Administrative documents and procedures
The language used for administrative purposes must be formal, but not necessarily ceremonious. It is important to simplify the way documents are written and thus make them easier to understand, since the aim is to make communication as straightforward as possible, with no room for misinterpretation. To this end, the UPV makes use of the Manual de documents i llenguatge administratius (Administrative Documents and Language Handbook), which was approved by the Rectors of the five public universities in the Valencia Region and must be complied with in all forms of official communication. The handbook contains models of, for example, reports, letters, invitations and resolutions, as well as rules guiding the use of capital letters, forms of address, phraseology, and so on. It is written in Valencian, but its guidelines must also be applied to Spanish.
Handbook "Documents i Llenguatge Administratius"
The handbook is written in a clear, straightforward manner. It is not a book on linguistics for grammarians and philologists but rather a practical guide intended to help anyone who has to write a few lines to communicate with someone else at some point during their working day. This handbook will therefore be useful for those who have to write a notification, a reply to an email or a report on some activity.
The handbook actually consists of two different books. The first deals with the documents that are most commonly used in the public administration, such as an invitation to tender, agreements, résumés, resolutions, letters, sworn statements, official invitations, and so forth.
For each type of document, the handbook includes a definition, information about its characteristics, structure, phraseology and terminology, as well as examples.
The second book is devoted to the particularities of administrative language and offers clear advice on how to settle the main issues concerning abbreviations, the use of capital and small letters, forms of address, connecting words, and so on.
To be able to consult it, you have to access the Intranet. Click on the link Información para la comunidad universitaria and you will find the two parts in pdf format.
