GETTING A SIGNATURE MADE
Unless your department has a designer that has been trained in creating unit signatures, all signatures must be created by Repro Graphics.
To request a unit signature, contact the Repro Graphics design unit.
Unit Signatures are the only approved logos to represent campus units with few exceptions. They must be created by Repro Graphics. In some cases a designer in an academic or administrative unit can be trained by Strategic Communications to create them.
There are three types: the Standard Unit Signatures, the School and College Signatures and the Center and Institute Signatures.
All three types can be set in centered and/or flush-left orientations based on set templates.
Uniformity
All unit signatures combine the UC Davis Wordmark with unit names according to set conventions. This includes signatures for schools and colleges, for administrative and academic units and for centers and institutes. All fonts, colors, size and spatial relationships are based on templates and must not be altered.
SIGNATURE ARCHIVE
Need an existing unit, school or college signature? Visit the signature archive, managed by Repro Graphics.
Hierarchy
All UC Davis unit signatures have two levels and a third, optional level. All marks contain the UC Davis wordmark in the top position. The second level position is for the name of the unit to be identified by the signature. The third position is used to provide additional organizational context if needed.
Most signatures with three levels will reflect the same order as an organizational chart. The following examples all represent the fictitious unit, the Department of Clarity.
1. The Department of Clarity in the second position under the UC Davis wordmark.
2. The Department of Clarity in a three-level mark in organizational chart order, with its parent unit, the Hypothetical College in the second position.
3. The Department of Clarity in a three-level mark in inverted order. Here it has been determined that the audience would benefit from seeing the unit's name in the dominant position, but its relationship to a larger entity is necessary but not as critical to convey. In this case the third level must reference the correct relationship between the entities.
The exact language of the third line is not mandated only that the relationship is clarified.
It could also be worded:
... In the Hypothetical College;
... A Departmemt of the Hypothetical Colllege;
... A unit of the Hypothetical Colllege
The three types of unit signatures
1. School and college signature
The 10 schools and colleges have optional graphics attached to their signatures. These are a finite, consistent set of marks. This set only applies to the top level identity of a school or college.
Units within Schools and Colleges can only use their parent entity’s icon if the name of the school or college appears in second position under the UC Davis wordmark. See the three options for Biomedical Engineering within the College of Engineering, below. The Engineering icon can only appear in the first example.
The two options below must be standard wordmarks only and cannot feature the college's icon:
2. Institutional unit signature
This mark is used for most units on campus, including all academic and administrative units. This includes marks for units within a school or college that do not feature the name of the school or college in the primary position under the horizontal rule. In the example below, the signature for the Department of Chemistry’s Chemistry Computer Lab does not feature the College of Letters and Science icon, because Department of Chemistry is in the primary position beneath the horizontal rule.
3. Center and institute signature
This type of UC Davis mark is to be used — with or without a graphic icon — for centers, institutes, graduate groups and shared spaces such as laboratories or study rooms. On a case by case basis, use can be granted for a limited number of other entities. UC Davis centers and institutes must discontinue the use of the standard academic and administrative signature by January 2025. Please contact Repro Graphics for help in creating a new signature if necessary.
The entities described above share unique branding needs and are set apart from other academic and administrative units.
Center and institute signatures include the UC Davis Wordmark, the name of the place or entity it represents, and an optional custom graphic mark. This convention should not be used without permission from Strategic Communications.
Icons for centers and institutes must be unique, simple, memorable. They must also be sophisticated and elegant enough to represent UC Davis in the best possible light. These icons should not contain complex illustrations, photos, words or letterforms.
We require that all new marks of this type be reviewed for approval by Strategic Communications.
Color and contrast in unit signatures
In the following examples we have used the signature for the College of Biological Sciences, as the School and College Signature is the most complex in terms of contrast. Color designations for unit name and UC Davis Wordmark apply to all three types of Unit Signature.
Full color on light backgrounds, white through 20% gold, or other light color
With other backgrounds, the contrast to mark must be equivalent or greater.
Full color reverse on dark backgrounds 100% Aggie Blue—black
With other backgrounds, the contrast to mark must be equivalent.
Monochrome on white
Monochrome on light background
