| Writing Style Standards A to Z |
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This section of the UAB Guide to Style and Design provides guidelines and examples to help maintain consistency in written materials produced throughout UAB. It is based on three common style guides: the Associated Press (AP) Stylebook, The Chicago Manual of Style, and the American Medical Association (AMA) stylebook. We recommend that every unit within UAB use this guide to cover the basics of UAB style. If you have a style question not answered in this guide, refer to one of the three books mentioned above, and use its recommendations consistently throughout your writing. Traditionally, AMA style is used in publications for health professionals, Chicago style is used in materials aimed at academic professionals, and AP style is used in writing for the general public. Where AP, Chicago, and AMA styles disagree with the UAB Guide to Style and Design, follow the recommendations in the UAB guide. For consistent spelling, we suggest you refer to dictionaries published by Merriam-Webster.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z A a, an —Use "a" before words that begin with consonant sounds: a history of UAB, a universal truth, a one-day event. Use "an" before words beginning with vowel sounds: an eager student, an honor, an NCAA ruling. abbreviations/acronyms —Abbreviations should be used sparingly and only after spelling out words on first usage.The abbreviation for the University of Alabama at Birmingham is UAB, used without periods or spaces separating the letters.
academic degrees —Most common degrees include B.A. (Bachelor of Arts), M.A. (Master of Arts), M.S. (Master of Science), Ed.D. (Doctor of Education), Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy). Do not use spaces after periods when abbreviating degrees. Set off the abbreviation with commas when used after a name: Ron Thompson, M.A., is pursuing a doctorate. Do not use a courtesy title such as "Dr." when listing a degree: Dr. Arnold Robinson or Arnold Robinson, Ph.D., NOT Dr. Arnold Robinson, Ph.D. List only terminal degrees (the highest degree a person has received): Tammy Smith, Ph.D., NOT Tammy Smith, B.A., M.A., Ph.D. In certain instances—due to publication style or design—periods may be optional. If periods are not used, do not leave a space between letters: PhD, NOT Ph D. Capitalize formal names of specific degrees: Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Arts in Accounting, Doctor of Philosophy. When referring to degrees in general, lowercase the first letter of the degree and use an apostrophe: bachelor's and master's degrees, never bachelors and masters degrees. "Doctoral" is an adjective and "doctorate" is a noun: They all earned doctoral degrees. They all earned doctorates. academic departments/units —Capitalize the name of a department and the words "department," "college," "office," and "school" ONLY when they appear as part of an official name: Department of Anthropology, anthropology department. For official names, consult the most recent edition of the UAB Campus Directory. On second reference, do not capitalize "department," etc.: The department later announced its research results. Lowercase nouns in all plural uses: the schools of Engineering and Business, the departments of Chemistry and Biology. Do not abbreviate "department." Academic Health Center —This UAB center consists of the six academic schools of dentistry, health related professions, medicine, nursing, optometry, and public health; the University of Alabama Hospital; and the joint health sciences departments. When using this term, use the full designation: Academic Health Center of the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Example: The Distinguished Faculty Lecture Award is presented to individuals in the Academic Health Center of the University of Alabama at Birmingham. See Medical Center. academic titles —Capitalize and spell out formal titles such as "professor," "dean," "president," "chancellor," "professor emeritus" and "chairman" only when they precede a name: Professor Smith. Lowercase elsewhere. Lowercase modifiers: history Professor Jane Smith, department Chairman John Smith. Do not use a title with a degree: Professor Jane Smith or Jane Smith, Ph.D., NOT Professor Jane Smith, Ph.D. ACT —See American College Test. addresses —All campus addresses have recently changed as a result of new U.S. Postal Service guidelines. Every UAB unit now has two addresses: a mailing address and a physical address. Both addresses should appear on brochures and collateral material. See the stationery guidelines section of this site for further details about addresses on letterhead and business cards. Note the special case listed below.
—Mailing address for UAB Hospital units: OFFICIAL UNIT NAME (The last four ZIP code digits should match the last four digits in each unit’s account number.) —Mailing address for UAB Kirklin Clinic units: OFFICIAL UNIT NAME —Mailing address for ALL other UAB units: OFFICIAL UNIT NAME (The last four ZIP code digits should match each building’s campus ZIP.) —Official unit names, building abbreviations, and building ZIP+4 codes are listed in the UAB Campus Directory.
