Course Title Guidelines
Titles for Courses in the Regular Curriculum
Titles for courses with permanent numbers have been set in the curriculum and may not be changed. Change in titles for these course require curricular approval.
Topics Courses
Some courses have been approved with permanent numbers but variable titles within certain topic areas. These courses are group-oriented and are required to carry a specific topic each term, rather than using the generic approved topic. Courses with variable topics are required to include ‘Top’ as part of the title.
Example:
- HIST 4/534 Modern British History: [Topic] published as
- HIST 4/534 Top The Royal Family O
- HIST 4/534 Top Thatcher vs Blair
Open-Ended (Generic) Courses
These courses, such as readings and seminars, are generally more loosely structured than regular university offerings. Students meet with instructors either individually or in small groups. A variety of subjects may be offered under the same open-ended course number. There are two types of open-ended courses, Individualized Courses and Group-Oriented Courses.
*Note that the titles of some Generic Course numbers were updated effective fall 2022. The titles here are those that are effective fall 2022 and later.
Individualized Courses
Courses may be left under generic CRNs with the instructors listed as STAFF until specific course title and instructor information is entered on SFAINDV. Certain individualized courses may not have specific titles added.
They may be treated as regular courses if a particular instructor will be working with several students on the same subject matter. In that case, specific sections must be set up for each separate topic and not left under the general STAFF section CRN.
Individualized courses can have more descriptive titles added, but must include the following required abbreviation:
General Title | Required Abbreviation | Course Number |
---|---|---|
Practicum or Field Studies | Prac or Fld | 196, 406, 606, 706 |
Special Studies | Sp St | 199, 299, 399 |
Research | Res | 401, 601 |
Internship | Intern | 404, 604, 704 |
Reading and Conference or Special Problems | Read or Sp Pr | 405, 605, 705 |
The required abbreviation must be included in the 22 character title count.
There are individualized courses for which titles cannot be changed. These are:
General Title | ReMtle | Course Number |
---|---|---|
Thesis | Thesis | 403, 503 |
Dissertation | Dissertation | 603 |
Supervised College Teaching or Supervised Tutoring | Superv College Teach or Superv Tutoring | 402, 602 |
Terminal Project or Capstone | Terminal Project or Capstone | 409, 609, 709 |
Group-Oriented Courses
Courses must be scheduled as regular courses, with specific CRNs for each section taught be a different instructor, a specific title, meeting times and days, etc., These courses cannot be treated as individualized courses, but may require the use of an abbreviated general title as the first word of the specific course title, as listed below.
General Title | ReMtle | Course Number |
---|---|---|
Seminar or Colloquium | Sem or Coll | 407/507, 607, 707 |
Workshop or Laboratory Projects | Wrk or Lab | 198, 408/508, 608, 708 |
Experimental Course | use specific title | 410/510, 610, 710 |
The required abbreviation must be included in the 22 character title count.
Course Title Guidelines
The title of a course should give a brief, general description of the subject matter covered. All course titles must be provided in English unless approved by the University Committee on Courses (UOCC) and listed in the University catalog in another language. As part of the official transcript record that may be reviewed by other institutions and prospective employers, titles should be easily understood by the general public and not couched in departmental or university jargon.
Please follow these guidelines when entering course titles:
- Use no more than 22 spaces for the complete title, including any required abbreviations.
- Use upper- and lowercase letters, capitalizing each word of the title.
- Use English language in course titles unless approved by UOCC and listed in catalog.
Example: Res Mad Hatter Theory, Prac Turtle Geometry
- Abbreviate words so that they may be easily deciphered. It is better to use three or four essential words that are understandable than to cram several words in by cutting them down to two letters each and losing the meaning entirely.
Example: Prac Valid Span Monitor NOT Prac Cu Va Sp Lng Mon
- Delete articles of speech such as ‘of,’ ‘and,’ ‘the,’ etc., before trying to abbreviated more essential words in the title.
Example: Read Masters Project NOT Read For Mast Proj
- Do not use punctuation unless it is crucial to the meaning of the title. Do not use a ‘?’ or ‘#.’ Ampersands (&) are acceptable as joining characters.
