Academic Degrees

Use periods for two-letter degrees, such as B.A., B.S., M.A., J.D., etc. In general, do not use periods for three-letter degrees, such as MBA, MFA, etc.

Undergraduate Programs

Abbreviation	Full Official Name	Casual Reference
B.A.	Bachelor of Arts	bachelor’s [degree]
BBA	Bachelor of Business Administration	bachelor’s [degree]
BFA	Bachelor of Fine Arts	bachelor’s [degree]
B.M.	Bachelor of Music	bachelor’s [degree]
B.S.	Bachelor of Science	bachelor’s [degree]
LL.B.	Bachelor of Laws

Master’s Programs

Abbreviation	Full Official Name	Casual Reference
LL.M.	Master of Laws
M.A.	Master of Arts	master’s [degree]
MAT	Master of Arts in Teaching
M.S.	Master of Science	master’s [degree]
MAcc	Master of Accounting	master’s [degree in accounting]
MBA	Master of Business Administration (always abbreviated)	MBA
MBT	Master of Business Taxation	master’s [degree in business taxation]
MCL	Master of Comparative Law
M.E.	Master of Education	master’s [degree in education]
M.Ed.	Master of Education	master’s [degree in education]
MFA	Master of Fine Arts (always abbreviated)	MFA
MFT	Master of Marriage and Family Therapy	master’s [degree in marriage and family therapy]
MHA	Master of Health Administration	master’s [degree in health administration]
MHP	Master of Historic Preservation	master’s [degree in historic preservation]
MLA	Master of Landscape Architecture	masters’s [degree in landscape architecture]
M.LL.	Master of Laws
MLS	Master of Library Science
MLIS	Master of Library and Information Sciences
M.M.	Master of Music	master’s [degree in music]
MMM	Master of Medical Management	master’s [degree in medical management]
MPA	Master of Public Administration	master’s [degree in public administration]
MPAS	Master of Public Art Studies	master’s [degree in public art studies]
MPH	Master of Public Health	master’s [degree in public health]
MPl	Master of Planning	master’s [degree in planning]
MPP	Master of Public Policy	master’s [degree in public policy]
MPT	Master of Physical Therapy
MPW	Master of Professional Writing (nearly always abbreviated)	master’s [degree in professional writing]
MRED	Master of Real Estate Development	master’s [degree in real estate development]
MSIA	Master of Science in Information Assurance, or
	Master of Science in Information Administration
MSW	Master of Social Work	master’s [degree in social work]

Doctorate Programs

Abbreviation	Full Official Name	Casual Reference
DDS	Doctor of Dental Surgery	doctor of dental surgery
DMA	Doctor of Musical Arts	doctorate [in music]
DMD	Doctor of Dental Medicine	doctor of dental medicine
DPA	Doctor of Public Administration	doctorate [in public administration]
DPPD	Doctor of Policy, Planning, and Development	doctorate [in policy, planning and development]
Ed.D.	Doctor of Education	doctorate [in education]
J.D.	Juris Doctor	law degree
JSD	Doctor of Judicial Science
LL.D.	Doctor of Laws, or Legum Doctor
M.D.	Doctor of Medicine	medical degree
OTD	Doctor of Occupational Therapy
Pharm.D.	Doctor of Pharmacy	doctor of pharmacy
Ph.D.	Doctor of Philosophy	doctorate
Psy.D.	Doctor of Psychology
SJD	Doctor of Judicial Science

Other

Abbreviation	Full Official Name
ATC	Certification in Athletic Training
BCG	Board Certified in Gerontology
CCC-SLP	Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology
CCS	Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Certified Specialist
CHT	Certified Hand Therapist
C/NDT	Certification in Neuro-Developmental Treatment
CSCS	Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist
CWCE	Certified Work Capacity Evaluator
FAHA	Fellow of the American Heart Association
FAPTA	Fellow of the American Physical Therapy Association
NCS	Neurologic Certified Specialist
OCS	Orthopaedic Certified Specialist
OTR/L	Occupational Therapist, Registered, Licensed
SCS	Sports Certified Specialist

Use lowercase for bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree.
Use uppercase for Bachelor of Science, Master of Arts, etc.
B.A. or A.B., M.A. or A.M. Although USC does not award the A.B. or A.M., other universities do. Do not change A.B. or A.M. in lists of previous degrees for faculty or degree candidates.