Style Guide

C

campaign

  • Capitalize when referring to the full, formal title of a major campaign: Comprehensive Capital Campaign.
  • Use campaign lowercase in generic references. The campaign was successful.  

campus buildings

  • See appendix 1, campus buildings.  

capital, capitol

  • Capital refers to a city where the seat of government is located. As a financial term, it describes money or property. In both instances, it is lowercase.
  • Capitol refers to the building in Washington and other buildings that house governments. Capitalize: Capitol Hill; U.S. Capitol.  

capitalization

  • Try to minimize capitalization; too much capitalization complicates text and reduces readability.
  • Capitalization (capitalizing the first letter of a word) should occur in the following cases:
    • Proper nouns and their derivatives: Ahmed, Egypt, New York, French, English.
    • Proper names: the National Democratic Party, the European Parliament, Nile River.
    • Lowercase when used generically: the party, the river, the parliament.
    • Sentences: The first word in a sentence is always capitalized.
    • Composition: Capitalize the main words in the names of books, movies, plays, poems, songs, radio and television programs, and artwork.
    • Titles (People): Capitalize formal titles when they precede a name: Vice President for Student Affairs Ashraf El Fiqi took up his new post at the beginning of the year. Lowercase when they come after the name: Paul Donoghue, vice president for planning and administration, followed up closely on the progress of the campaign.
    • Lowercase terms that are job descriptions rather than formal titles. The student learned a lot from coach Henry Adams.
    • Titles (Publications): Capitalize the principal words in the title of a book, magazine, report or presentation.
    • Do not capitalize articles (a, an, the) unless they are part of a proper noun.
    • Do not capitalize conjunctions (and, but, or, for, nor) or prepositions (on, so, between, yet, before, over, under, through) except when they are the first or last word in a title or when they are the first word after a colon.

 catalog

  • Not catalogue (also, cataloged, cataloging, cataloger, catalogist).

 CD, CD-ROM, CDs

  • CD-ROM stands for compact disc read-only memory. It is acceptable to use CD-ROM or CD (plural CDs) on first reference.
  • CD-ROM disc is redundant.

 center

  • Not centre, unless it is part of an official name.

 centuries

  • Lowercase the word century, spelling out numbers that are less than 10: a century ago, fifth century, 15th century.
  • Do not hyphenate. This was a 21st century reformation.

 chair, endowed

  • Use the term endowed professorship lowercase, not endowed chair.
  • Capitalize when referring to the official name: the Abdulhadi H. Taher Endowed Professorship in Comparative Religion. Otherwise lowercase: The comparative religion professorship was launched last year.
  • Endowed professorship in, not of.

chairman, chairwoman, chair

  • Used as titles of leadership.
  • Use chair instead of chairwoman, chairman or chairperson: He served as senate chair for five years.

 circumlocution

  • Circumlocution is a redundant way of saying something. Try not to use these redundant phrases unless in a direct quotation.
    Instead of
    Use
    at the conclusion of
    after
    at this point in time
    now, currently, at present
    during the time that
    while
    in the course of
    during
    in this day and age
    today
    afford an opportunity
    allow, give a chance
    are desirous of
    wish, desire, want
    are in receipt of
    have
    in the near future
    soon
    at a later time
    later
    in order to
    to
    for the purpose of
    to
    in the event that
    if
    join together
    join
    prior to
    before
    the fact that
    because
    for the reason that
    because
    12 noon
    noon
    12 midnight
    midnight
    beneficial aspects
    benefits
    by means of
    by, through
    come into conflict
    conflicts
    despite the fact that
    despite
    give consideration to
    consider
    have a need for
    need
    in agreement with
    agree
    in a timely manner
    on time, soon
    in close proximity
    near
    in large measure
    largely, mainly
    with regard to
    regarding
    in the absence of
    without
    make an adjustment
    adjust
    take action
    act, do
    take appropriate measures
    act accordingly
    make an assumption
    assume
    make provision for
    provide
    not in a position to
    cannot
    the extent to which
    how much
    until such time as
    until
    with the exception of
    except for
    with the knowledge that
    knowing, aware
    without further delay
    now, immediately

classes, courses

  • Lowercase when referring to courses generally. He is taking management courses this semester. She studies history and geology.
  • Capitalize when referring to a specific course number or when the course name includes a proper name. Do not set off in commas. I studied Sociology 520 and English 101. I am taking Scientific Thinking this semester.

 class, graduates

  • Use an apostrophe and the last two digits of the graduating year after the name, with a space and no comma between the name and the year: Nouran Sharshar ’01.
  • When a person has earned an undergraduate and a master’s degree from AUC, put a comma between the two graduation years: Rana El Kaliouby ’98, ’00.
  • If a person has only earned a master’s from AUC, put the degree and the graduation year in parentheses: Akil Beshir (MA ’79).

 Class of ___

  • Capitalize when used with a specific year: Class of 1998 but 50th reunion class and graduating class.

 classification, student

  • State major and use freshman, sophomore, junior, senior, graduate, postgraduate, postdoctoral, nondegree (all lowercase) to identify students. Hani Ahmed, computer science senior, is an A student.
  • For graduate students, identify with major. She is a journalism and mass communication graduate student.

 clichés

  • Avoid the use of trite expressions, such as acid test, crack of dawn, generous to a fault, leading-edge, on the cutting edge and the picture of health.

 clubs

  • Capitalize but do not italicize the names of student clubs: Volunteers in Action, Resala, Hand in Hand.

 co-

  • In general, do not hyphenate words that have co- as a prefix: coexistence, cooperate, coeducational, coordinate, coequal.
  • However, hyphenate nouns, verbs and adjectives that refer to occupational status: co-author, co-chairman, co-defendant, co-partner, co-pilot, co-worker.

 collective nouns

  • Nouns that connote a unit take singular verbs. Examples of such nouns include crowd, class, family, team, group, herd, orchestra: The team is upset about the new amendment.
  • Some words that are plural in form become collective nouns and take singular verbs when the noun is regarded as a unit: The data is consistent.  

