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Abbreviations
In a name with initials, do not insert spaces between initials.
- E.B. White
When abbreviating types of degrees, do not use periods after letters.
- BA, MFA, PhD
In addresses, only abbreviate Street, Avenue, and Road when there are space constraints.
Use a state postal abbreviation when coupled with a ZIP code. Spell out state names in other cases.
- Emerson College, 120 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116
- Emerson College is located in Boston, Massachusetts.
When abbreviating United States, use periods.
- Belinda became a U.S. citizen last year.
Academic Degrees
Emerson College grants: BA, BS, BFA, MA, MS, MFA. It also grants the following honorary degrees: LhD, LLD, LittD, MA.
Capitalize official degree names.
Lowercase the general terms.
Degrees are not possessive: refer to a degree as “a [bachelor’s] degree,” not “his/her [bachelor’s] degree.”
- Master of Fine Arts
- bachelor’s degree
- Abby received a master’s degree in art history.
Refer also to Abbreviations.
Academic Departments, Institutes, and Schools
Emerson College has a School of Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies; School of Communication; and School of Film, Television, and Media Arts, under which the following departments fall.
School of Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies
- Department of Performing Arts
- Department of Writing, Literature and Publishing
- Center for Comedic Arts
- Marlboro Institute for Liberal Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies
School of Communication
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders
- Department of Communication Studies
- Department of Journalism
- Department of Marketing Communication
School of Film, Television, and Media Arts
This new School launched in Fall 2025. It is home to all of the programs previously housed in the Department of Visual and Media Arts.
Other Departments/Programs
The Business of Creative Enterprises major is housed in the Department of Marketing Communication, but faculty come from both the School of Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies and School of Communication.
The Comedic Arts major falls under the School of Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies.
The Department of Professional Studies and Special Programs offers non-degree-granting certificate programs and individual courses for professional advancement, skill building, and/or academic credit.
Administrative Departments
- Academic Advising Center
- Office of Academic Affairs
- Admission (not Admissions)
- Alumni Engagement
- Alumni Relations
- Archives and Special Collections
- Office of the Arts
- Department of Athletics
- Office of Business Services
- Career Development Center
- Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning
- Division of Community, Culture, and Belonging
- Office of the Controller
- Counseling Services
- Cultural Engagement Center
- Disbursements
- Office of Education Abroad and Domestic Programs
- Emergency Management
- Emerson College Police Department (ECPD)
- Emerson College Polling
- Enrollment Management
- Enterprise Applications
- Office of Equal Opportunity
- Equipment Distribution Center
- Office of Facilities Management
- Office of Financial Affairs
- Office of the General Counsel
- Global Engagement and Programs
- Office of Graduate Studies
- Healing and Advocacy Center
- Health Services
- HIVE (Hub for Inclusive Visionary Engagement)
- Office of Housing and Residence Education
- Office of Human Resources and Affirmative Action
- Office of Information Technology
- Institutional Advancement
- Institutional Research
- Instructional Technology Group
- Office of International Student Affairs
- Iwasaki Library
- Lacerte Family Writing and Academic Resource Center
- Office of Marketing and Communications
- Department of Media Technologies and Production
- Off-Campus Student Services
- Office of the President
- Procurement and Business Operations
- Professional Studies and Special Programs
- Office of Property Management
- Office of the Registrar
- Office of Research and Creative Scholarship
- Special Projects/Construction
- Student Accessibility Services
- Student Employment
- Office of Student Financial Services (Office of Financial Aid, Office of Student Accounts)
- Division of Student Affairs (Student Transitions and Family Programs, Student Engagement and Leadership, Office of Community Standards, Center for Spiritual Life)
- Telecommunications
- Wellness Center
Administrative Titles
Titles should be capitalized when preceding a person’s name, but lowercased when following a name.
- President Serena Lindsey
- Serena Lindsey, president
Senior Administrative Titles at Emerson College
- President
- Vice President for Enrollment Management
- Vice President for Community, Culture, and Belonging
- Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer
- Vice President and General Counsel
- Vice President for Institutional Advancement
- Vice President for Marketing and Communications
- Vice President for Physical and Digital Infrastructure
- Vice President for Student Affairs
- Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
- Dean of Graduate and Professional Studies
- Dean of the School of Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies
- Dean of the School of Communication
- Dean of the School of Film, Television, and Media Arts
Advisor
Alumni
Use the gender-neutral alum for an individual.
She is a proud alum of the College.
They are an alum of the LA Program.
Always use alumni when referring to a group of graduates to ensure inclusivity of all gender identities. Avoid the informal alums.
I had dinner with a few Musical Theatre alumni last night.
For information on how to denote class years, refer to class years.
Alumni Association
The formal name is Emerson College Alumni Association.
a.m./p.m.
Refer to Time.
American Comedy Archives
Note Archives is plural. Also known as the American Comedy Collections.
Ampersands
Do not use ampersands in official College names (departments, schools, majors, etc.) and avoid using them in general. However, they are permissible in special circumstances, such as when there are space constraints in communications and marketing materials.
Apostrophes
Refer to punctuation.
Archives, Emerson College
Note Archives is plural.
Art Galleries
Emerson Contemporary: Media Art Gallery: Opened in 2016, the Emerson Contemporary gallery is located at 25 Avery Street.
The Huret & Spector Gallery is located on the sixth floor of the Tufte Performance and Production Center. Note the ampersand.
ArtsEmerson
Emerson’s Office of the Arts is responsible for programming events in the Paramount Center and Cutler Majestic Theatre.
The programming “brand” is called ArtsEmerson. The ArtsEmerson website is artsemerson.org.
Artwork
Athletics
The Department of Athletics has two facilities: Rotch Field and the Bobbi Brown and Steven Plofker Gym (Brown and Plofker Gym for short). It also manages the Fitness Center.
The College is part of Division III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It has 14 Division III teams:
Baseball
Basketball (Men’s and Women’s)
Cross-Country (Men’s and Women’s)
Lacrosse (Men’s and Women’s)
Soccer (Men’s and Women’s)
Softball
Tennis (Men’s and Women’s)
Volleyball (Men’s and Women’s)
The department is also a member of the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC).
The teams are known as the Lions. The term for a student who is also an athlete is student-athlete.