Academic dress in the United States


has a history in the United States going back to the colonial colleges era. It has been most influenced by the academic dress traditions of Europe. There is an Inter-Collegiate Code that sets out a detailed uniform scheme of academic regalia that is voluntarily followed by many, though not all institutions entirely adhere to it.

Elements

Gowns and robes

and master's gowns in the United States are similar to some of their counterparts in the United Kingdom, particularly Oxford. The main differences are that the bachelor's gown is designed to be worn closed and that the sleeves of the modern gown are square at the end instead of pointed as the Code calls for. The master's gown sleeve is oblong and, though the base of the sleeve hangs down, it is square-cut at the rear part of the oblong shape. The front part has an arc cut away, and there is a slit for the wrist opening, but the rest of the arc is closed. The shape is evocative of the square-cut liripipe incorporated into many academic hoods. The master's gown is designed to be worn open or closed.
File:RBG_Columbia.jpg|thumb|A young Ruth Bader Ginsburg wearing Columbia Law School academic regalia. Recent Columbia Law School graduates wear doctoral regalia.
Doctoral gowns are typically black, although some schools use gowns in the school's colors. The Code calls for the outside shell of the hood to remain black in that case. Doctoral gowns have bell sleeves with three velvet bands on them and velvet facing on the front. The Code calls for the gown trim to be either black or the color designated for the field of study in which the doctorate is earned, with the proviso that the Doctor of Philosophy degree uses the dark blue velvet of philosophy regardless of the field studied. Some gowns expose a necktie or cravat when closed. They are designed to be worn open or closed in the front.
Members of a university's governing body, regardless of their degrees, are entitled to wear doctor's gowns, faced only with black velvet and black velvet bars on the sleeves. However, their hoods may be only those of the degree actually held by the wearer. The color standardization for the outside shell of the hood as black provides flexibility of use and helps facilitate this practice.

Hoods

The hood's coloring and size represents the type and subject of degree earned, as well as the institution from which it was awarded. Though no shape is specified in the Code, American bachelors and masters usually wear the Wales simple shape with a split salmon cut; doctors wear the same shape but with "panels" attached to the sides.
  • Shell – The Code calls for the shell material of the hood to match the robe, and for the color to be black regardless of the color of the robe being worn.
  • Interior lining – The interior lining, generally satin, is worn so as to display the colors of the institution from which the wearer received the degree; if more than one color is used, they are usually in the pattern of chevrons or equal divisions.
  • Trim – The outer edge of the cowl is trimmed in velvet or velveteen. The width of the trim is 2 inches, 3 inches, and 5 inches for the bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees, respectively. In most American colleges and universities, the color of the velvet hood trimming is distinctive of the academic field, or as closely related as possible, to which the degree earned pertains. For instance, one who has earned a Master of Arts in Journalism would wear velvet trim of crimson to signify "journalism", rather than white to represent "arts". Trim colors should not be combined or displayed together in any way to attempt to indicate more than one academic field.
  • Length – The length of the hood will vary with the level of academic achievement as well: bachelors wear a 3 foot length, masters a 3.5 foot length, and doctors a 4 foot length. Generally only doctoral hoods are made with the cape or panels at the sides of the hood that lie cape-like across the back.
Candidates may have the hood ceremoniously placed upon them, as is done at some British universities, or a college or school may "self-hood" en masse at the appropriate time during the ceremony. Additionally, the Code allows for the wearing of the hood into the commencement ceremony as part of the academic procession, but only if neither of the two procedures above are being employed. The Code also states: "It is quite appropriate for the bachelor's gown to be worn without a hood." Many institutions, particularly larger ones, have therefore dispensed with the bachelor's hood at commencement ceremonies altogether, though a graduate is still entitled to wear one once the degree is conferred. Both honorary and earned doctoral degrees are very often conferred by the highest academic officer of an institution bestowing the appropriate hood at the podium, regardless of the procedure being followed for other candidates at the ceremony.
Only one hood should be worn at any given time. The regalia indicating the highest degree attained is usually worn, though the Code seems to allow for a graduate to revert for some occasion to the entire academic costume of a lesser degree earned. Those who hold multiple degrees of the same level may wear at any given time the regalia, in its entirety, of any one degree earned. The Code does not allow for 'mixing-and-matching.' The one exception is for officers of the academic institution who, while wearing a doctoral gown of the University being served, may display one hood from any degree earned from any institution.

