abbreviations and acronyms
With few exceptions, abbreviations and acronyms are not acceptable in text, especially on first reference. Acronyms and abbreviations should be avoided unless they are commonly known (such as NASA, FBI, CIA and GOP). Do not place acronyms or abbreviations in parentheses immediately after an organization's full name. If the acronym or abbreviation is easily recognized, this shouldn't be necessary. If it's not easily recognized, it shouldn't be used. For example: The abbreviation for the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health is MEZCOPH. For the average reader, it's easier to read "the college" than the seven-letter abbreviation. Consult the AP Stylebook for exceptions regarding abbreviations, such as dates, addresses and titles. When the context requires flexibility for design and layout purposes (i.e., a marketing piece), you may choose to omit periods after letters for abbreviations made up of all capital letters (e.g., BC, AD, US). An exception is when initials are used for personal names (e.g., J.K. Rowling).

addresses
Avenue, boulevard and street should be abbreviated to Ave., Blvd. and St. only when used with a numbered address, such as 1501 N. Campbell Ave. All others (road, drive, lane, etc.) should always be spelled out. For streets such as First Avenue, always spell out First through Ninth. For 10th and above, use figures and avoid superscript. Abbreviate compass points in numbered addresses: 1111 N. Cherry Ave.

adviser
Only use "advisor" in formal titles: "My adviser just told me that I need to speak with Senior Academic Advisor Maria Peters."

alum, alumnus, alumni
Instead of using alumnus for a man and alumna for a woman, it is acceptable to use the gender-neutral terms alum and alums. Note: One can be considered an alum without completing a degree.

ampersand
Use an ampersand when it is part of a formal name or title. Avoid using as a substitute for "and," unless space is very limited in a design layout or when it is being used to create impact as in a headline.

apostrophe
When using curly apostrophes (as opposed to straight), apostrophes should always curl down and to the left: She was born to rockin’ parents in the ’60s.

Arizona Arts
Arizona Arts is a division comprising the four schools in the College of Fine Arts - the School of Art, the School of Dance, the Fred Fox School of Music and the school of Theatre, Film and Television - along with Arizona Arts Live, the Center for Creative Photography and the University of Arizona Museum of Art.

Arizona Arts Live
The entity that brings world-renowned artists to Tucson for performances often held at the University's Centennial Hall. It was previously called UA Presents.

Arizona Board of Regents
Capitalize regent only when it appears in a title before a name: "Regent Joe Smith proposed an increase in tuition." Board is a collective noun and takes singular verbs: "The Arizona Board of Regents is meeting in Flagstaff." When referring to two or more regents, capitalize regent if the title is used with full names. Example: Regents Tom Jones and Jane Smith.

Arizona International
The University of Arizona's central hub for international resources, partnerships and microcampus locations.

Arizona Online
Arizona Online offers the same degrees as those offered to on-campus students as well as the same faculty and curriculum. Arizona Online and the University of Arizona Global Campus have separate accreditations, faculty, staff, schools, colleges, departments and program offerings, and they award separate degrees.

artworks and publication titles
Titles of paintings, installations and exhibits should be in quotes in news communications. Titles of sculptures should not. In other uses, a designed piece or space limitations may dictate otherwise. For instance, in an advertisement, infographic, etc., either italicized titles or no title treatment may be preferred.

awards
Names of awards are capitalized, but many terms used with them are not part of the official name and should not be capitalized (Guggenheim Fellowship but Guggenheim grant, National Merit scholarships, Nobel Prize in physics, Nobel Peace Prize).

B #

Banner Health
Headquartered in Arizona, Banner Health is one of the largest nonprofit health care systems in the country. The system owns and operates 30 acute-care hospitals, Banner Health Network, Banner – University Medicine, Banner – University Medical Group, Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center, long-term care centers, outpatient surgery centers and an array of other services, including family clinics, home care and hospice services, pharmacies and a nursing registry. Banner Health is in seven states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Nebraska, Nevada and Wyoming. When referring to Banner entities, use an en dash after Banner except as noted below.

Banner Children's at Diamond Children's Medical Center
Diamond Children's is acceptable on second reference.