Commencement, commencement

  • Capitalize only when referring to a specific one: The 2005 Midyear Commencement witnessed the largest number of graduates in AUC’s history. In this year’s commencement, there were many engineering graduates.  

committees, task forces

  • Unless using the full, official name, do not capitalize names of committees or task forces: He is on the academic integrity task force.
  • The Task Force for Academic Integrity has been working hard to foster academic integrity at AUC.
  • Also lowercase when the reference is general or generic: The university will appoint a task force to look into the matter.  

 Composition titles

  • In composition titles, capitalize the principal words, including propositions and conjunctions, made up of four letters or more. Capitalize articles and words of fewer than four letters (the, a, an) if they are the first word in the title: His book is titled The Hidden Discoveries of Pearls in the Red Sea.
  • Italicize titles of newspapers, magazines, journals, books (excluding reference works, the Bible and the Quran), movies, TV programs, plays, poems, operas, music albums and exhibitions.
  • Put titles of articles, episodes, lectures, chapters, theses dissertations, conference papers, essays, short stories, songs and movements in quotation marks.
  • Titles of forms, reports, workshops and conferences are capitalized, but not italicized or put in quotation marks: She made a presentation at the 12th AUC Research Conference.

 compound modifier

  • Hyphenate compounds that precede a noun to prevent misreading: well-known singer, full-time professor, high-quality product, study-abroad student.
  • Do not hyphenate compounds formed with adverbs, such as very, or adverbs that end in –ly: highly priced, very well known singer.

 compound words

  • May be hyphenated or written as one or two words. No rule covers all cases. Consult The American Heritage Dictionary, fourth edition.
  • Modern American usage is against hyphenating combinations where misunderstandings are not likely: the second story room, the living room door, the telecommunications equipment salesperson.
  • Compound words should not be hyphenated if they consist of an adverb and an adjective: rapidly disappearing, highly recommended.

 computer and Internet-related terms

  • See appendix 4, computer terms.

 conference names

  • Capitalize the full, formal names of conferences, but do not italicize or put in quotation marks: He presented an interesting paper at the 12th AUC Research Conference. Lowercase in generic usage: She did not come to the research conference.

 conjunctions

  • When a conjunction (and, but, for) links two clauses that could stand alone as separate sentences, use a comma before the conjunction in most cases: He arrived on time, but the teacher was already there.
  • Use a comma if the subject of each clause is expressly stated: He finished his assignment, and he went out with his friends.
  • Do not use a comma when the subject of the two clauses is the same and is not repeated in the second clause: He finished his assignment and went out with his friends.
  • The comma can be dropped if two clauses with expressly stated subjects are short: He ate and off he went.
  • Use a semicolon when the coordinating conjunction is not present: The assignment was due last week; the student turned it in today.

 Core Curriculum

  • Capitalize Core Curriculum.

 course level

  • Hyphenate:a 200-level course, a junior-level course. Do not hyphenate: courses at the 400 level, courses at the graduate level.

 course load

  • Course load should be written as two words lowercase and refers to the number of credit hours permissible for students to take per semester: He is taking an overload of 18 credit hours this semester. She has a heavy course load this semester.

 course numbers and titles

  • When referring to a specific class or course title, capitalize and do not italicize or enclose in quotation marks: Sociology 201, Advanced Media Writing.

 courtesy titles

  • Do not use courtesy titles or honorifics. Do not use Mr., Mrs., Ms. or Miss except in direct quotations. Refer to both men and women by first and last name on first reference and by last name on second reference.
  • When it is necessary to distinguish between two people who use the same last name (brothers and sisters), use the first name on second reference.
  • The term Dr. is reserved for medical doctors or dentists.
  • Even though it is an occupational title, ‘coach’ in sports may be used as a courtesy title on second reference: He met coach Ahmed Salah.

 credit hours

  • May write as credit hours or credits. Do not write hours alone to mean credit hours.

 cue, queue

  • Cue (n.) is a word, phrase or action in a play which serves as a signal for the next actor to speak or act. Cue could also mean hint.
  • Queue (n.) means a line of persons or vehicles. Queue (v.) means to line up in a queue.

 cum laude

  • See degrees with distinction.

 currency

  • Give currency amounts in figures, leaving no space between the sign and the figure in the case of dollars: $2 and leaving a space in the case of Egyptian pounds: LE 10. Do not write as two dollars or 10 Egyptian pounds.
  • Do not put periods in LE.
  • Write four-digit numbers as figures and put commas: $10,000, LE 5,790.
  • For numbers in the millions, resort to decimals, writing up to two decimal places: $1.45 million or even better: more than $1.4 million.
  • In tables, it is preferable to include .00, especially if the figures include cents or piasters: $2.00, LE 10.50.

 curriculum vitae

  • Curriculum vitae is the full name for the listing of one’s academic and professional experience. Lowercase.
  • Use CV without periods (plural CVs) on second reference.
  • Curriculum vitae is singular and curricula vitae is plural. The term vita (plural vitae) is a synonym.