA style in that it has different rules for titles that are in text and titles that are listed in references or in a bibliography. In text, you should use quotation marks around titles of shorter works, such as articles, chapters, or essays.

Do you put quotation marks around course names?

Do not enclose headlines or course titles in quotation marks. The names of broadcast networks and channels are set in roman.

How do you mention a course name?

If you prefer to (or need to) say its full name, make the title in italics or underline. Quotation marks are additional characters, and less is better. Just put it in capital letters.

How do you write bachelor's degree after your name?

When writing about one of the seven degrees the College grants, spell out the name of the degree on first reference and use the abbreviation thereafter. Spell, space and abbreviate like this: Bachelor of Arts / B.A. Bachelor of Music / B.M. Bachelor of Science / B.S.

What is the title of a course?

Course titles provide readers with a brief, general description of the subject matter covered in the course. Accrediting and governance entities, other academic institutions, current and prospective students, prospective employers and a variety of other individuals outside of the University review course titles.

Titles Ending in Question Marks or Exclamation Points in Your Prose

At the MLA, we never insert a period after a title ending in a question mark or exclamation point, but we insert a comma if doing so makes a sentence easier to read—for example, when such a title is one item in a series or when the title is contained in a nonrestrictive clause:

Titles That Need to Be Shortened

When we need to shorten a really long title in a works-cited-list entry, we add an ellipsis after the first part of the title up to at least the first noun. If a work has an alternative title, we might include it. If a period is needed, we insert the period before the ellipsis and set the punctuation roman:

Titles Ending in an Ellipsis or Dash

If the ellipsis is part of the title, we add the period or comma after the ellipsis. The ellipsis is set in italics if the title is italicized, but the additional punctuation is set roman:

Titles and Subtitles

Section 1.2.1 of the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook says, “Use a colon and a space to separate a title from a subtitle, unless the title ends in a question mark or an exclamation point. Include other punctuation only if it is part of the title or subtitle.”

Double Titles

For an alternative or double title in English beginning with or, we follow the first example given in section 8.165 of The Chicago Manual of Style and punctuate as follows:

Dates in Titles

Unless a date is part of a title’s syntax, we follow section 8.163 of Chicago and set it off with a comma:

Serial Comma in Titles

Contrary to section 8.163 of Chicago, for English-language titles of books published in the United States, we add the serial comma before the conjunction preceding the final item in a series if the comma is missing. Otherwise, we follow the source. The following book was published by Verso in London, so the serial comma is not added:

When to use quotation marks in MLA?

In MLA style, you always use quotation marks to notate the title of a poem if you are citing it as a reference in a bibliography or if you are citing your own original work. For example, “The Raven” by Edgar Allen Poe or “Today is a Good Day” by Mark Smith. You also use quotation marks for the titles of short stories.

What is APA style?

APA style is often used for scientific writing or based on a professor’s preference. In APA style, you only capitalize the first word of the title of any books in text and in your reference list. For example, in APA style, the title would be: “The wise man on the mountain.”.

Is APA different from MLA?

APA style is different from MLA style in that it has different rules for titles that are in text and titles that are listed in references or in a bibliography. In text, you should use quotation marks around titles of shorter works, such as articles, chapters, or essays.

Do you capitalize "cookie"?

Capitalize proper nouns and names. A proper noun is a noun that names a specific item, rather than a common item. For example, “cookie” is a noun, while “Oreo” is a proper noun. You should capitalize proper nouns in all titles, regardless of if you are using MLA or APA style.

Do you italicize a painting?

Italicize the title of a painting, a drawing, a sculpture or mixed media pieces. Visual artworks, such as paintings, drawings, sculptures, and mixed media pieces, should be cited using italics. For example, Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Night or Henry Moore’s Reclining Figure. ...

Do you use quotation marks when citing a book?

If you are citing the title of a book chapter or an article from a journal, magazine, newspaper, or periodical, you will use quotation marks. This applies to original works and published works. For example, if you are citing a chapter title in Moby Dick, you would cite it as “The Carpet-Bag” chapter in Moby Dick.

Do you capitalize all the words in a title?

The general rule of thumb for titles is that all “important” words should be capitalized. At the very least, the first and last words in the title should be capitalized when you are using MLA style to title your original works and works as a reference for a bibliography.

Can you forget different types of titles?

It's easy for students to forget that different types of titles require different typographical features. It is even harder to remember which type of title requires which type of punctuation. Despair not! If you remember these two handy rules, you can keep the difference straight:

Do you capitalize all words in a title?

Normally, most words in a title are capitalized. The most common rule is that all "important" words should be capitalized, which I think isn't helpful as a criterion. In actual practice, MLA requires the first and last word in the title is capitalized, along with every noun and every verb, every adjective, and every adverb. MLA typically does not capitalize prepositions and articles; however, outside of MLA requirements, many other guidelines call for capitalizing every word that is more than three letters long. Another common rule of thumb is to capitalize the first and last words of the title, and then capitalize everything else except for prepositions and articles. Sometimes, especially in short titles, every single word might optionally be capitalized.

What is an academic subject?

An academic subject is an area of knowledge that is studied at the school. A course is a specific class taken at the school. Medical biology is one of those tricky terms that could be used as a subject or a specific course title. You have to look at the way it is used in the sentence to identify it.

Is "master of education" capitalized?

The Chicago Manual of Style says, “Capitalize degrees on business cards, on diplomas, or when displayed in a directory or resume.”. Otherwise, academic subjects are not capitalized. The abbreviation for master of education is EdM.

Do you capitalize bachelors?

The Associated Press Stylebook ( AP) recommends no capitals when referring to degrees in general terms ( bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate, associate degree) but always capitalizing specific degrees ( Bachelor of Arts, Master of Science ).

Do you capitalize degrees on business cards?

As the post indicates, there are exceptions. Degrees are often capitalized on business cards, on diplomas, in promotional material, or when displayed in a directory or resume. If you are following the rules of the Associated Press Stylebook, the degree is capitalized.

Do you capitalize AP degrees?

Yes, AP Style does say to capitalize academic degrees. Do not capitalize the word “dual” unless it is the first word of a sentence. Also, use the word and rather than an ampersand ( &) in formal writing, especially on a resume. dual Bachelors of Arts, public relations and journalism.

Do you capitalize liberal arts?

In your first example “liberal arts and sciences, chemical technology and computer science” are referred to generically, therefore do not capitalize. Names of academic degrees are not capitalized, however, specific program names are generally capitalized.

Does AP stylebook capitalize bachelors?

AP Stylebook does not capitalize the terms “master’s degree” or “bachelor’s degree.”. AP spells academic departments and programs in lowercase except for words that are proper nouns or adjectives or when the department name is part of the official and formal name preceded by the university or college.

Titles Ending in Question Marks Or Exclamation Points in Your Prose

Titles That Need to Be Shortened

• When we need to shorten a really long title in a works-cited-list entry, we add an ellipsis after the first part of the title up to at least the first noun. If a work has an alternative title, we might include it. If a period is needed, we insert the period before the ellipsis and set the punctuation roman: If a comma is needed, as it would be when...

See more on style.mla.org

Titles Ending in An Ellipsis Or Dash

Titles and Subtitles

Double Titles

Dates in Titles

Serial Comma in Titles