Banner – University Medicine
With locations in Tucson (Main and South Campus) and Phoenix, this academic medical network was created through the partnership of Banner Health and the University of Arizona. Banner – University Medicine serves as the primary clinical partner for the University of Arizona Health Sciences.

Banner – University Medical Group
This is the practice plan made up of College of Medicine physicians.

Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix 

Banner – UMC Phoenix on second reference.

Banner – University Medical Center South 
This name refers to the hospital and clinics at 2800 E. Ajo Way in Tucson, formerly called The University of Arizona Medical Center – South Campus. Banner – UMC South on second reference.

Banner – University Medical Center North 
This is the location at North Campbell Avenue and East Allen Road. Banner – UMC North on second reference.

Banner – University Medical Center Tucson (Banner – UMC Tucson)
This name refers to the hospital at 1501 N. Campbell Ave. Previous names include University Medical Center and The University of Arizona Medical Center – University Campus.

Biosphere 2
Do not use Biosphere II, B2 or BIO2.

buildings
Spell out and capitalize a building's name on first reference. Do not abbreviate words like center, administration, building, university, library, college, etc. Not all buildings have the word "building" in their names. Refer to the University of Arizona building directory to check (http://directory.arizona.edu/buildings).

C #

Campus Recreation
The name of the unit that operates the three student recreation centers on the main campus: SouthREC, NorthREC and BearDownREC.

CatCard
The official University of Arizona identification card.

Cat Tran
The Parking and Transportation Services campus shuttle service. Two words.

cellphone, smartphone

Class of
Capitalized, as in “Class of 20XX”

Center for Creative Photography
Co-founded by Ansel Adams, this entity is the premier research collection of photographic archives. CCP acceptable on second reference.

college, department, program, school
Use "the College of Nursing" or "the nursing college." When several colleges are mentioned, it's "the colleges of medicine, nursing and fine arts." The same rule applies to schools.

The word department is capitalized in formations such as "Department of History." It is not capitalized when the formation is "the history department." The exception is any department with a word that is always capitalized, such as the English department.

Program names are capitalized, as are graduate programs of study, such as the Race Track Industry Program. Not all programs use the word "program" in their official names.

Majors and minors are not capitalized unless the major/minor name is a proper noun (English, Spanish, etc.).

For an official list of University of Arizona colleges, centers, departments and schools, academic and nonacademic, see the directory at arizona.edu/colleges-schools. When referring to the named colleges below, use the complete name on first reference.

• W.A. Franke Honors College
• James E. Rogers College of Law
• Eller College of Management
• James C. Wyant College of Optical Sciences
• R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy
• Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health

colon
When a colon precedes a list, the next word should not be capitalized unless it is a proper noun or is the beginning of a complete sentence. The items in the list should be separated by commas.

• The color choices are: burnt sienna, lavender sunset and blushing blue.
• There was only one problem to consider: She hated all the choices.
• He had a good reason for not caring: color blindness.

comma, semicolon
Follow the guidelines in the Guide to Punctuation in the AP Stylebook. Use commas to separate items in a series but do not place a comma before the conjunction (and, or). When the items are complex (e.g., contain multiple words) and using a comma before the conjunction makes the sentence clearer, it is acceptable to do so. When the items in the series have material that needs to be set off by commas, use semicolons to separate the items and before the conjunction. When a semicolon is used within a sentence, both parts of the sentence must be complete sentences. Include the use of the serial comma to separate words, phrases and clauses in a series when it enhances clarity.

• Would you like to eat an apple, an orange or a banana?
• When considering prospective students, it's important to consider how well they did in high school, how their studies prepared them for high school, and the college admission requirements.
• The panelists were John Smith, professor of English; Maria Gomez, professor of surgery; and Marty Zimmerman, professor of humanities.
• He wanted to get to the meeting early; his issue was the first item on the agenda.

composition titles
Capitalize the principal words of four or more letters, including prepositions and conjunctions. Capitalize an article (a, an, the) or words of fewer than four letters if they are the first or last word in a title. Use quotation marks except for the Bible, newspapers, magazines, most reference material and journals. At times, italicized titles or no title treatment may be preferred, especially when a designed piece or space limitations dictate. Translate a foreign title into English unless known to the audience by its foreign name: "Of Mice and Men," "The Old Man and the Sea," Rousseau's "War" (not "Guerre"), "Mona Lisa," "Tootsie," the "CBS Evening News," the Arizona Daily Star, U.S. News & World Report.

course titles
When the format is the subject and course number, use Arabic numerals and capitalize the subject: History 101. If using a descriptive title, follow the style used in the course catalog: Introduction to American History.

