•  Current semester
•  Past classes

Editing tips

Common problems from last year
  • Attribution and sources
    • Make sure you attribute facts
    • Use a variety of sources; lots of students, not enough officials, faculty, experts, reports, etc.
  • Avoid opinion
    • "make sure ..."
    • "hopefully" "fortunately"
    • "you should"
    • "let's make it"
    • "I think"
    • "my recent poll"
    • "students should never feel trapped"
  • Avoid writing in general terms; be specific, use numbers and/or examples
    • "many websites", "many popular sports", "many students feel"
    • "some"
    • "most students"
    • "it seems"
    • "generally not funded", "generally have to car pool"
  • Compound modifier (page 333, AP Stylebook)
    • When two or more words that express a single concept precede a noun, use hyphens to link all the words in the compound except adverbs that end in -ly.
    • regular-season championship
    • seven-foot frame
    • bite-size pieces
    • gin-based drink
    • off-campus students
  • Its vs. their
    • UAlbany won 16 of its last 20 games
    • The Danes won 16 of their last 20 games
  • Over vs. more than
    • Use more than for numbers (Wilson averages more than 17 points per game, More than 100 people attended)
    • Use over for relative position (the blimp hovered over the stadium)
  • Dates and times
    • a.m. and p.m. (not AM, A.M., PM, P.M.)
    • in the morning (not in the a.m.)
    • abbreviate Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov. and Dec. when writing dates, such as Feb. 21; spell out months if not part of a date (at the end of February)
  • Numbers/numerals (page 180, AP Stylebook)
    • Spell out numbers less than 10, unless writing about a child's age, using a percentage, writing an address or sports score