The Office of External Relations has developed style guidelines to ensure consistency for official publications. In general, the use of the Associated Press Stylebook and the Chicago Manual of Style is preferred. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary is also recommended.
Note: The UT System Board of Regents office uses a separate style for official Board documents as noted in the Board of Regents Meetings Style Guide
UT System References
Use "The University of Texas System" on first reference and "the UT System" on second reference.
It is also correct to refer to "the System" on second reference, as long as the meaning is clear. It is also correct to use the term System Administration when referring to the specific administrative offices of the System in Austin.
Board Office: Periods and a space between "U" and "T" are required on agenda items or official documents submitted to the Board.
The Board of Regents
The UT System Board of Regents is preferred.
Avoid using UT Board of Regents.
Lowercase "board" and "regents" only if used separately. (She is a regent. He is on the board.)
Capitalize Chancellor when used without a name, but otherwise use lower case for titles used without names .
Board Office: U. T. System Board of Regents. Capitalize all references to "Board" or "Regent." (She is a Regent. He is on the Board.) All titles are capitalized. (Bob Smith is Vice Chairman.)
See the UT System Board of Regents website for correct names and titles for the Regents.
Note: In some documents, "Board" or "Regent" will be capitalized even when they stand alone. For example, in an official program for a ceremonial event such as a Santa Rita Award dinner, capitalize the words "Board" and "Regent" when they stand alone. But do not capitalize them in a news release or less formal documents.
Only "Rules and Regulations" are italicized in Regents' Rules and Regulations . Regents' Rules is acceptable on the second reference.
Board of Regents - correspondence
Use the following examples: Dear Chairman Jones, Vice Chairman Johnson, or Regent Smith. See also, "chairman."
Institutions
Always use the institution's complete name on first reference and its official abbreviation (below) on second reference. In general, when referencing the 13 UT institutions collectively, use the term "institutions" and not "components" or "campuses." Second references can also be "the University," "the Institution," "the Health Science Center," "the Medical Branch," "the Health Center," etc. Also, use a space between M. and D. in M. D. Anderson.
Do not use hyphens between "UT" and the rest of the name: for example UT-Arlington or UT-Medical Branch.
Exception: In less formal situations or in tables, charts, and graphs, the periods in UT may be omitted in order to improve readability. (Example: UTEP.)
Institution References: In accordance with the Regents' Rules and Regulations, Rule 40601 , the institutions should be listed in the following order with the following abbreviations on the second reference. Other generally accepted abbreviations are in parenthesis. For charts, further abbreviations may be used as long as the meaning is clear (e.g., "Arlington," "Austin," etc.)
| Institution | Abbreviation* | Board Office |
| The University of Texas at Arlington | UT Arlington (also UTA) |
U. T. Arlington (also UTA) |
| The University of Texas at Austin | UT Austin (also UTAUS; never UTA) |
U. T. Austin (also UTAUS; never UTA) |
| The University of Texas at Dallas | UT Dallas (also UTD) |
U. T. Dallas (also UTD) |
| The University of Texas at El Paso | UT El Paso (also UTEP) |
U. T. El Paso (also UTEP) |
| The University of Texas Permian Basin | UT Permian Basin (also UTPB) |
U. T. Permian Basin (also UTPB) |
| The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley | UT Rio Grande Valley (also UTRGV) |
U. T. Rio Grande Valley (also UTRGV) |
| The University of Texas at San Antonio | UT San Antonio (also UTSA) |
U. T. San Antonio (also UTSA) |
| Stephen F. Austin State University |
Stephen F. Austin State University
(also Stephen F. Austin or SFA) |
Stephen F. Austin State University, a Member of the University of Texas System |
| The University of Texas at Tyler | UT Tyler (also UTT) |
U. T. Tyler (also UTT) |
| The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center | UT Southwestern Medical Center (also "Southwestern" or UTSWMC) |
U. T. Southwestern Medical Center (also "Southwestern" or UTSWMC) |
| The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston | UT Medical Branch - Galveston (also the Medical Branch or UTMB) |
U. T. Medical Branch - Galveston (also the Medical Branch or UTMB) |
| The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston | UT Health Science Center - Houston (also UTHealth, UTHSCH, UTHSC-H, or UTHSC-Houston) Never use UT Houston. |
U. T. Health Science Center - Houston (also UTHSCH, UTHSC-H, or UTHSC-Houston) Never use U. T. Houston. |
| The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio | UT Health Science Center - San Antonio (also UT Health San Antonio, UTHSCSA, UTHSC-SA, or UTHSC-San Antonio) |
U. T. Health Science Center - San Antonio (also UTHSCSA, UTHSC-SA, or UTHSC-San Antonio) |
| The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center | UT MD Anderson Cancer Center (also MD Anderson, UTMDA, Cancer Center, or UTMDACC) |
U. T. M. D. Anderson Cancer Center (also M. D. Anderson, UTMDA, Cancer Center, or UTMDACC) |
| The University of Texas System | UT System | U. T. System |
| The University of Texas System Administration | UT System Administration | U. T. System Administration |
| The University of Texas System Board of Regents | UT System Board of Regents | U. T. System Board of Regents |
*less formal abbreviations are in parenthesis
See Regents' Rules and Regulations, Rule 40601 for more information including official names for satellites, colleges, and schools.
