when to capitalize course names

• Capitalize only when necessary. The more words you capitalize, the more you complicate your text.
• Capitalize the formal (complete) names of university colleges and departments: College of Arts and Letters Comptroller’s Office Office of the President The W. A. ...
• Do not capitalize university unless used within a complete, formal title. Northern Arizona University offers courses in a variety of disciplines through the Grand Canyon Semester. ...
• Use lowercase for informal names of departments: financial aid office the college liberal arts
• Use lowercase for generic terms that precede or follow plural proper nouns: San Francisco and Beaver streets Gabaldon and Raymond halls lakes Powell and Mead
• Headings should always be in sentence case with limited exceptions where approved by University Marketing.

Do you capitalize school subject names?

School subject names are usually capitalized if they are proper names. However, it could be a tad confusing to ascertain which subject names are proper nouns and which ones are general nouns. When a school subject name is being talked about generally, you need not capitalize it. For instance, subjects such as chemistry, physics, math, etc. are not capitalized. But if the subject is the name of a particular language or is a proper noun, it should not be written in lowercase.

Are the names of college courses capitalized?

Rules for Capitalizing Academic Degrees in AP Style

• Academic Degrees to Capitalize in AP Style. So do you capitalize degrees? ...
• When to Abbreviate Academic Degrees. When it is necessary to establish an individual’s academic credentials, AP style guidelines advise that you use a phrase instead of an abbreviation.
• Capitalizing Doctoral Degrees. ...
• The Rules for Capitalizing Degrees Apply to Everyone. ...

Should I capitalize degree names?

So, in an attempt to shed light on this mess, here we go:

• Capitalize your title when it’s used as a heading in your resume. ...
• Capitalize a title if it precedes a person’s name and is part of the name, as in “Vice President of Marketing John Doe.”
• Do not capitalize your title if referring to it in text. ...

More items...

Should course titles be capitalized?

Course titles . Official names of academic courses are capitalized. Search the catalog for the correct course title. Adrian is enrolled in Mass Communication and Human Behavior. Government references . Do not capitalize federal, state, or city unless part of an official name. city of Flagstaff state of Arizona federal government

Do you capitalize course names in a cover letter?

Capitalize correctly But when writing your cover letter, it's best to only capitalize the names of actual courses, schools and subjects. Do not capitalize when making a general reference to a profession or industry, as it tends to divert the reader's attention away from your actual message.

Should a college course title be capitalized?

Course titles Official names of academic courses are capitalized.

Are course titles italicized?

Headlines and course titles are not italicized.

Do you capitalize your degree major?

Academic Majors, Minors/Courses Lowercase all majors except those containing proper nouns. (His major is English; her major is engineering. Sue is majoring in Asian studies.) General subjects are lowercase (algebra, chemistry), but the names of specific courses are capitalized (Algebra I, Introduction to Sociology).

Why are college majors not capitalized?

College majors are not capitalized because they are not proper nouns (a noun – person, place, or thing – that identifies a single entity; e.g. London, Sara, Microsoft). Only proper nouns are capitalized. For instance you’d say, “I majored in physics, but flunked Physics 101.”. In this sentence, the word physics is a generic word but ...

What does an apostrophe mean in a letter?

An apostrophe is a punctuation mark that is used to indicate possession. When you’re mentioning that something is either a bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree you’ll want to use this punctuation mark in your writing. However, when you’re writing out the full name of the degree (e.g. Bachelor of Science, Master of Arts) you don’t need ...

Do you omit periods when a degree is abbreviated?

When you are abbreviating an academic degree you should omit the periods. The only time you shouldn’t do so is when the periods are being used for traditional or consistency’s sake. One example of this is a university bulletin that’s always used periods to abbreviate the degrees that their faculty members hold (e.g. B.A., Ph.D., M.S.). It’s important to note that these abbreviations should only be used in text when you have several people whom you need to identify alongside their academic degree. Doing so while also listing their full names would appear cumbersome here.

Do you need an apostrophe for a masters degree?

However, when you’re writing out the full name of the degree (e.g. Bachelor of Science, Master of Arts) you don’t need to use an apostrophe. You also should never use an apostrophe when making reference to either an associate or a doctoral degree.

Do you capitalize a masters degree?

When you are simply making a general reference to a degree (master’s, doctoral, bachelor’s), there’s no need to capitalize them. For instance: She earned a bachelor’s degree in 1997. With most types of writing it is preferred to simply use the general terms (e.g. bachelor’s / bachelor’s degree; master’s / master’s degree; doctorate / doctoral degree) instead of writing out the full name of the degree or even just its initials. Only when someone has a MD (medical degree) after their name are they to be referred to as “Dr.” and then you should only refer to them in this manner when you first reference them in your writing.

Do you have to write a letter next to a bachelor's degree?

When you’re listing the names of alumni in your writing a bachelor’s degree is considered to be the default and you don’t need to write any letter next to it. However, you would need to write the following letters next to the other degrees: “A” for associate, “M” for master’s, and “D” for doctorate.

Do you capitalize AP?

According to the Associate Press Stylebook (AP) you should never capitalize anything that refers to a degree in general terms. However, when you are making reference to a specific degree (e.g. Bachelor of Arts) you should always make sure that it’s capitalized.

When to capitalize a title?

1. Capitalize when the title is part of the name and directly precedes it: 2. Use lowercase when the title is a descriptive tag: 3. Use lowercase when the title follows the name: These rules also apply to titles such as president, provost, director, dean, chair, and other academic titles.

How to capitalize a college?