—Hospital units should use 619 19TH ST S instead of 1530 3RD AVE S. Kirklin Clinic units should use 2000 6TH AVE S. Use ZIP code guidelines described above. —The street number and name should not appear in all capital letters. adjunct —Adjuncts are temporary faculty whose appointments usually have a defined time limit. Always lowercase: adjunct Professor John Thompson. admission, admittance—Use "admittance" when referring to physical entry to a specific place: There was no admittance to South Hall. Use "admission" when referring to figurative entry or the right or privilege of participation: admission of evidence, admission to a society, the price of admission to Bartow Arena. admissions committee —"Admissions" is plural and has no apostrophe. adviser, advisor —Either spelling is acceptable as long as all spellings are consistent. affect, effect —Each is a verb and a noun. In practice, however, "affect" is used most often as a verb and usually means to influence or change: Many drugs affect the nervous system. "Affect" as a verb can also mean to feign or simulate: He affected poor grades to gain sympathy. When used as a noun, "affect" means a feeling or emotion (as distinguished from thought or action) and is confined to psychology. "Effect" is used most often as a noun and means a result or outcome: Many drugs have serious effects on the nervous system. His complaints had no effect on the dean. When used as a verb, "effect" means to cause or bring about: To effect change in the patient's condition, physicians had to use drugs. African-American —See blacks, race. afterward —Not afterwards. all right —Never alright. Hyphenate only as a unit modifier: He is an all-right athlete. allude, elude —To "allude" is to make an indirect reference to something. To "elude" someone or something is to avoid, evade, or escape from the person or thing. alma mater —Lowercase. a lot —Not alot. already, all ready —"Already" means having occurred; "all ready" means prepared. although, though —These are interchangeable. "Although" is most often the first word of a concessive clause: Although she was tired, she accepted. "Though" does not always come first: Tired though she was, she accepted. "Though" is used more commonly in linking single words or phrases: wiser though poorer. alumni society —UAB National Alumni Society is the organization's official name. Use the full name (capitalized) on first reference. Alumni Society is acceptable afterward. alumnus, alumni, alumna, alumnae —An alumnus is a man who has attended a school. An alumna (alumnae in the plural) is the corresponding reference to a woman (or women). Alumni are groups of men and women. Anyone who has ever attended the University of Alabama at Birmingham is an alumnus or alumna, and together they are alumni. Do not use "alum." See Alumni Society. Alys Stephens Center —Use Alys Robinson Stephens Performing Arts Center on first reference and Alys Stephens Center on later references. Never refer to it as the Stephens Center. American College Test —American College Test on first reference, and ACT on second reference. ampersand —Use an ampersand in corporate titles only when it is part of the official title: Cherr, Bekaert & Holland. Never use an ampersand instead of the word "and" in text: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. an —See a. anybody, any body, anyone, any one —Use "anybody" or "anyone" (one word) when making an indefinite reference: Anyone can do it. Use "any body" or "any one" (two words) when emphasizing or singling out one element of a group: Any one of them can do it. apostrophe —Use apostrophes to show possession or in contractions: Wendy's dog. It's time for class to begin. Do not use an apostrophe when forming plurals of dates or acronyms: 1890s, 1920s, 1990s, M.D.s, Ph.D.s. When a proper name or title is in italic type, its possessive ending should be in unitalicized type: The Taming of the Shrew's opening performance. as —See like. bad, badly —Use "bad" as an adjective meaning inferior, poor, or not meeting an acceptable standard: She was embarrassed because of her children's bad manners. Also use "bad" as an adjective meaning an evil or unhappy state: She was late for work again, and that was bad. Use "badly" as an adverb meaning in a bad manner or greatly: The new copy machine was badly needed. between, among —Use "between" to show the relationship between two entities: A treaty between the two nations ended the war. Use "among" when more than two entities are involved: He lived among the Indians. between you and me —Never between you and I. blacks —The term "blacks" is accepted according to the Associated Press Stylebook. "African-American" is acceptable when referring to people of African descent. See also race. Blaze —The name of the mascot for UAB’s athletic programs. Do not set off in quotation marks: The pep rally featured Blaze and the cheerleaders. Blazers —The name given to UAB teams that participate in intercollegiate athletic programs. board-certified —Lowercase. Hyphenate when used to modify a noun or when it follows a form of the verb "to be": Dr. Smith is a board-certified oncologist. In 1975, he was board-certified in oncology. Board of Trustees, Board of Directors —Capitalize when using these official names. Use "the board" (lowercase) for all other references: The Board of Trustees began their meeting. The board discussed funding for the new center. book titles —See composition titles. buildings —In formal communication, use the official names of campus facilities and capitalize the names: Hill University Center is where the bookstore is located. On second or general reference (i.e., when the official name is not used), lowercase facility names: After touring the campus, they returned to the university center. bulleted series —A bulleted series is one that typically includes bullets (•), with each item in the series on a separate line. In these series, introductory sentences ending in verbs should NOT have colons; introductory sentences that do not end in verbs SHOULD have colons. Items in the series should begin with capital letters ONLY in the case of proper names. All items should end with semicolons. The next to the last item should include a semicolon and a conjunction (such as "and," "or," or "but"). The last item should end with a period. Examples: On University Boulevard, you will find these buildings:
campuswide —See hyphenation. can, may —Use "can" to indicate the ability to do something: The sprinter can run a mile in less than four minutes. Use "may" to indicate a requesting or granting of permission: May I have a bite of your sandwich? Also use "may" to indicate possibility: It may snow tonight. capital, capitol —Legislatures meet in capitol buildings located in capital cities: The senators met in the capitol building in Montgomery, which is the capital of Alabama. capitalization —In general, avoid unnecessary capitals. Use capital letters only when you can justify them with one of the principles listed below. Many words and phrases, including special cases, are listed separately (alphabetically) in this section of the UAB Guide to Style and Design; if there is no relevant listing for a particular word or phrase, consult a dictionary.
