Style guide

What you need to know

The MIT Bulletin follows a set of standards in order to provide a consistent experience for readers. We encourage you to use this guide for your department’s program descriptions and subject listings.

Keep in mind our helpful style Dos and Don’ts.

• Do separate instructor’s initials (if relevant) with a space (e.g., J. A. Hoffman).
• Do use the present tense only (e.g., “Students write”).
• Do use “term,” not “semester.”
• Do convey the intellectual content of the subject.
• Do use “and,” rather than an ampersand. Use the & symbol in transcript titles only.
• Do write succinct catalog descriptions of three or four brief sentences.

• Don’t use first-person pronouns, such as “we,” “our,” or “us.”
• Don’t use the term “in-class,” as in “in-class exercises.” “Exercises” alone implies that they are done in class.
• Don’t use the term “hands-on.” Instead describe what exactly makes the subject or project “hands-on” (e.g., “Students make” or “involves a project in which”).
• Don’t use “this subject,” “this class,” etc.
• Don’t repeat the class syllabus or include long lists of subtopics. 

Common terms & abbreviations