Academic abbreviations follow a student from kindergarten to graduate school: an IEP meeting in second grade, AP classes and the SAT in high school, a GPA on every transcript and letters like MA or PhD after a name on a diploma. Each set of letters stands for a test, a degree, a program or an office, and knowing which is which makes school paperwork far less confusing.
This section sorts the school acronyms parents and students look up most into four groups: degrees, tests, special education and support programs, and clubs and classroom terms. Every entry links to a page with the full form, what it means for a student, and how to write it.
Quick facts
Covers
Degrees, tests, school programs, student clubs, writing stylesMost searched
STEM, PhD, GPA, SAT, IEP, APDegree letters
Often from Latin, like PhD and JDTest names
Some no longer stand for anything, like SAT and ACTUsed on
Report cards, transcripts, résumés, school emailsPeriods
Usually none in modern US style: PhD, MA, GPA
Degree abbreviations after a name
Degree letters tell you the level and the field of study. Several come from Latin, which is why the order of the letters can look backward in English.
| Letters | Degree | Level |
|---|---|---|
| AA | Associate of Arts | Two year college |
| MA | Master of Arts | Graduate |
| MSc | Master of Science | Graduate |
| MFA | Master of Fine Arts | Graduate, creative fields |
| JD | Juris Doctor | Law school |
| MD | Doctor of Medicine (medicinae doctor) | Medical school |
| PhD | Doctor of Philosophy (philosophiae doctor) | Research doctorate |
A PhD is not limited to philosophy. The word is used in its old sense of love of learning, so a chemist and a historian can both hold one. In American writing the letters usually go without periods and with a comma after the name: Jordan Lee, PhD.
Test and admission acronyms
Standardized tests are where academic abbreviations get tricky, because a few of these names have dropped their old full forms.
- SAT: once the Scholastic Aptitude Test. Today the letters are the official name.
- PSAT: the Preliminary SAT, taken earlier in high school.
- ACT: began as American College Testing, and now also goes by its letters alone.
- AP: Advanced Placement, college level classes and exams taken in high school.
- IB: International Baccalaureate, a diploma program used in many countries.
- GED: General Educational Development, the high school equivalency test.
- MCAT: Medical College Admission Test.
- LSAT: Law School Admission Test.
On a college checklist: "Send official SAT or ACT scores and your AP results." This asks for your admission test scores from one of the two main tests and the scores from any Advanced Placement exams you took.
Special education and student support
Parents often meet these letters for the first time in a school meeting, and the full forms help a great deal.
| Letters | Stands for | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| IEP | Individualized Education Program | A written plan of services for a student with a disability |
| IDEA | Individuals with Disabilities Education Act | The federal law behind IEPs |
| RTI | Response to Intervention | Extra help in steps, checked over time |
| MTSS | Multi-Tiered System of Supports | A wider framework that includes academic and behavior help |
| PBIS | Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports | A schoolwide approach to behavior |
| ELD | English language development | Classes for students learning English |
| SEL | Social and emotional learning | Lessons on skills like managing feelings |
Classroom subjects, grades and writing styles
- STEM: science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
- ELA: English language arts, the reading and writing class.
- PE: physical education, or gym class.
- CTE: career and technical education, hands on job training courses.
- GPA: grade point average, your grades turned into one number.
- DBQ: document based question, a history essay built on source documents.
- MLA and APA: Modern Language Association and American Psychological Association, the two citation styles most teachers ask for. Each one sets rules for how to list sources at the end of a paper and how to cite them in the text.
- QED: quod erat demonstrandum, Latin for which was to be shown, written at the end of a proof.
- CPCTC: corresponding parts of congruent triangles are congruent, a step in geometry proofs.
MLA style is common in English classes, while APA is the usual choice in psychology and other social sciences.
Student clubs, campus roles and colleges
Outside class, academic abbreviations name clubs, jobs and schools themselves.
- PTA: Parent Teacher Association.
- TA: teaching assistant, a helper in a class or lab.
- RA: resident assistant, the student who looks after a dorm floor.
- ROTC: Reserve Officers' Training Corps, a college program that trains future military officers while they earn a degree.
- HBCU: historically Black college or university.
- FCCLA: Family, Career and Community Leaders of America.
- DECA and HOSA: career clubs for business and health students. Both now use the letters as their name.
- UCLA: University of California, Los Angeles.
Tips for reading academic abbreviations
- Ask what a letter means in this school. MAP, RTI and TA can name different things in different districts.
- Watch for doubles. MD is a medical degree after a name and the state of Maryland on an address. MA is a master's degree or Massachusetts.
- Use the right article. Write an MFA and an SAT score, because the letter names start with a vowel sound.
- Skip the periods. Modern US style writes PhD, MA and GPA without them, though some schools still use Ph.D.
- Spell it out once. In a letter home, write Individualized Education Program the first time and IEP after that.
For the general rules behind all of this, see acronym vs abbreviation and how to abbreviate. Memory tricks students use for tests, like PEMDAS, are collected in memory acronyms.
Questions people ask
What are academic abbreviations?
They are short forms used in schools and colleges for degrees, tests, programs and offices. Examples include PhD, GPA, SAT and IEP.
Does SAT still stand for something?
Not officially. It began as the Scholastic Aptitude Test, but the letters are now the test's full name.
Should I write PhD or Ph.D.?
Both are correct. Many American style guides now drop the periods and write PhD, while some universities keep Ph.D. on their own documents.
What is the difference between an IEP and RTI?
An IEP is a formal written plan for a student who qualifies for special education under federal law. RTI is a step by step way of giving extra help to students who are struggling, often before any special education decision.
How do you list degree abbreviations after a name?
Put a comma after the name and then the letters, as in Sam Ortiz, MA. Most people list only their highest degree.