Capitalize titles of books, plays, presentations, etc., whether standing alone, in quotation marks, or in italics: "Health Policy in a Time of AIDS," a conference for health planners, was so successful that a follow-up conference has been scheduled. He read A Tale of Two Cities for class. "A," "in," "of," and other junction words should be capitalized only at the beginning or end of a title: Smith presented "An Approach to Urban Revitalization" at the symposium. center —Capitalize only when used as part of an official name: the Center for AIDS Research BUT the AIDS center. For official names, consult the most recent edition of the UAB Campus Directory. Lowercase the term "centers of excellence." chairman, chairwoman, chairperson —Chair is preferred: department chair. chancellor —Use an uppercase letter when "chancellor" precedes a name; lowercase in subsequent references: Chancellor Smith explained his vision for the university. Everyone was impressed by the chancellor's speech. Children's Hospital —Official name is Children's Hospital, not The Children’s Hospital of Alabama. classes, courses —Lowercase when making a general reference to courses: He studies history and political science. Uppercase when referring to a specific class or when the class name includes a proper noun or numeral: I took Psychology 200 and Spanish 101. Do not use course abbreviations in a sentence: He took Spanish and psychology classes, NOT He took SP and PY classes. classroom —One word. clean-up, clean up —Hyphenate as a noun or adjective, but do not hyphenate as a verb. clinic —See medical departments/units. co- —See prefixes. coach —Capitalize only when used without a qualifying term before the name of the person who directs an athletic team: Coach Murry Bartow, head coach Murry Bartow, the coach of the basketball team. coed —Coed residence halls house students of both sexes. Never use "coed" to refer to a female college student. collective noun —The collective nouns "faculty" and "staff" can take singular or plural verbs, depending on whether group members are acting individually or as a group: The French faculty meets regularly with the other language faculties. The staff sometimes disagree among themselves. College Level Academic Skills Test —CLAST on second reference. colon —Do not use a colon before a listing when the lead-in ends with a verb. Use a colon before a listing when its preceding clause or words would constitute a complete sentence without the listing: Classes will be in the following subjects: history, English, and French.Use a colon between hour and minute, between volume and page reference, and between place of publication and publisher's name: 4:30 p.m.; Vol. 4:22; New York: Harper & Row, 1982. comma —Use a comma in the following situations:
committees, task forces —Capitalize names of specific committees and task forces: The Marketing Task Force met yesterday. Lowercase second general reference: The task force selected the guest speakers. complement, compliment —"Complement" means something that completes or enhances: The new cups will complement her china. "Compliment" means an expression of respect or admiration. "Complimentary" means "free." composition titles —Capitalize titles of books, plays, presentations, etc., whether standing alone, in quotation marks, or in italics: "Health Policy in a Time of AIDS," a conference for health planners, was so successful that a follow-up conference has been scheduled. "A," "in," "of," and other junction words should be capitalized only at the beginning or end of a title: Smith presented "An Approach to Urban Revitalization" at the symposium.
Italicize titles of books, plays, television shows, motion pictures, journals, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, long poems published as books, and gallery and museum exhibitions. Underlining is appropriate when italics are not possible. When the text in which a title appears is already italicized, set the title in regular type (no italics). For shorter works (including newspaper articles, poems, etc.) and all other compositions, enclose the title in quotation marks. comprise —"Comprise" means to contain or include. Use in active voice: UAB comprises 12 schools, NOT UAB is comprised of 12 schools. Conference USA —The athletic conference that includes UAB’s sports teams. courseload, coursework —One word. courtesy titles —In general, do not use the courtesy titles "Miss," "Mr.," "Mrs.," or "Ms." with first and last names: Betty Ford, Jimmy Carter. The exception to this is in addressing correspondence. Do not use "Mr." in any reference to a married couple unless it is combined with "Mrs": Mr. and Mrs. John Smith or Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Do not use title and degree together: Mr. John Jones, NOT Mr. John Jones, M.D. A preferred use in periodicals and news writing is to drop the courtesy title in text material: Smith rather than Mr. Smith. coworker —No hyphen. Also see hyphenation.
currently, presently —"Currently" means now; "presently" means in the very near future. curriculum —"Curricula" or "curriculums" in plural form. cutlines —Photo captions. Use parentheses to denote positions of persons in cutlines: Harold Riker (center), director of university housing, shows Charlotte Evans (right) the new residence room. dash —There are several types of dashes: the hyphen, the en dash, the em dash, the 2-em dash, and the 3-em dash. The following are the most common uses:
data, datum —"Datum" is singular, and "data" is its plural form. dates —Spell out months when used alone or with the year only: September 1991. Abbreviate months—except for March, April, May, June, and July—when used as part of complete dates: Sept. 1, 1991. Never use a comma between month and year when a specific day is not mentioned: April 1998. The same is true for seasons: fall 1991. A comma should follow the year when a specific date is mentioned in the middle of a sentence: Feb. 8, 1990, was the date of the party. Do not use "on" with dates unless its absence would lead to confusion: The program ends December 15, NOT the program ends on December 15. To indicate sequences or inclusive dates or times, use an en dash (-) instead of "to:" Apply here May 7-9, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Spell out numerical designations "first" through "ninth" and use numerals with letter suffixes for "10th" and above: the 11th day of January, the first of June. Do not use "st," "rd," or "th" with dates: Oct. 14, NOT Oct. 14th: February 2, NOT February 2nd. See also days of the week, months, and years. days of the week —Do not abbreviate days of the weeks except in tables: Sun., Mon., Tue., Wed., Thu., Fri., Sat. dean’s office—See Office of the Dean.