Example: Sem Russian Revolution NOT Sem: Russ Revolut Example: Read Child & Family Lit NOT Read: Chld/Family Lit
- Be careful not to use abbreviations that result in unintentional innuendos or offensive phrases
Example: Don’t use ‘Anal’ for ‘Analysis,’ ‘Ass’ or ‘Asses’ for ‘Assessment,’ ‘Stud’ for ‘Student.’ Example: Prac Assess Stu Serv NOT Prac Ass Stud Service
- Acronyms specific to a discipline or that someone outside the academic department would not understand should not be used. Names of specific programs or products should not be used unless additional words can be added to clarify.
Example: Wrk Intro SPSS Softwar NOT Wrk Intro SPSS Example: Intern Integ Admin Lic NOT Intern IAL Example: Sem Geog Info Sys NOT Sem GIS
Standard Course Title Abbreviations
Title | Preferred | Acceptable |
---|---|---|
Accounting | Actg | |
Administration | Admin | Adm |
Advanced | Adv | |
Alternative | Altern | Alt |
American | Amer | Am |
Analysis | Analy | |
Ancient | Anc | |
Applied | Appl | |
Approach | Appr | |
Assessment | Assess | Assmt/Assessmt |
Basic | Bas | |
Behavior | Behav | |
Century | Cen | C(ex:21C) |
Child/Children | Chld | Ch |
Classic | Clas | Class |
Colloquium | Colloq | Coll |
Communication | Commun | Comm |
Community | Commun | Comm |
Comparative | Compar | Comp |
Computer | Comput | Comp |
Concept | Conc | |
Concepts | Concep | Conc |
Contrast | Contr | |
Creative | Creat | |
Critique/Criticism | Crit | |
Culture | Cultur | Cul |
Current | Curr | |
Design | Des | |
Develop | Devel | Dev |
Elementary | Elem | |
Ethnic | Ethn | |
Evolution | Evol | |
Exceptional | Excep | Exc |
Experience | Exper | |
Experiment | Exper | |
Family | Fam | |
Field | Fld | |
Function | Func | |
Fundamental | Fund | |
Gender | Gend | Gen |
History | Hist | Hst |
Human | Hum | |
Independent | Indep | Indepen |
Individual | Indiv | |
Information | Info | |
Inquiry | Inquir | Inq |
Instrumental | Instrum | Instr |
Integrated | Integr | Integ |
Intermediate | Interm | Intermed/Int |
International | Intl | |
Internship | Intern | |
Interpretation | Interp | |
Introduction | Intro | |
Issues | Iss | |
Leader | Ldr | Lead |
Learn | Lrn | |
Literature/Literacy | Lit | |
Major | Maj | |
Management | Mgmt | Mgt |
Market | Mkt | |
Method | Meth | |
Modern | Mod | |
National | Natl | |
Natural | Natur | Nat |
Option | Opt | |
Organize | Organiz | Org |
Origin | Orig | |
Perspective | Persp | |
Physical | Phys | |
Planning | Plan | |
Policy | Polic | Pol |
Politics | Polit | Pol |
Practicum | Prac | |
Principle | Princ | Prin |
Process | Proc | |
Program | Progr | Prog |
Project | Proj | |
Psychology | PsychPsy | |
Reading | Read | |
Research | Res | |
Resource | Resour | |
Revolution | Revol | Rev |
Seminar | Sem | |
Service | Serv | |
Skill | Skl | Sk |
Society/Social | Soc | |
Software | Softwar | Softw |
Special | Spec | Sp |
Statistical | Statis | Stat |
Strategies | Strat | |
Structure | Struc | |
Student | Stu | |
Study/Studies | Stdy | St |
Supervise/Supervision | Supv | Superv |
Survey | Surv | |
Symbol | Symb | |
Synthesis | Synth | Syn |
System | Syst | Sys |
Teach | Teac | Tch |
Technology/Technique | Techn | Tech |
Theory | Theo | |
Topics | Top | |
Training | Train | Trng |
Visual | Vis | |
Women | Wom | |
Workshop | Wrk | |
World | Wld | Wrld |
Writing | Writ | Wr |
Year | Yr |