Headwear

Headwear is an important component of cap-and-gown, and the academic costume is not complete without it. The headwear may vary with the level of academic achievement and, to some extent, on the individual academic institution's specifications.
  • Caps – The mortarboard cap is recommended in the Code, and the material required to match the gown, with the exception that doctoral regalia can instead use a velvet four-, six-, or eight-sided tam, but the four-sided mortarboard-shaped tam in velvet is what the Code seems to recommend here; the only color called for is black, in all cases During graduation ceremonies in the United States, both women and men wear caps, and both women and men wear their caps indoors throughout most of the ceremony, except for men during a baccalaureate service, the national anthem, any benediction that may be offered by a chaplain or other authority, and sometimes the singing of the alma mater if the local custom requires it. Although military and civil uniform, national dress, and clerical garb etc. are worn beneath the academic robe, traditionally only the biretta in conjunction with clerical garb will replace the academic cap. All other costumes forgo the normal headwear in favor of the appropriate academic version.
  • Tassel – The tassel worn on the mortarboard or a tam seems to provide, by tradition, the greatest opportunity for latitude in American academic dress. It has been black, or represented the university's colors, or the colors of the specific college, or the discipline. The tassel has also been used to indicate membership in national honor societies or other awards. However, strictly speaking, the Code states that "The tassel should be black or the color appropriate to the subject," and only makes an exception for the gold tassel, which is reserved for those entitled to wear the doctoral gown. Only one tassel is worn at a time.
There is at some colleges and universities a practice of moving the tassel from one side to the other on graduating, but this is a modern innovation that can be impractical out of doors due to the vagaries of the wind. However, this mark of transition to graduate status has the benefit of taking less time than more traditional indicators such as the individual conferring of the hood or a complete change of dress part-way through the ceremony. In such universities it is common for undergraduates to begin the commencement ceremony with their tassels on the right. Switching the tassel to the left may be done individually or as a group. For doctoral and masters students, the tassel commonly begins and remains on the left.

Other adornments

A number of other items such as cords, stoles or aiguillettes representing various academic achievements or other honors are also worn at the discretion of some degree-granting institutions. The Code disapproves of their use on or over academic regalia, saying that
"...shoes and other articles of visible apparel worn by graduates should be of dark colors that harmonize with the academic costume. Nothing else should be worn on the academic gown."
Apparel and tokens representing awards and honors are not considered a component of academic dress, not only because the Code suggests avoiding them, but also because they are often worn without the defining cap and gown, and they are usually not worn by a graduate with academic robes after the commencement year in which the honor was awarded. Nevertheless, they are often seen with academic regalia in the United States, and are therefore mentioned here.
  • Medals/medallions – When worn about the neck, medals/medallions may not be in conflict with the Code if worn beneath the hood and visible only with the gown open. The Code's exception is only for special regalia for a chief marshal, the university or college president, etc. which may include medallions or other devices symbolic of the office. As a medallion in this case is symbolic of the office and not academic achievement, once the wearer leaves the office they are no longer entitled to wear it. Therefore, it is not a component of an individual's academic regalia, but a component of the regalia for the office.
  • Honor cord – Honor cords usually consist of twisted cords with tassels on either end. They are sometimes awarded for various academic achievements, or to members of honor societies. Often, cords come in pairs with a knot in the middle to hold them together. Sashes, stoles, or medallions are also awarded in place of cords. At least one school, the University of Colorado Boulder, uses a white sash to designate a first-generation college graduate. Any of these items are customarily worn with non-academic attire, as well. With cap and gown, and hood when utilized, some educational institutions have permitted these cords to complement the regalia of a high school or university candidate, ignoring the ACE Code to the contrary. Unlike hoods, tassels and stoles, custom allows more than one cord to be worn at the same time.