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Use a capital letter for the first word only, unless the heading contains a proper noun which may be capitalised as needed. If the heading includes a colon, the first letter after the colon is capitalised. No full stop is needed in headings, but do use a question mark if the heading is a question.

  • The story of life
  • The Department of Classics paper list
  • Essays: Frequently asked questions

When writing for the web

Avoid one-word headings and sub-headings. For website consistency and search engine optimisation reasons, use the heading levels in the correct order.

  • H1 is the name of the page in the large font.
  • H2 must be used before H3, H3 before H4, and so on.

About the Writing Style Guide

This guide is designed to help ensure writing style – whether for internal or external audiences, written for print or online – is consistent and maintains a professional standard across the University. It is not designed for academic writing.

Feedback

Please send any feedback – including reports of errors or requests for changes – to writing.style@otago.ac.nz

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