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Abbreviations and acronyms

An abbreviation is a shortened or contracted form of a word or phrase (e.g. Doctor is abbreviated as Dr.).

An acronym is a word formed from the initial letters or groups of letters in a phrase (e.g. Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science becomes, FEAS.

Example: Periods are not used in acronyms but should follow an abbreviation.

Guidelines:

  •  In subsequent references, use the acronym alone if it makes sense in context.
  • Periods are not used in acronyms but should follow an abbreviation.
  • The first reference to an acronym must include the full term, followed by the acronym in brackets.

Examples:

Correct: The Faculty of Social Science and Humanities (FSSH) is located at the university’s downtown Oshawa. FSSH offers multiple interdisciplinary programs.

Correct: The Registrar’s office is located in the Software and Informatics Research Centre (SIR). The Internet of Things lab is also in SIR.

Provinces and Territories

In general, spell out the names of provinces, territories, countries and states in written content.

For Canadian provinces and territories, Canadian Press uses the following abbreviations in text (including second references):

  • Alta., B.C., Man., N.B., N.L., N.W.T., N.S., Ont., P.E.I., Que., Sask.
  • Yukon and Nunavut should be written in full.

For mailing addresses, lists, and tables, use Canada Post’s two-letter abbreviations:

  • AB, BC, MB, NB, NL, NS, NT, NU, ON, PE, QC, SK, YT