UNIVERSITY OF REDLANDS A–Z Editorial Style Guide The University of Redlands adheres to the Associated Press (AP) Stylebook, with reference to the Chicago Manual of Style and other exceptions. academic degrees In text, use bachelor’s degree or bachelor’s rather than B.A. or B.S.; master’s degree or master’s rather than M.A. or M.S.; doctoral degree or doctorate rather than Ph.D. or Ed.D. (Use lowercase for degree names in these examples because they are not formal names.) Use capitals for formal degree name and initials, such as B.A., B.S., M.A., Ed.D. B.A. or B.S.; Ph.D. or Ed.D. (all with periods) except for the MBA; master’s degree and bachelor’s degree (with apostrophes), but there is no possessive in Bachelor of Arts or Master of Science. Use abbreviations such as B.A., M.A., LL.D., and Ph.D. only when the need to identify many individuals by degree on first reference would make the preferred form cumbersome. Examples: o o o o
Bachelor of Science in biology; Master of Divinity (formal names); master’s in biology master’s in divinity (informal names) a B.A. in English; a B.S. in chemistry; a Ph.D. in biology associate degree is not capitalized, plural or possessive Use periods for M.A., M.S., but not for MBA
As needed, for clarification (if it’s not clear in the narrative)—place graduate degrees in parentheses after class year: for example, John Smith ’17 (MBA); also applies to other degrees, including from the San Francisco Theological Seminary and School of Education. academic degrees—majors: A major is capitalized when used with its formal degree type. The same rules apply to certificates. For example: U of R’s Bachelor of Science in Accounting program is amazing. U of R’s B.S. in Accounting program is amazing. U of R’s accounting program is amazing. (no B.S., so it is not capitalized) U of R’s bachelor’s in accounting program is amazing. Sally Smith is an accounting major. Sally Smith is planning to graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. academic departments, programs, offices, certificates: Upper case when a formal name: Department of Biology. Second or casual reference: biology department. academic terms and breaks are lowercase (e.g., fall term 2023) with the exception of May Term. acronyms: Phrase or name must be spelled out upon first usage, followed by the letters in parenthesis; the following acronyms are used without the parenthesis. Example: Redlands Student Investment Fund (RSIF). No acronym needed if it’s only referred to once. Don’t forget: The first mention is always spelled out.
A–Z Editorial Style Guide | Updated 5/5/25 | 1