D #

dates
Always spell out the days of the week. Abbreviate months only when a specific date is used, such as Nov. 28. Never abbreviate March, April, May, June or July.

When referring to a month in a specific year, but not a specific date, always spell out the month and do not separate with a comma: July 1977. Do not include the year if the reference is to the current year or if omitting it would cause confusion. When a specific date is used with a year, the year should be set off by commas: The discovery was made on June 15, 2016, and has forever changed the way we measure results.

When using specific dates, use only the numeral. It should be "June 20" – not "June 20th" – unless the month and date are not contiguous. "She will travel on the 20th of June."

decades
Add "s" to make plurals: the 1960s. When shortened, an apostrophe stands in place of omitted numerals: the '60s.

degrees
When including a person's academic degrees, it is preferred to use a phrase, such as "She has a doctorate in chemistry." If abbreviations must be used, they are: B.A., B.S., M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., J.D., M.A., M.S., MBA. If design and readability of marketing materials require flexibility, you may opt to omit periods: BA, BS, MD, MPH, PhD, JD, MA, MS. When used after a name, the abbreviation is set off by commas: Mary Smith, MBA, gave the presentation. Avoid using abbreviations for fellowships or certifications after names.

• Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science (no "degree")
• bachelor's degree in history
• doctoral degree
• doctorate (no "degree")
• Doctor of Medicine
• Juris Doctor
• Master of Arts, Master of Science (no "degree")
• master's degree in chemistry

Dr.
Avoid using in news communications except in first references to physicians and veterinarians. When used for a person with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree, the text should clarify that the person is a veterinarian. In other uses, the title of Dr. can be used for those holding doctorates.

E #

ellipsis
Use an ellipsis to indicate that text has been omitted. Do not start or end a quote with an ellipsis. There should be a space before and after the ellipsis. Avoid using ellipses unless necessary. Example: A speaker might use extraneous words that detract from the content of their remarks.

Full quote: In my many years at Arizona as a student and employee and, well, by that I mean all the years I spent as an undergraduate and grad student, and then my first job here, I have been a huge fan of the Wildcats.

Condensed quote: In my many years at Arizona as a student and employee ... I have been a huge fan of the Wildcats.

email

emeritus
This word is used with formal titles to indicate a retired professor or administrator, male or female, who served for a substantial period of time. The Arizona Board of Regents confers the title on university presidents, while university presidents confer the title on faculty members.

The word follows the title: University of Arizona President Emeritus Peter Likins will speak at the dinner. When the word appears after the name, it is lowercase: Donald W. Carson, professor emeritus of journalism, spoke at the dinner. The title of professor is capitalized when combined with emeritus before a name: She asked Professor Emeritus Stuart Hameroff to submit a letter on her behalf. Avoid constructions using emeriti, the plural form of the word.

endowed chairs
A person "holds" an endowed chair. The full name of the endowed chair should be capitalized regardless of whether it appears before or after the name of the person who holds it. Example: Carol Barnes holds the Evelyn F. McKnight Endowed Chair for Learning and Memory in Aging.

F #

faculty
Faculty is a collective noun and takes a singular verb.

• The faculty is exceptional.
• The faculty members are experts in their fields.

first-year
The gender-neutral terms "first-year" and "first-year student" are preferred when  describing an entering student or a student without enough credits to be considered a sophomore. In less formal uses, the terms "first-year" and "first-years" are acceptable. Do not capitalize "first-year" and other class designations (sophomore, junior, senior) unless they begin a sentence.

For transfer students: A transfer student without enough credits to be a sophomore should be referred to as a "first-year transfer student." Once a transfer student has completed enough credits to be a sophomore, they should be identified by their class standing (sophomore, junior, senior). There is no need to identify them as a transfer student unless that fact is relevant to the content.

flyer
Use this spelling when referring to a handbill.

