Last updated: January 6, 2021
Academics
- Use the word “faculty” only when referring to one of the University’s six faculties.
- Use the word “professor” when referring to a faculty member.
- Use the term high school, not secondary school.
- Use the term international student, not foreign student.
- Use first year, second year, etc., not year one,
year two, etc.
- For admission requirements, use the forms Grade 12
U or M courses, U-level courses, and M-level courses.
Admissions
Admissions versus admission
Admissions should refer to the process or department and should be a noun.
Example: Staff can respond to inquiries about admissions.
Usually, when you use a noun as an adjective, it should be singular.
Example: admission process, admission committee, admission requirements.
Offer of Admission
Capitalize Offer of Admission when it refers to the student’s offer from Waterloo. Otherwise, for generic references, use lower case.
Example: “You will receive your Offer of Admission from the University of Waterloo by May 30. If you have accepted an offer of admission from another university, you have until June 2 to change your mind.”
University colleges and schools
Refer to the spelling and misused words section for proper names.
Refer to Renison University College, Conrad Grebel University College, St. Jerome’s University, and St. Paul’s University College as the University Colleges.
Residences
For residences, use the term main campus to refer to the the University Colleges and the student villages; use the term northwest campus to refer to the Columbia Lake Townhouses.
You @ Waterloo Day
We no longer spell “You @ Waterloo Day” as one word. Please include spaces as seen here: You @ Waterloo Day.