degrees —See academic degrees, medical degrees.departments —See academic departments/units, medical departments/units. directions —Generally, lowercase north, northeast, south, western, etc. when used to indicate compass direction: He drove south toward Montgomery. Robert is from eastern Nebraska. Capitalize directions when they designate regions or are part of proper names: Alabama is in the South. She went hiking in West Virginia.
director —Lowercase unless part of a title preceding a person's name: Director Sam Jones, BUT Sam Jones, director of the program. Capitalize when forming a proper name: the Gulf Coast, the Northern Hemisphere. divisions —See academic departments/units, medical departments/units. dollars —Always lowercase. Use numerical figures and the $ sign in all except casual references: The book cost $4. Dad, please give me a dollar. Use either the dollar sign or the word "dollar": $3 or 3 dollars, NOT $3 dollars. A noun specifying an amount takes a singular verb: He says $500,000 is what they want. For amounts of more than $1 million, use the $ and numerals up to two decimal places: He is worth $4.35 million. He is worth exactly $4,234,234. dormitories —See residences. drop/add —Use slash (/) with no spaces. EEO statement —An Equal Opportunity Statement must be printed on all publications directed to individuals outside the university community. Questions regarding this policy should be directed to the Office of Equal Opportunity Programs and Compliance, 934-7222.
"All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or disability unrelated to the performance of an essential job function." "UAB is an equal employment opportunity employer." elicit, illicit —"Elicit" (verb) means to bring out or draw forth: Questions were designed to elicit straightforward responses. "Illicit" (adjective) means improper or illegal: an illicit love affair; illicit traffic in drugs. ellipsis —Use an ellipsis (three dots, . . . ) to indicate the omission of one or more words in condensing quotes and other textual material. Space before and after the ellipsis and between periods within the ellipsis. If the ellipsis occurs inside a sentence, it consists of three dots; if it occurs at the end of a sentence, follow the ellipsis with a period—a total of four dots. elude —See allude. —Always hyphenate. When placed at the beginning of a sentence, only the "E" should be capitalized. When placed in a headline, both "E" and "Mail" should be capitalized. Avoid breaking long e-mail addresses at the end of a line. To create a shorter e-mail address, go to the UAB Electronic Phonebook (www.uab.edu/phonebook). Periods may be placed at the end of e-mail addresses.
em dash and en dash—See dash. emeritus —This word is often added to formal titles to denote distinguished individuals who have retired but retain their rank or title. Place "emeritus" after the formal title, in keeping with the general practice of academic institutions: Professor Emeritus Samuel Alan Morrison or Samuel Alan Morrison, professor emeritus of history. ensure —See insure. entitled, titled —"Entitled" means having the right to something: She is entitled to the inheritance. Use "titled" to introduce the name of a publication, musical composition, seminar, etc: He gave her a book titled Roses of Summer. Estrada—The software developed by the UAB Web Center for Web site content management. The name Estrada should contain the trademark symbol (Estrada™) on the first reference, on all references in press releases, whenever the word is set apart from text, and when referring to Estrada as a product to be sold or purchased.
everyday, every day —Use "everyday" is an adjective: everyday low prices. Use "Every day" is an adverb: He goes to class every day.everyone, every one —Use "everyone" to refer to all people: Everyone went to the football game. Use "every one" when referring to individual items: Every one of the buildings has been renovated. Eye Foundation Hospital —The official name is Callahan Eye Foundation Hospital. faculty —Lowercase "faculty" unless the word is part of a specific name or title: One of the department’s faculty members was part of the Faculty Senate. fax —Never FAX. federal —See state. fewer, less —In general, use "fewer" when referring to individual items: I had fewer than 50 one-dollar bills in my pocket. Use "less" when referring to bulk or quantity: I had less than $50 in my pocket. follow-up, follow up —"Follow-up" can be used as a noun meaning the act or instance of following up: I have the follow-up on the patient. Follow-up can also be used as an adjective meaning relating to or being something that follows up: The follow-up report was lost in the mail. "Follow up" should be used as a verb meaning to pursue or maintain contact in an effort to take further action: The police follow up every possible lead.
