Graduate Studies Editorial Style Guide

• Refer to the unit as UC Davis Graduate Studies, Graduate Studies or Graduate Studies at UC Davis. "Grad Studies" may be used in second and subsequent references in casual communications only.
• Do not use OGS or Office of Graduate Studies.

University of California, Davis

• Use University of California, Davis on first reference. Set off “Davis” by two commas: the University of California, Davis, was chosen.
• “UC Davis” is used in second and subsequent references in news releases and in publications. Use no periods in UC.
• Do not use “UCD" or University of California at Davis.
• The Davis campus (not “main campus”) is the designation for UC Davis facilities and programs in Davis.
•  The Sacramento campus is the designation for UC Davis facilities and programs located in the area around Stockton Boulevard and Broadway in Sacramento, including the UC Davis Medical Center, the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing and the UC Davis School of Medicine. 

University of California

• In news releases or publications sent to off-campus audiences, spell University of California out on first reference.
• In referring to the entire University of California, the terms “systemwide” and “universitywide” (do not hyphenate either) may be used interchangeably
• Spell out the names of other UC campuses on first reference: UC Berkeley, UC San Diego, but always abbreviate UCLA; refer to it as UC Los Angeles or the Los Angeles campus only in quoted matter. 
• When used alone, always lowercase university, even when referring to the University of California or one of its campuses. 

Academic Degrees & Majors

• As a general rule, avoid abbreviations and instead spell out names of degrees. (Ronald Enomoto, who received his bachelor’s degree in English from UC Davis...)
• Capitalize the formal name of a degree conferred. (The department offers a Master of Arts in Teaching.)
• When used after a name, set off such abbreviations with commas. (Robert Kerr, Ph.D., is responsible for...)
• Avoid mixing forms, such as he received his master’s and doctoral degrees; master’s and doctor’s degrees would be preferable in such a case.
• Lowercase all majors except those incorporating proper nouns
• Use an apostrophe in “bachelor’s degree,” “master’s,” etc. You may use "Master of" but never "masters."
• Use abbreviations such as “B.A.” and “M.A.” only when spelling out the names of the degrees would be cumbersome.

​Titles

• Capitalize formal or courtesy titles—president, chancellor, professor, senator—before names of individuals, and lowercase formal titles following names of individuals.
• Lowercase descriptive or occupational titles—teacher, attorney, history professor, department chair—in all cases. 
• Use the formal title Dr. (plural Drs.) only before the names of individuals who hold a degree in medicine, veterinary medicine or dentistry.

Branded PowerPoint Templates & Zoom Backgrounds

Three branded PowerPoint templates are available here for Graduate Studies affiliates. Please use each template based on the audience identified in the file name. You will need a UC Davis Box account to access these templates.

Branded Zoom backgrounds are also available here for Graduate Studies affiliates. You will need a UC Davis Box account to access these templates.

Additional Resources

• UC Davis Editorial Style Guide
• UC Davis Health Editorial Style Guide
• Associated Press Stylebook
• Chicago Manual of Style