Our Logo System

Yale School of Medicine (YSM) uses the official Yale wordmark system to visually identify the School. These wordmarks replace individual departmental or program logos and must appear on all official communications, including digital, print, and promotional materials.

Yale School of Medicine operates within Yale University's wordmark system — a university-wide visual hierarchy that connects every school, department, program, and center to the institution as a whole. The YSM wordmark is the primary identifier for the School and all of its constituent units, and should appear on all official print and digital communications, including stationery, websites, marketing materials, and signage.

The system is anchored by Yale's defined color palette, Matthew Carter's Yale and Mallory typefaces, and a set of visual standards maintained by the Office of the University Printer. Using the YSM wordmark strengthens each unit's connection to Yale's reputation and ensures that departments, programs, centers, and administrative offices are clearly recognized as part of the YSM and the broader university.

A vertical (square) version of the logo is available for limited use cases. Please email ysm.brand@yale.edu for more information.

Primary wordmarks are available in full-color and white formats, and in both print-ready (EPS) and digital (PNG, SVG) files. Always use the provided artwork without modification to ensure consistency, clarity, and brand integrity.

Download YSM Primary Wordmark (ZIP)

Package includes blue and white versions in PNG, SVG, EPS formats. If you need other formats, please contact ysm.brand@yale.edu.

Do not scale wordmarks horizontally or vertically.

The Yale logo should have clear space on all sides that is equal to the height of the ‘Y’ at the size it’s being used. For example, the logo shown below is .25” tall and therefore needs.25” clear space—shown here in gray—added to all sides. No text or other graphics should be within the gray area.

In print, the Yale logo should be large enough to ensure legibility and a proper hierarchical relationship to other typographic elements. The ‘Y’ in the wordmark should be at least the size of 9 point type.

For digital display, the Yale logo should be no smaller than 12 pixels tall.

The YSM logo may only be shown in black, white, Yale Blue, or Yale Gray. Specifications for Yale Blue and Yale Gray can be found here.

The preferred background colors for a white “drop-out” Yale logo are black, Yale Blue, and Yale Gray.

• Other background colors are permissible. If using a background color other than black, Yale Blue, or Yale Gray, the Yale logo must appear in white against a dark background or black against a light background.
• Maintain contrast between the background and the logo to ensure legibility. Never print it against or dropped out of a busy background that compromises its visibility.
• The logo may be printed against or dropped out of a photographic image only if it remains highly visible and legible.

In digital applications, the main site logo is controlled at the system level and is generally placed in the header (see below for guidance on using the logo on external sites).

In print publications, the YSM wordmark does not need to be a prominent display element. It can function at small to moderate sizes to brand a publication as a Yale product. In print formats, the YSM wordmark functions best when placed on the back cover or at the bottom of a page.

Use of external logos, badges, or certification symbols on YSM materials requires approval from the Office of Communications — some uses may require approval from the Dean or General Council. Please contact us at ysm.brand@yale.edu for guidance.

Co-branding at YSM falls into two distinct categories. The first is a formal logo lockup: an official pairing of the YSM or Yale Medicine wordmark with another organization's identifier that signals an institutional relationship or partnership. The second is informal co-presentation — materials such as scientific posters, event programs, or collaborative communications where the identifiers of multiple contributing organizations appear together to accurately reflect shared authorship or participation. In all cases, co-branded materials must comply with Yale University trademark standards and YSM brand guidelines.

Formal Logo lockups

Any co-branded logo lockup of the YSM or Yale Medicine wordmark with the identifier of another organization—such as a partner institution, health system, or research consortium—requires approval from the YSM Office of Communications branding team and/or the Dean's Office and/or the Office of General Council prior to development or use. Once approved, official lockups will be provided by the YSM Office of Communications or the Office of University Printer to ensure they meet Yale identity standards and applicable trademark requirements. To initiate a co-branding request, contact ysm.brand@yale.edu.

Informal co-presentation

The design principles below apply to any context where the YSM wordmark appears alongside another organization's mark—whether on a conference poster, a community event flyer, or a co-sponsored program. In these instances, logo placement must not imply an official affiliation between the organizations, and the following design guidance should be followed:

• Hierarchy and placement: The position and size of each identifier reflects the organizational relationship. When YSM is the primary or lead institution, the YSM wordmark appears first (left or top, depending on orientation) and at equal or greater prominence. When YSM is a secondary or supporting partner, the lead organization's identifier may appear first, with the YSM wordmark following. If the relationship is equal, identifiers should be presented at the same size and in a consistent format/layout.
• Size and proportion: Partner identifiers should be sized proportionally so that no single mark visually dominates in a way that misrepresents the relationship. The YSM wordmark should never be scaled so small that it becomes illegible or appears incidental.
• Separation: A clear visual break must appear between identifiers. This may take the form of a vertical or horizontal rule, a defined gutter of white space, or a combination of both. Identifiers must not touch, overlap, or be positioned so close together that they read as a single mark or formal affiliation.
• Safe space: The YSM wordmark's clear space requirements must be maintained on all sides, including where it abuts a partner identifier or divider element. Refer to the YSM Brand Center for safe space specifications.
• Backgrounds and color: Each identifier should appear in its approved form on a background that meets its own contrast and legibility requirements. Altering the color of either identifier to accommodate a shared background is not permitted.
• No new marks: At no point should the combination of two identifiers—through enclosure, shared graphic elements, or other design choices—read as a new, unified logo or formal partnership agreement.

All co-branding requests should begin with ysm.brand@yale.edu. Requests involving commercial partners or novel arrangements will be routed to Yale Trademark Licensing as appropriate.

For approval to use the shield and receive art files, please contact ysm.brand@yale.edu.