Index › Award Categories › Award category terminology
Award category terminology
| Branch | Award Categories |
|---|---|
| Record | records/award-category-terminology |
| Subject scope | Vocabulary used to describe divisions on a category slate |
| Format | Reference record with sectioned notes |
Category vocabulary is not standardised across the trade, and the same word can mean different things in two neighbouring programmes. This record sets out the senses in which the index uses each term.
Slate and division
A slate is the whole published set of divisions for one cycle. A division is a single judged heading within it. Some programmes use category for both, which is why the index keeps the two words apart: a slate changes between cycles, a division changes only when its criteria are rewritten.
Open and discretionary divisions
An open division accepts submissions from anyone who meets its stated eligibility. A discretionary division is decided by the programme without an entry route. The distinction matters to a reader because the two are supported by different kinds of evidence, and only the first produces a comparable field.
Eligibility windows
Eligibility is usually expressed as a period during which the work being judged had to take place, and it rarely lines up with the entry window itself. Work completed after the eligibility period closes normally rolls into the next cycle rather than being considered late.
Division retirement
Divisions are retired when the field they described has either collapsed into a larger heading or split into several. A retired division is not the same as a cancelled one: the first is a change to the slate, the second is a change within a cycle already under way.