use capitals when referring to the specific person holding a specific position and to their work in this role, but not when referring to any holder of that role unless it is a statutory position (see Capitalisation and Word usage sections for further information) Andrew Hamilton became Vice-Chancellor in 2009. There are several Pro-Vice-Chancellors without portfolio. The Registrar will always have to attend these meetings. He invited his Head of House, Dr Smith, to attend the event. Other heads of house were not invited. I wonder who the Senior Proctor will be next year... Candidates will be required to undertake practical work, as specified by the Head of Department of Experimental Psychology. Recruiting new academic staff is vital to all departments; heads of department often personally oversee the procedure.
use capitals for titles prefixing names, but not for job descriptions. Note that some job descriptions are never used with names, such as 'prime minister' Although being president of the United States is stressful, President Obama was glad to be re-elected. The prime minister of Great Britain is the leader of the party which wins the most seats. The Right Honourable David Cameron MP is the current prime minister. The last pope, Pope John Paul II, was Polish. The current pope is German. The Pope is German.
give people’s title, forename and surname when first mentioned. On subsequent mentions, use either surname only or title and surname (unless further information is required to prevent ambiguity), but be consistent with whichever usage you choose Dr John Smith was present at the ceremony, as was Professor Susan Jones. Dr Smith had to leave early. Dr John Smith and Professor Susan Jones presented their research paper to a large audience. The results will be published in book form, which Smith says will be available in the spring. Dr John Smith and Professor Susan Jones debated the topic. Smith recently reviewed Professor Jones’s book.
for someone entitled to a styling such as Sir/Dame as well as an academic title, the academic title always precedes the Sir/Dame in the full first mention Professor Sir John Smith Professor Dame Susan Jones Sir Professor John Smith
for Reverends, Right Reverends, Very Reverends etc, the religious title precedes the academic title The Revd Dr Giles Fraser resigns from St Paul's. The Revd Professor Andrew Linzey is a member of the Faculty of Theology. Dr Revd Giles Fraser spoke to the press about his decision to resign.
in a shortened subsequent mention, use either Sir/Dame/The Revd or the academic title, not both – consider which title is more appropriate for the context (frequently academic for University purposes). Note that non-academic titles should not be used with surnames only and that ‘The Revd’ should not be used with surnames alone; revert to Dr/Mr/Miss as appropriate in this case Sir John Professor Jones Dr Fraser The Revd Fraser Revd Professor Linzey Professor Sir John Baggins will attend the lecture to be given by The Revd Dr Peter Precise in the Examination Schools on Thursday. Dr Precise and Sir John are both senior members of the Oxford University Tiddlywinks Club, and Dr Precise is the author of the bestselling Pedantry and Hypothetical Names. He is not to be confused with his colleague, The Revd Prénom Familyname. Miss Familyname will give her lecture next week. [Grateful thanks go to Serenhedd James for helpful advice and this example.]
for honours etc, usage depends upon individual’s status – check each case, rather than assuming Lady Jane Grey Lord Patten Lord Chris
remember that you do not need to list only all awards, degrees, memberships etc held by an individual – only those items relevant to your writing
the order for postnominals is
civil honours
military honours
QC
degrees, in the order
bachelor’s
master’s
doctor’s
postdoctoral
diplomas
certificates
membership of academic or professional bodies
do not include a BA for Oxford/Cambridge graduates if they also have the MA
give the name of the awarding university (using a shortened form if required and if easily recognisable (Oxf, Camb, UCL etc) if academic qualifications are relevant. A space is used to separate degrees from the same institution, and a comma is used to separate sets of degrees from different institutions; if the same level degree has been awarded by more than one institution, list them in alphabetical order of institution Professor Xavier Postlethwaite, QC, BEng PhD UCL, MA PhD Camb, MA DPhil Oxf, PhD Manc, FRS Sir Charles Overlord, VC, BA S’ton
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