FORGE
FORGE is an acronym for Finding Opportunities and Resources to Grow Entrepreneurs and should always appear as FORGE. It is part of the University of Arizona Research, Innovation and Impact office and may also be written as University of Arizona FORGE. It should not be written as "The FORGE" or "Arizona FORGE."

Fourth Industrial Revolution
The technology-driven era that is characterized by a convergence of the physical, digital and biological spheres. The abbreviation 4IR is acceptable on second reference.

fundraiser, fundraising

G #

grade point average               
GPA is acceptable in all references. When referring to letter grades in text, quote marks are not necessary. Examples: She earned a B in the class. His report card included three A's and one B.

Graduate College

grant-making, grantor

H #

health care
Two words in all uses.

Hispanic-Serving Institution
Use HSI on second reference.

historical periods 
Capitalize the names of widely recognized periods, such as the Dark Ages and the Mesozoic Era. Lowercase century even when referring to a specific century: the 18th century.

honors
Always lowercase unless referring to the W.A. Franke Honors College.

• She is an honors student.
• She graduated with honors.

hyphen
Not needed between an adverb ending in -ly and its adjective, e.g., nationally known program. Insert a hyphen in compound modifiers beginning with "well": She is a well-informed woman. Insert a hyphen in words beginning with the prefix "self": self-assured, self-defense, etc.

I #

internet terms

• email
• homepage
• internet
• web, website, webcam, webcast, webfeed, webmaster, webpage
• web address, web browser
• For web addresses, use http:// or https:// in addresses that do not use www.
• In marketing pieces, you may choose to omit the http://, https:// or www in the display for space and design purposes, unless the URL will not work without these.

M #

microcampus
The term for the locations worldwide where the University of Arizona offers collaborative degree programs to local students on the campuses of partner universities.

mount, mountains
The AP Stylebook advises spelling out "mount" in all uses, including the names of mountains and communities. For official names of organizations, defer to preferred spelling. Example: The University of Arizona Mt. Lemmon SkyCenter is located atop Mount Lemmon.

Other regional mountain ranges: Mount Graham, Santa Catalina Mountains, Santa Rita Mountains, Rincon Mountains, Tucson Mountains, Tortolita Mountains.

O #

Old Main

OSIRIS-APEX
An extension of the OSIRIS-REx mission, the OSIRIS-Apophis Explorer mission will dig into the surface of the asteroid Apophis.

OSIRIS-REx
NASA's asteroid sample return mission, led by the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory. OSIRIS-REx is an acronym for the mission's full name, which is Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security – Regolith Explorer.

P #

Phoenix Bioscience Core
The 30-acre life sciences innovation district in the heart of Downtown Phoenix, with Arizona’s three state universities as its anchor institutions.

postdoctoral, postgraduate

Pride of Arizona, The
The name of the University of Arizona marching band.

proper names
When referring to a building or place on second reference, do not capitalize the common noun. Centennial Hall becomes "the hall," Harvill Auditorium becomes "the auditorium" and Arizona Stadium becomes "the stadium." In plural uses, lowercase the common noun: Pima and Maricopa counties.

R #

Regents Professor
Always uppercase. The discipline is not part of the title, e.g., Regents Professor of math Less S. Moore.

Robert C. Robbins
The 22nd president of the University of Arizona. Robbins holds the Endowed Presidential Leadership Chair. In health care contexts, M.D. often is used after his name: Robert C. Robbins, M.D.

S #

seasons, semesters
Always lowercase: fall semester, spring break, winter closure.

Southern Arizona, Southwest

state names
Spell out the names of states when used in the body of a story or news release. Abbreviate Arizona to Ariz. when used in news release datelines. A comma should be placed before and after the state name unless it ends the sentence: She was born in Prescott, Arizona, in 1926.

strategic plan
The University of Arizona strategic plan was presented to the Arizona Board of Regents in November 2018. It describes the University's vision for the next five to 10 years and includes five overarching pillars that contain specific initiatives.

