Typography & Fonts
SJSU has proprietary fonts created by our own design talent, Professor Chang Sik Kim. Consistent use of our unique fonts builds a recognizable "character" style over time and elevates brand perception. Long term use of our unique font families creates a structural familiarity in all university visual communications.
Few universities have unique typefaces. San José State now has that distinction.
On this page:
SJSU Spartan
The SJSU Spartan Typeface is the foundation of the university's visual style.
Kim, of SJSU's Department of Graphic Design, developed our hybrid typeface in 2014, drawing inspiration from the classic fonts of ancient Sparta, several mid-century old style typefaces, as well as transitional and modern typefaces. The letterforms are round, stable and strong, with no thin or fragile elements.
By integrating characteristics of each, he has produced a typeface that expresses both SJSU's history as the founding campus of the California State University system and our dynamic future as Silicon Valley's public university.
SJSU Spartan Usage
Standardizing our type family usage helps to maintain a consistent look and feel across all media.
SJSU Spartan may be used in print and video, as well as on the web.
- Print and video: SJSU Spartan may be used for main headers, pull quotes and body text, including formal body text on certificates, diplomas and invitations.
- Web: The Spartan typeface may be used for the title, unit lockup in the footer if any, and limited use for graphic elements such as typographic patterns and pull quotes. Learn more about font usage for website headers and footers.
- Directional signage: You may use pictograms that have been created to compliment SJSU Spartan, along with the primary mark or your unit lockup.
NOTE: Signage and wayfinding guidelines are in the works.
SJSU Pride
SJSU Pride is just that: Proud, bold and diverse spirited headlines, body copy, and even words over photos do well with our newest proprietary typeface. Athletics is naturally a super-user of Spartan Pride
Complimentary fonts
SJSU's primary display typefaces, alone or with complementary fonts Proxima Nova and Helvetica Neue, should be employed for all university communications. Both complementary fonts have a strong geometric form and are accessible "Sans Serif" fonts that function well for any communication text and for timeless building signage.
Our external facing perimeter building signage includes SJSU Spartan, oncampus building identifying fonts are Proxima Nova.
Font stacks for web
Web font stacks in CSS are managed through SJSU's content management system. The primary web font is Nunito Sans and the fall back secondary and tertiary fonts are Verdana and sans-serif.