freshman —see student classifications. fund raising, fund-raising, fund-raiser —The first is a noun, the second an adjective, the third a noun: The banquet was for fund raising. We had a fund-raising dinner. The marathon was a fund-raiser. gender —Include all people in general references by substituting gender neutral words and phrases for male-biased, exclusionary words. Avoid using "man" or "woman" as a suffix or prefix. Use "person" instead, or change the construction of the sentence: chair INSTEAD of chairman, business executive INSTEAD of businessman. Use parallel grammar when referring to people by gender: his or her employer RATHER THAN his employer. When workable, change such singular nouns to plural nouns: their employers. good, well —"Good" is an adjective that means something is as it should be or is better than average: The soup smells good. The music sounds good. When used as an adjective, "well" means healthy. When used as an adverb, "well" means in a satisfactory manner or skillfully: The machine runs well. He did well on his entrance exam. GPA —Grade point average. Spell out on materials for audiences outside UAB: UAB grade point averages are based on a 4.0 scale. The abbreviation "GPA" is acceptable internally. graduate —Lowercase when referring to the general status of "graduate." Graduate Record Examination, GRE —GRE on second reference. graduate school —The UAB Graduate School on first reference, "the graduate school" afterward. greeks —Fraternities and sororities. Use lowercase ("Greeks" would refer to people from the country of Greece.). handicapped persons —Refer to an individual with a handicap as a person with a disability.
health care —Two words. The only exception to this is the UAB Mental Healthcare System, which uses the one-word form as part of its official name. When using "health care" as an adjective, either the hyphenated form (health-care) or the nonhyphenated form (health care) is acceptable as long as all spellings are consistent. Health Services Foundation —See University of Alabama Health Services Foundation.
Health System —See UAB Health System. historical periods —Capitalize names of historical periods: the Renaissance, Baroque music. Spell out first through ninth centuries. Use numbers for 10th and later centuries, with "century" in lowercase: the third century, the 20th century. Lowercase "millennium." Homecoming —Capitalize when referring to UAB's annual event: John loved going to Homecoming. home page —Always two words. honors —Lowercase and italicize cum laude, magna cum laude, and summa cum laude. HSF —See University of Alabama Health Services Foundation. hyphen —Use a hyphen to avoid ambiguity and in the following situations:
illicit —See elicit. imply, infer —"Imply" means to express indirectly: The silence of the group seemed to imply that they approved of the suggestion. "Infer means to derive a conclusion from evidence or premises: I infer there is a fire because smoke is coming out of the windows. Inc. —Abbreviation for "incorporated." Usually not needed, but abbreviate and capitalize when used as part of a corporate name. Do not set off with commas: Viva Health Inc. is part of the UAB Health System. incomplete grade —Notation on a student's official record that coursework for a particular class has not been completed. inferior to —Persons and things are said to be inferior "to" others, not inferior "than" others. inpatient —One word. inside —As a preposition, "inside" doesn't have to be followed by "of": She remained inside the house. instructor —A non-tenure-track faculty rank. insure, ensure —"Insure" means to establish a contract for insurance of some type; "ensure" means to guarantee. interim —Faculty or staff who temporarily fill a position for an undetermined period of time. Always lowercase: interim Vice President Mark Robbins. intermural teams —Competitive teams from different institutions. Internet —Always capitalize. "Internet" is preferred over "the Net." Internet2 has no space before the numeral. intramural teams —Competitive teams within a single community or institution. intraoffice units —Units within one office or area. italics —Italicize titles of plays, television shows, motion pictures, books, journals, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, long poems published as books, and gallery and museum exhibitions: Abstraction and Isolation is showing at the Birmingham Museum of Art. Italicize foreign language words and phrases if they are likely to be unfamiliar to readers. When the surrounding text is already italicized, set the title or word in regular type (no italics). Jr., Sr., II, III —Do not precede "Jr." and "Sr." with a comma except in business correspondence: Joe Johnson Jr. Numerals following names never take commas unless the named individual has indicated a preference for it: Joe Johnson III. junior —See student classifications. K Kaleidoscope —Italicize the official name of the UAB student newspaper. Not The Kaleidoscope. Kirklin Clinic —The official name is The Kirklin Clinic. Legislature —Retain capitalization on second reference, even when the state name is dropped if the reference is to a specific legislature: The Legislature approved funding. less —See fewer. libel, slander —"Libel" refers to injury through written, printed, or pictorial statements; "slander" refers to similar injury through utterance of defamatory statements. libraries —Individual UAB library names are as follows: Mervyn H. Sterne Library, Lister Hill Library of the Health Sciences, Reynolds Historical Library. like, as —Use "like" as a preposition to compare nouns and pronouns. It requires an object of the verb: Jim blocks like a pro. The conjunction "as" is used to introduce clauses: Jim blocks the linebacker, as he should. majors, programs —Do not capitalize majors, programs, specializations, or concentrations of study, unless they are part of a designated degree: She received a Bachelor of Arts in history. She majored in art. meantime, meanwhile —Each of these is a noun and an adverb, but "meantime" is more often a noun: In the meantime, he waited. "Meanwhile" is more commonly used as an adverb: She went inside; meanwhile, he waited.
media —Plural of "medium." When used as the subject of a sentence, "media" (plural) always takes a plural verb: The media are often the target of public criticism. "Medias" is incorrect. Medical Center —Can be used to describe the location of a unit, event, or activity occurring within UAB's Academic Health Center. "Medical Center" should be capitalized: Construction and expansion is taking place in many areas of the Medical Center. See Academic Health Center. Medical College Admission Test —MCAT on second reference. medical degrees —M.D. (Doctor of Medicine), D.D.S. (Doctor of Dental Science), D.M.D. (Doctor of Dental Medicine), R.N. (Registered Nurse), etc. In general, use periods when abbreviating degrees; however, for internal publications and publications for the medical community, periods are optional. When using periods, do not insert spaces after each one.