• Pillar 1: The Wildcat Journey
• Pillar 2: Grand Challenges
• Pillar 3: The Arizona Advantage
• Pillar 4: Arizona Global
• Pillar 5: Institutional Excellence

student-athlete
Always hyphenate.

T #

Tech Launch Arizona
Tech Launch Arizona is the office of the university that commercializes inventions stemming from research and innovation. TLA is acceptable on second reference. It is a unit within Research, Innovation and Impact, along with Tech Parks Arizona and FORGE.

Tech Parks Arizona
Tech Parks Arizona is the university’s tech incubator and directs Tech Park at Rita Road, Tech Park at the Bridges and the University of Arizona Center for Innovation.

telephone numbers
Use a hyphens and not parentheses for area codes: 602-555-1212. Extensions are separated with a comma: 602-555-1212, ext. 3. Do not include 1 before toll-free numbers within the U.S. For the emergency telephone number, use 911, not 9-1-1.

The University of Arizona 
In news communications or communications intended for external audiences, it is the University of Arizona on first reference and "the university" or "UArizona" on second reference. “UArizona” should primarily be used for headlines and titles, with preference given to "the university" in all other copy when possible. When UArizona is used as a noun, it stands alone: “UArizona.” But when it is used as an adjective, it is “the/a UArizona.”

Examples:

• "The University of Arizona is very proud to provide the best educational opportunities and support services for all military members," said UArizona President Robert C. Robbins.
• FreeFall Aerospace is a UArizona startup founded to commercialize an intelligent 5G antenna system invented by Christopher Walker, a professor of astronomy and associate professor of optical sciences.
• Headline: UArizona Jumps Into Top 20 in 'Best for Vets' Ranking.

In marketing communications, it is "the University of Arizona" on first reference and "the university" or “Arizona/at Arizona” on second reference. “UArizona” is reserved for social media handles with permissions (contact brand@arizona.edu).

Examples:

• Here’s how six incredible women in science, technology, engineering and math at Arizona are making the world better.    
• Discover life at Arizona — the clubs, classes and activities that will help you be your best self.
• @UArizonaCAPLA (social media handle)

For non-news communications intended for internal audiences, it is "the University of Arizona" on first reference and "the University" or “Arizona/at Arizona” on second reference.

When the name stands alone in text – such as in titles, headings or website footers – it is "The University of Arizona."

It is never written as “UA” or "the U of A."

It is never written as possessive, e.g., “the University of Arizona’s College of Science.” Instead, it is “the University of Arizona College of Science” on first reference and “College of Science” on second reference.

• Incorrect: At the UA, we believe in our land-grant mission.
• Correct: At the University of Arizona, we believe in our land-grant mission.
• Correct: At Arizona, we believe in our land-grant mission. (marketing or internal).
• Correct: At the University, we believe in our land-grant mission. (internal)
• Correct: The university has a land-grant mission. (news or external).
• Incorrect: There are more than 600 UA student clubs to choose from.
• Correct: There are more than 600 student clubs to choose from at the University of Arizona. (external)
• Correct: At Arizona, there are more than 600 student clubs to choose from. (marketing or internal)
• Correct: At the University, there are more than 600 clubs from which students can choose. (internal)

The University of Arizona Near You Network
NYN includes locations in Chandler, Douglas, Gilbert, Nogales, North Valley (Phoenix) and Yuma.

• University of Arizona at Chandler (On first reference, it’s the University of Arizona at Chandler. On second reference, it’s Chandler center.)
• University of Arizona at Douglas (On first reference, it’s the University of Arizona at Douglas. On second reference, it’s Douglas center.)
• University of Arizona at Gilbert (On first reference, it’s the University of Arizona at Gilbert. On second reference, it’s Gilbert center.)
• The University of Arizona at Nogales (On first reference, it's the University of Arizona at Nogales.  On second reference, it's Nogales center.)
• University of Arizona at North Valley (On first reference, it’s the University of Arizona at North Valley. On second reference, it’s North Valley center.)
• The University of Arizona at Yuma (On first reference, it’s the University of Arizona at Yuma. On second reference, it’s Yuma center.)