The more words you capitalize, the more you complicate your text. 2. Capitalize the formal (complete) names of university colleges and departments: College of Arts and Letters. Comptroller’s Office.

Do you capitalize Northern Arizona University?

Do not capitalize university unless used within a complete, formal title. Northern Arizona University offers courses in a variety of disciplines through the Grand Canyon Semester. The university partners with Grand Canyon National Park to offer courses in the field. 4.

Do I italicize course names?

Capitalize titles of courses, but do not italicize or enclose in quotes: Introduction to Communication Writing.

Is Mexican a proper noun?

These adjectives are capitalized because they are proper adjectives and based on proper nouns, which we capitalize too (Mexican: Mexico; American: America; English: England). A proper noun names a specific object, while a common noun names a general object.

Are job titles capitalized in Spanish?

To summarize the capitalization of job titles, you capitalize the job title when it comes immediately before the name, in a formal context or in direct address. It is not generally capitalized if it comes after the person’s name, or if there is a “the” before it.

Are course names capitalized?

You should capitalize school subjects when they are proper nouns. When you are talking about the name of a specific class or course, such as Math 241 or Chemistry 100, always capitalize it. Capitalize course titles such as History of the French Revolution and Childhood Psychology.

What is not capitalized in Spanish?

As a general rule of thumb, things that are not on a map are not capitalized. In other words: names of languages, nationalities, religions, days of the week, months of the year, the word “yo” are not capitalized. Things on a map include: names of countries and states and cities, and names of bodies of water.

Is Don capitalized in Spanish?

Simple answer: no, you don’t! At least, you don’t in Spanish. However, the abbreviations D. and D.

Are class names capitalized in Spanish?

Capitalize “Spanish” because it is a subject name that comes from the name of a country. Subject names that come from the names of countries must be capitalized. Titles of School Courses. Capitalize the titles of courses, but not subjects (unless they come from the name of a country).

When referring to official course titles, do you use initial caps?

When referring to official course titles, use initial caps. Do not use quotation marks, italics or any other formatting with course titles. Example: She was required to take Fundamentals of Nursing during her first year. When referring to a course using the course title and course number, use commas to set off the course title.

What is capitalized in academics?

Academic and Nonacademic Units and Bodies. Capitalize only the official and complete names of colleges, schools, departments, divisions, offices and official bodies.

Do you capitalize a job title?

Capitalize a job title if it immediately precedes a name. Examples: Professor Ann Jones; Dean and Vice Chancellor of Health Affairs Richard Krugman. Do not capitalize titles that follow names or stand alone. Examples: John Smith, professor in biology; the chancellor of the university.

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.

What is a preposition?

all nouns, pronouns (including it ), verbs (including to be verbs such as is ), adjectives, adverbs, and subordinating conjunctions (e.g., whether, since, before) longer prepositions (usually four or five letters and more based on preference, such as over or between) any word that follows a dash, colon, or question mark.

Is "Midwestern Bed and Breakfast" capitalized?

The Spanish- American War (proper adjective) “Midwestern Bed-and- Breakfast Getaways” (parallel words) A second word in a hyphenated compound that is descriptive in a title (i.e., an adjective) might not be capitalized: “Achieving an Iron- rich Diet.”.

Do you capitalize hyphens in a title?

If a title includes a hyphenated compound, capitalize the first word. Capitalize the following word if it is a noun or a proper adjective or if it is equal in importance to the first word. Examples. Building Your Company A- Team (noun) The Spanish- American War (proper adjective)

Do you capitalize titles of honor?

Capitalize titles of honor or rank—governmental, military, ecclesiastical, royal, or professional—when they precede names. When these titles do not precede names, they are typically not capitalized.

Do you capitalize "To Kill a Mockingbird"?

To Kill a Mockingbird. “As Time Goes By”. If a title has a subtitle, use a colon after the main title and the same capitalization guidelines for the subtitle, including capitalizing the first and last words: My Climb up Mount Kilimanjaro: Lessons to Learn From. If a title includes a hyphenated compound, capitalize the first word.

Rules for Capitalizing School Subjects

School subjects are common nouns and when writing them, follow the English rule of writing common nouns. If you are not familiar with the rule, it states that common nouns are not given any special consideration when writing English words, and that is why there is no need to capitalize them.

Rules-Based On Types of School Subjects

You also need to adhere to the sentence writing rule when writing school subjects. That means if the subject you are discussing comes at the beginning of a sentence, then you should capitalize it.

Exceptions for Capitalizing School Subjects

School subjects can sometimes be proper nouns depending on how you use them in a sentence. In such instances, then you will have to capitalize them.

More Alternative Rules When Capitalizing School Subjects

The other alternative rule when capitalizing the school subjects is talking about a particular subject as an academic degree.

10 Examples of Correct School Subjects Word Use In Sentences

Reading different sentences with the school subjects and keenly looking at how they are used will help you better understand capitalization rules. Practicing is the key to learning and understanding the rules of capitalization. Here are examples of sentences to help you learn more about capitalization rules.

Conclusion

The rules of English writing are numerous, especially when it comes to capitalization. In fact, if you dig deeper into these rules, it might seem like a new language you are learning. However, when you understand the rules, you will notice that everything is not very difficult.

By Shawn Manaher

Shawn Manaher is the founder and CEO of The Content Authority. He's one part content manager, one part writing ninja organizer, and two parts leader of top content creators. You don't even want to know what he calls pancakes.

General Rules

Academic and Administrative Titles

Academic Departments

Building and Room Names

Course Titles

Government References

Grades

Regional References

Seasons

Scholarships and Fellowships