Postnominals

Postnominals, or post-nominal letters, are letters or abbreviations placed after a person’s name to indicate qualifications, honors, or affiliations. They can signify academic degrees, professional licenses or certifications, official honors, or memberships in learned societies. The practice is widespread in many countries and contexts, though conventions vary.

Common postnominal types include academic degrees such as BA, BSc, MSc, and PhD; professional credentials such as MD, JD, CPA, or PE; and honors or orders such as OBE, MBE, or fellowships like FRS (Fellow of the Royal Society). Some postnominals denote membership in scholarly or professional organizations (for example, FRSA for the Royal Society of Arts). In some regions, honorary titles may also be expressed as postnominals, though not all societies grant them the same status as earned credentials.

Usage and ordering of postnominals are not globally standardized. Many style guides suggest grouping and ordering by category, often placing academic degrees first, followed by professional qualifications, then honors and memberships. Within each category, seniority or relevance can influence order. Some jurisdictions permit multiple sequences or require specific titles for certain designations, while others allow individuals to omit postnominals in casual contexts. Variations also exist in punctuation and formatting, with some styles using periods (Ph.D.) and others not (PhD).

The practice of using postnominals reflects social and professional conventions, and readers should interpret them in light of regional norms and the context in which they appear.