The University of Arizona Phnom Penh
This location is part of Arizona International. On first reference, it’s the University of Arizona Phnom Penh. On second reference, it’s Phnom Penh microcampus.

The University of Arizona at Pima College
On first reference, it’s the University of Arizona at Pima College. On second reference, it’s Pima East or Pima Desert Vista.

theater
Use this spelling unless the entity's official name uses theatre, such as the School of Theatre, Film and Television, the Marroney Theatre, the Stevie Eller Dance Theatre, etc.

time of day
Separate hours from minutes with a colon and use periods with a.m. and p.m. Do not use zeros for exact hours. "The movie is being shown at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m." For ranges of time, separate with a hyphen: 1-3 p.m., 5 a.m.-7 p.m.

title/titled/entitled
A title is the name of something. Entitled means having a right to do something or have something.

• The book is titled "The Third Half."
• She is entitled to half of the royalties.

titles
Capitalize and spell out formal titles when they precede a name; use lowercase elsewhere. Do not abbreviate vice president, professor, associate, assistant, etc.

For titles that come after a name, use lowercase and separate with a comma: Robert C. Robbins, president of the University of Arizona, gave the keynote address.

In non-news communications, use courtesy titles at your discretion depending on the context. For example, you might use courtesy titles (Mr., Miss, etc.) in a marketing program that includes a list of professors where one does not have a doctoral degree.

Professor is capitalized only when it begins a sentence or when it is used in a direct quotation:

• Professor John Jones presented the award to professor Jane Valdez at the department's annual dinner.
• “I was recruited to the University of Arizona by Professor Luke Skywalker,” said Han Solo, a new graduate student.

Regents Professor and University Distinguished Professor are always capitalized: Toni M. Massaro is a Regents Professor of law. Joellen Russell,  Distinguished Professor of geosciences, will speak at noon.

When a person holds multiple titles, use the most relevant title on first reference and, if necessary, provide the others later in the text.

If a person holds a title on a temporary basis, only the actual title is capitalized. "The student mentioned interim Custodial Services Director Ike Lean."

Other titles:

• Gov. Doug Ducey
• Mayor Jonathan Rothschild
• U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz.
• State Rep. Macario Saldate, D-Tucson

Tucson, Arizona
It's city of Tucson and state of Arizona, not City of Tucson or State of Arizona.

U #

UArizona
See "The University of Arizona."

University of Arizona Global Campus
UAGC is operated in affiliation with the University of Arizona and offers degrees that are 100% online. However, the two institutions are separate organizations with separate governance and administration. They also have separate accreditations, faculty, staffs, schools, colleges, departments and program offerings, and they award separate degrees.

UAGC operates separately  from Arizona Online, as they have separate accreditations, faculty, staff, schools, colleges, departments and program offerings, and they award separate degrees.

University of Arizona Mall
On second reference, the Mall is acceptable.

UA NetID
The official personal identifier for University of Arizona faculty, staff and students.  Your NetID permits secure access to a variety of applications and services using a single sign-on (one username and one password) system.

University of Arizona Foundation
The University of Arizona Foundation is a nonprofit corporation dedicated to advancing the university by building relationships, securing philanthropic support and stewarding assets. The Foundation is acceptable on second reference.

University of Arizona Health Sciences
Health Sciences is acceptable on second reference. Health Sciences comprises the following entities:

• College of Medicine – Tucson (do not use COM or COM-T on second reference)
• College of Medicine – Phoenix (located within the Phoenix Biomedicine Core)
• College of Nursing
• R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy (Coit College of Pharmacy on second reference)
• Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health (Zuckerman College of Public Health on second reference)
• College of Health Sciences (opening in fall 2023) 
• University of Arizona Cancer Center (Arizona Cancer Center on second reference)

University of California
The campus location is preceded by a comma: "She visited the University of California, Santa Cruz and the University of Arizona."

W #

Wilbur Wildcat, Wilma Wildcat
Wildcat is this couple's last name. Their middle names are “The” but are shortened to an initial (Wilbur T. Wildcat and Wilma T. Wildcat). They are not Wilbur the Wildcat and Wilma the Wildcat.

Z #

ZonaZoo
This is the official student section and student-ticketing program for University of Arizona Athletics.