Set off the abbreviation with commas when used after a name: Ron Johnson, M.D., is perfecting a new device. Do not use a courtesy title such as "Dr." when listing a degree: Dr. Wendy Robbins or Wendy Robbins, M.D., NOT Dr. Wendy Robbins, M.D. Capitalize formal names of specific degrees: Doctor of Medicine in Orthopaedics. Do not use any degree abbreviation as a noun: He earned his doctorate in medicine, NOT He earned his M.D. medical departments/units —Capitalize the name of a department or clinic along with the words "department," "division," "clinic," and "center" ONLY when they appear as part of an official name: His doctor is part of the Department of Pediatrics. The announcement came from the pediatrics department. For official names, consult the most recent edition of the UAB Campus Directory. On second reference, do not capitalize "department," etc.: The department later announced its research results. Lowercase nouns in all plural uses: the departments of Emergency Medicine and Radiology, Neurology and Neurosurgery clinics. Do not abbreviate "department." medical specialties —Do not capitalize medical specialties or subject areas unless they are part of an official name: This letter will go to physicians in orthopaedics. He is a resident in general surgery. She is a physician in the Department of Orthopaedics. For official unit names, consult the most recent edition of the UAB Campus Directory. medical titles —Follow the guidelines listed under academic titles. "Doctor" may be abbreviated before a name. MedWise —See UAB MedWise. midnight —See noon. months —Capitalize the names of months in all uses. When a month is used with a specific date, abbreviate only "Jan.," "Feb.," "Aug.," "Sept.," "Oct.," "Nov.," and "Dec." Spell out all other months. Spell out months when used alone or with a year: February, February 1998. When a phrase includes only a month and a year, do not separate them with commas: January 1972 was a cold month. When a month, day, and year appear in the middle of a phrase, set off the year with commas: Feb. 14, 1989, was the target date. See also dates and years. more than —See over. multi- —See prefixes. National Collegiate Athletic Association —NCAA on second reference. National Education Association —NEA on second reference. National Merit Scholarship —Official title. nondiscrimination —UAB's publications should reflect the university's commitment to equal opportunity and nondiscriminatory practices in all aspects of employment and education. Respect and a balanced representation should be given regarding gender, race, ethnic group, age, and ability. Non-discriminatory principles apply to all written materials.
noon, midnight —Use "noon" instead of "12 p.m." and "midnight" instead of "12 a.m." Do not precede either construction with the numeral "12": noon, NOT 12 noon. numbers —Spell out numbers at the beginning of sentences. There is one exception—numerals that identify a calendar year: 1993 was a banner year for UAB. Spell out whole numbers below 10 except when used in statistical data. Use figures for 10 and above: They had 10 dogs. When large numbers ending in "y" must be spelled out, use a hyphen to connect them to other words: twenty-one, forty-five. Do not use commas between separate words that are part of one number: one hundred forty-five. When numbers modify like elements and are grouped within a sentence or series of related sentences, use numerals for all numbers if any one of the numbers is 10 or more: The average number of graduates per semester rose from 7 to 12. Use numerals for parts of a book: This is located in Chapter 4. With "o'clock," spell out the time; when using a.m. or p.m., use numerals. Avoid redundancy: 8:00 p.m., NOT 8:00 p.m. in the evening. Spell out and lowercase centuries: the nineteenth century. When referring to decades, either spell them out or use a full set of numerals followed by "s" with no apostrophe: the thirties OR the 1930s, NOT the ཚs or the 1930's. Use numerals when referring to credit hours: The course carries 3 hours of credit. In citing percentages, use the figure followed by "percent": 4 percent. When referring to millions of dollars, always use the figure followed by "million": $4 million. When referring to millions of entities other than dollars, spell out whole numbers below 10 (except in statistical data) and use figures for 10 and above: two million volumes, 12 million people. For ages, spell out numbers below 10: a two-year-old child, a student in her 30s. For ordinals (first, second, third), use numbers for 10 and above: 29th, 102nd, fifth, seventh. OB/GYN —Acronym for obstetrics and gynecology and the health care professionals who specialize in those areas. Spell out on first reference. off campus, off-campus —Follow the guidelines listed under on campus, on-campus. Office of the Dean —Not the dean's office. Office of the President —Not the president’s office. offices —See academic departments/units or medical departments/units. OK, OK'd, OK'ing, OKs —Do not use "okay." on campus, on-campus —"On-campus" is used as an adjective to modify a noun: Students live in on-campus housing. "On campus" is used to modify a verb: She works on campus. online —One word, no hyphenation. outpatient —One word. over, more than —"Over" refers to spatial relationships: The shelf is over my head. "More than" refers to numbers or amounts: The group raised more than $60. More than 50 people attended, NOT Over 50 people attended. Panhellenic Council —The governing body for UAB sororities. Use "council" on second reference. parentheses —Always place a period inside parentheses or brackets when the parenthetical matter is an independent sentence forming no part of the preceding sentence; otherwise, place the period outside the parentheses or brackets: There was no reaction. (The woman could barely hear.) Buy a vehicle (car, truck, or boat). percent —Spell the word "percent" instead of using %, except in headlines. Always use figures with "percent": 12 percent. Also see numbers.periods —End complete sentences with periods. Do not use periods after