majors, degree fields

Use lowercase for terms that generically describe a major or the field a degree is in (including graduate degrees), even if the term is part of the name of an academic department or college:

• Correct: She earned a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering.
• Incorrect: She earned a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering.

A major or field in a foreign language is designated by that language’s name — e.g., English, Spanish, Russian, etc. — and is thus capitalized.

When giving an NC State alum’s undergraduate major and year in parentheses after their name, capitalize the major (this is an exception to AP style). State the major first and then the year. Also, state the year as a two-digit abbreviation preceded by a backward-facing apostrophe:

Leigh-Kathryn Bonner (International Studies ’15) founded a company called Bee Downtown, an urban beekeeping startup.