Graduation regalia is the formal academic clothing worn during commencement ceremonies, consisting of a gown, a cap (called a mortarboard), a tassel, and sometimes a hood. Together, these pieces identify a graduate’s degree level, field of study, and institution. The tradition dates back to 12th-century medieval scholars’ garments and was standardized in the United States in 1895, when the Intercollegiate Code of Academic Costume established specific designs for each degree level.
The Gown
The gown is the largest and most visible piece of regalia. It’s a long robe that covers the entire body, and its design changes depending on the degree being awarded. Bachelor’s gowns are simple robes with pointed sleeves. Master’s gowns look similar but feature longer, closed sleeves with an extension at the back of the wrist opening. Doctoral gowns are the most elaborate: they’re typically made of velvet, with three velvet stripes on each arm and velvet lapels running down the front.
Most gowns are black, following the original 1895 code, though some universities use their school colors for bachelor’s and master’s gowns. The velvet trim on doctoral gowns is color-coded to represent the graduate’s field of study, which is one of the ways regalia communicates academic identity at a glance.
The Cap and Tassel
The standard graduation cap is a mortarboard, a flat, square board mounted on top of a fitted skullcap. It sits level on your head, and most versions include the university’s colors or a small metal charm with the school’s insignia on the tassel. Doctoral graduates sometimes wear a tam instead. A tam is typically made of black velvet with a soft, rounded top rather than a rigid board, and it can have four, six, or eight sides.
The tassel hangs from the center of the mortarboard near your temple. Where it hangs matters. Bachelor’s graduates wear the tassel on the right side throughout the ceremony, then move it to the left once their degree is officially conferred. That moment, when the entire graduating class shifts their tassels together, is one of the most recognizable parts of any commencement. Master’s and doctoral graduates typically keep the tassel on the left from the start, signifying that they’ve already achieved an advanced level of study.
The Hood
Academic hoods are worn primarily by master’s and doctoral graduates, though some bachelor’s programs include them as well. The hood drapes around your neck and hangs down your back. You secure it with a small cord or a safety pin fastened to a shirt button or the inside of the gown to keep it from slipping off your shoulders.
Hoods serve a specific visual purpose: the velvet border on the outside edge indicates the graduate’s field of study, while the satin lining displays the colors of the degree-granting university. A graduate with a purple velvet trim studied law, while golden yellow represents science. This dual color system means anyone who knows the code can identify both what a graduate studied and where they earned the degree.
What the Colors Mean
The velvet colors on hoods and doctoral gown trim follow a standardized system. Each academic discipline has an assigned color. Some of the most common include:
- White: Arts, Letters, and Humanities
- Golden Yellow: Science
- Light Blue: Education
- Dark Blue: Philosophy
- Purple: Law
- Scarlet: Theology
- Pink: Music
- Brown: Fine Arts
- Yellow Brown: Commerce, Business, and Accountancy
- Crimson: Journalism
- Lemon Yellow: Library Science
- Sage Green: Physical Education
These colors appear most prominently at graduate-level ceremonies, where hoods and velvet-trimmed gowns make the distinctions visible. At an undergraduate ceremony, you’ll mostly see the university’s own colors on gowns and tassels rather than discipline-specific trim.
Cords, Stoles, and Medals
Beyond the core cap, gown, and hood, graduates often wear additional items that recognize specific achievements or affiliations. These extras layer on top of the standard regalia and vary widely by school.
Honor cords are rope-like strands draped around the neck. Different colors represent different distinctions: academic honors like cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa cum laude; military service; membership in an honors society; or achievement in a specific academic field. A graduate wearing multiple cords earned recognition from more than one group or program.
Stoles (sometimes called sashes) are wider, scarf-like garments worn over the shoulders. They typically represent a student’s involvement with a campus organization, cultural community, or college within the university. Some schools offer first-generation stoles for students who are the first in their family to earn a degree, or legacy cords for students whose parents or grandparents attended the same institution.
Honors medals are awarded by individual colleges or programs within a university, and the criteria vary. Students are usually notified before the ceremony if they’ve earned one. These are worn around the neck on a ribbon and signify a high level of academic achievement within a specific program.
How Regalia Differs by Degree Level
The quickest way to identify someone’s degree level at a commencement ceremony is by looking at the sleeves and the presence of a hood. A bachelor’s graduate wears a simple gown with pointed sleeves, a mortarboard, and a tassel that starts on the right. A master’s graduate wears a similar gown but with longer, closed sleeves that have a distinctive wrist extension, plus an academic hood with field-of-study colors. A doctoral graduate wears the most distinctive outfit: a velvet gown with three arm stripes and velvet lapels, an academic hood, and often a tam instead of a mortarboard.
These visual cues are the entire point of regalia. The system was designed so that a person’s educational background is legible from across a room. At large ceremonies where faculty members process alongside graduates, you can often spot professors by their doctoral gowns, with the velvet colors revealing whether they studied engineering, literature, or economics.