acronyms or broadcasting station call letters: WBHM, USA. Use periods after abbreviated degrees: B.S., Ph.D., M.D. pre- —See prefixes. prefixes —In general, do not use a hyphen when using a prefix with a word starting with a consonant: multidisciplinary, coworker. Except for "cooperate" and "coordinate," use a hyphen if the prefix ends in a vowel and the word that follows begins with the same vowel: anti-intellectual. Use a hyphen to join doubled prefixes: sub-subspecialty. Add a hyphen if the word following the prefix is capitalized: anti-American. Spellings of prefixed words listed in the dictionary are also acceptable. presently —See currently. president —Capitalize when preceding a name: President Garrison. Lowercase in all other uses. president's office —See Office of the President. principal, principle —"Principal" used as an adjective means most important: The principal investigator on the grant is Jim. "Principal" used as a noun means a person in authority: The principal will open the school every morning. "Principle" is a noun and means a rule or code of conduct: His principles will not be compromised. professor —Capitalize "professor" and other academic ranks only when they are part of titles preceding names. Do not capitalize disciplines or departments in such titles unless they are proper nouns: He studied with history Professor Bob Jones and English Professor Sarah Smith. programs —See majors. pro tempore —Capitalize "pro tempore" when part of a title before a name: He talked with President Pro Tempore John Doe. punctuation—See apostrophe, colon, comma, dash, ellipsis, hyphen, parentheses, periods, quotation marks, semicolon. quarter —See term. quotation marks —The period and comma always go inside the quotation marks: He said, "I'm leaving." OR "I'm leaving," he said. The dash, semicolon, question mark and exclamation point go inside the quotation marks only when they apply to the quoted matter: He yelled, "Stop!" Can you believe he actually yelled "Stop"?
race —Capitalize names of races: African-American, Caucasian, Hispanic; lowercase "black" and "white" when referring to races. Beware of words, images, and situations that suggest that all or most members of a racial or ethnic group are the same. re- —See prefixes. regions —Capitalize names of regions: the Gulf Coast, the South, Birmingham’s Southside, the Far East. Also see directions. registrar —Office of the University Registrar. Use "the registrar's office" on second reference. registration —Lowercase "registration" of all types (regular, late, advance, employee, non-degree, etc.). residences —"Student residences" preferred over "halls of residence." room —Uppercase when referring to specific rooms in specific buildings: Hill University Center Room 346. ROTC —Abbreviation acceptable on all (including first) references with no periods. Stands for Reserve Officers Training Corps. Scholastic Aptitude Test —SAT on second reference. schools —The schools of Medicine and Dentistry are officially named the University of Alabama School of Medicine and the University of Alabama School of Dentistry. It is also acceptable to refer to them as UAB schools in this manner: the School of Dentistry at UAB, the UAB School of Dentistry. Do not capitalize "school" unless it is part of an official name.
seasons —Lowercase "fall," "winter," "spring," and "summer" and all derived words such as "springtime." Capitalize only when part of a formal name: Winter Olympics, Fall Semester 1994. semester —See term. semicolon —Use a semicolon to separate multiple phrases when some of the phrases contain commas: The library has an extensive microfilm collection; an audiovisual department; facilities for typing, photocopying, and studying; and archives, exhibits, and special collections. Use a semicolon to join main clauses not joined by coordinating conjunctions: The new house is almost complete; the interest rate is nine percent. Also see bulleted series. senior —See student classifications. slander —See libel. Social Security —Capitalize when referring to the U.S. Social Security system: the student’s Social Security number. sophomore —See student classifications. South, the Southeast, Southern —See directions.Southeastern Conference —SEC on second reference. Southern Association of Colleges and Schools —SACS on second reference.specialties —See medical specialties. spelling —If the dictionary gives two spellings of a word, use the first example, which is the preferred spelling. spokesman, spokeswoman —Never spokesperson. Sr. —See Jr., Sr., II, III. state, federal —Lowercase "state" in all references: the state of Alabama, our state universities, state grants. Capitalize "federal" when the word is part of the formal name of a corporate or governmental body: Federal Communications Commission. Lowercase it when using it as an adjective: federal loans. states —When the names of states or territories of the United States stand alone, they should always be spelled in full. When they follow the name of a city, it is preferable to spell them out except in tabular matter, bibliographies, notes, lists, and indices. The two-letter form (AL, GA, TN) is specified by the United States government for use in ZIP code addresses. statewide —See hyphenation. street addresses —See addresses. student classifications —Do not capitalize "freshman," "sophomore," "junior," or "senior": He is a senior communications major. Do capitalize class designations: The Senior Class sponsored the lecture. Student Government Association —SGA on second reference. sub- —See prefixes. suffixes —Follow the dictionary spellings of suffixed words. task forces —See committees. telephone numbers —If a publication is strictly for on-campus use, omit telephone area codes and prefixes and list extensions directly: 4-0186. If the publication may or will be sent off campus, include area codes in parentheses and the exchange: (205) 934-0186. For toll-free numbers, use "1-800-" or "(800)" in front of the seven-digit number. If including more than one extension, use a slash (/) between the extensions: (205) 934-0186/4-0188.
term —Lowercase "quarter" and "semester" when not followed by a specific year: the fall semester, Spring Quarter 1997. The preferred substitute for "quarter" and "semester" is "term."
that —See which. theatre, theater —Use "theater" except in proper names, such as UAB Department of Theatre or Sirote Theatre. The official name of UAB’s student theater group is UAB Theatre Productions. times —Use figures for times except for "noon" and "midnight." Use a colon to separate hours from minutes: 11:00 a.m., 3:30 p.m. Avoid such redundancies as "10 a.m. this morning." The construction "4 o'clock" is acceptable, but time listings with a.m. or p.m. are preferred. titled —See entitled. titles —See academic titles (people), capitalization, composition titles (books, movies, etc.), courtesy titles (people), medical titles (people), and italics. toward —Not towards. transfer —Lowercase when referring to a student category. UAB Entertainment! —The official name of the UAB Department of Music’s record label. Always include the exclamation point. UAB Health Centers —The official name of UAB’s neighborhood clinics. Always capitalize and use UAB in the name. UAB Health System —Always capitalize. After the first reference, "the Health System" is acceptable if it is capitalized: He used the services of the UAB Health System. This clinic is a part of the Health System. The main components of the UAB Health System are UAB Hospital, The Kirklin Clinic, UAB Health Centers, Callahan Eye Foundation Hospital, and Viva Health. UAB MedWise —The official name of the UAB Health System’s wellness program. Always capitalize the "W." undergraduate —Lowercase when referring to a student classification. under way —Two words. units —See academic departments/units or medical departments/units. university —Lowercase unless in a specific title. When referring to the University of Alabama at Birmingham, use "UAB" or "the university" on second reference, not "the University." She attended the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She loved the university and her classes. University of Alabama —The University of Alabama System’s campus in Tuscaloosa is officially known as The University of Alabama. Use "UA" or "the university" (lowercase) on second reference, NOT "UAT" or "Alabama." University of Alabama at Birmingham —"UAB" or "the university" (lowercase) on second reference. NOT "the UAB." University of Alabama Health Services Foundation —The official name of the University of Alabama School of Medicine’s faculty practice program. Always capitalize. After the first reference, "the Health Services Foundation" is acceptable if it is capitalized; HSF and UAHSF are acceptable as abbreviations. University of Alabama Hospital, UAB Hospital, University Hospital —The official name of UAB's hospital is the University of Alabama Hospital. This official name should be used on all official documents (e.g., legal contracts and forms). However, UAB Hospital is preferred on advertising, brochures, patient materials, signs, banners, etc. UAB University Hospital and UAB’s University Hospital are acceptable in other usage. University of Alabama System —The official names of the members of the University of Alabama System are The University of Alabama, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and the University of Alabama in Huntsville. URL —Stands for "Universal Resource Locator." "World Wide Web address" or "Web address" is preferred. Veterans Affairs Medical Center —The official name of the VA Hospital. vice president —Do not hyphenate. videocassette, videotape —Note the one-word constructions. Viva Health —Viva Health is the official name of the UAB Health System’s managed care company. Refer to the company by its full name; do not abbreviate as "Viva." Web, World Wide Web —In general, capitalize "Web" and use it as a separate word: His department launched a Web site. She clicked on the Web link. The major exception is the term "webmaster," which is always written as one lowercase word. Do not use "WWW" as an abbreviation in a sentence; instead, use "the Web." When writing out World Wide Web addresses, "http://" is not required: She found her doctor’s name at www.health.uab.edu. If using "http://" note the direction of the backslashes. Periods may be placed at the end of Web site addresses. Avoid breaking long Web addresses at the end of a line. To create a shorter address, call the UAB Web Center (934-7585). well —See good. which —Use the word "which," preceded by a comma, to introduce a nonrestrictive clause (one that is not essential to the meaning of a sentence but merely adds more information): This hat, which belongs to Susan, is old-fashioned. Use the word "that," without a comma, to introduce a restrictive clause (one that is essential to the meaning of the sentence): This is the hat that belongs to Susan. When introducing clauses (restrictive or nonrestrictive) that refer to people, use "who" or "whom," NOT "which" or "that." —Use an "s" without an apostrophe to indicate spans of decades or centuries: the 1890s, the ’80s, UAB Hospital was dedicated in the early 1900s. Years are the only exception to the general rule that numerical figures should not be used to start a sentence: 1976 was a very good year. Use an apostrophe to abbreviate class years: She belonged to the class of ’72. See also dates and months. ZIP code —"ZIP" stands for Zone Improvement Program and should be in all caps.
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