The gown and hood worn for BA graduation

As is natural in the second oldest university in the United Kingdom, the University of Cambridge has a long tradition of academic dress. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Western Illinois University A university is an institution of higher education and of research, which grants academic degrees at all levels (bachelor, master, and doctorate) in a variety of subjects. ... The University of Cambridge (often called Cambridge University), located in Cambridge, England, is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... Academic dress or academical dress (also known in the United States as academic regalia) is traditional clothing worn specifically in academic settings. ...

When academic dress is worn

Academic dress is still worn quite often in Cambridge on formal occasions. Many undergraduates in their first week at Cambridge buy (or borrow) a gown for the purpose of enrolment in the University (known as matriculation). It is more common to buy a gown, especially at the more traditional colleges, as the number of occasions on which it is worn quickly repays the investment; gowns are often recycled between 'generations', as new graduate students in turn need to upgrade their gowns at the start of the year. It is usually sufficient for students to buy their gowns in the first few weeks after arrival at the University. The matriculation ceremony at Oxford Matriculation refers to the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by acquiring the required prior qualifications. ...

In some colleges, gowns are worn to Formal Hall (formal dinner, held almost every night in some colleges, once a term in others) and to Chapel. Various College events also demand academic dress; for example, in the Trinity College statutes, it specifies that certain senior members of College (such as the Dean) prefer students to wear academic dress when addressing them in their official capacity (often when having been "deaned" for breaking the College Rules). The extent to which these rules apply vary greatly from college to college, some dispensing with them even for formal hall. St Johns College, Cambridge hall during a formal meal Churchill College, Cambridge dining hall prepared for a formal Formal Hall is the name given to a formal evening meal at any college in the universities of Oxford, Cambridge or Durham open to all members of the college and their guests. ... Full name The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity Motto Virtus vera nobilitas Virtue is true Nobility Named after The Holy Trinity Previous names Kings Hall and Michaelhouse (until merged in 1546) Established 1546 Sister College(s) Christ Church Master The Lord Rees of Ludlow Location Trinity Street...

Gowns are also worn, with a hood, to graduation ceremonies. There are strict rules regarding which gown and hood a graduating student should wear.

Components of Cambridge academic dress

When wearing academic dress, a person wears both the gown and the hood of the highest degree he or she has already received from the University of Cambridge.

Anyone who does not hold a Cambridge degree (such as an undergraduate, or a graduate of another university) wears a gown according to his or her status in Cambridge ie undergraduate, BA status or MA status (If you hold a Cambridge BA, you may proceed to the MA not less than six years from the end of your first term of residence, providing that you have held your BA degree for at least two years ). In addition, he or she wears the hood of the degree, or the higher of the degrees, which he or she is to receive.

Thus for example an undergraduate graduating to a BA degree wears an undergraduate gown, and a BA hood. A holder of a BA from Cambridge graduating to a PhD wears both a BA hood and gown, whereas a graduate of another university graduating to a PhD wears a BA or MA gown and PhD hood.

Degrees are ranked as follows (highest to lowest):

PhD, MA, MPhil, MEng, MSci, MB, BChir, VetMB, BA.

Academic dress worn for a graduation ceremony

PhD usually refers to the academic title Doctor of Philosophy PhD can also refer to the manga Phantasy Degree This is a disambiguation page — a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate or graduate course of one to three years in duration. ... A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate course of one or two years in duration. ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ... A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate or graduate course of one to three years in duration. ... The Bachelor of Medicine, abbreviated BM, is an academic degree denoting the degree obtained after studying Medicine at University. ... Medicinæ Baccalaureus & Baccalaureus Chirurgiæ (MB BChir, MB ChB, BM BS, MB BS or variations thereof) are the two degrees awarded after a course in medicine and surgery at a university in the United Kingdom and other places following the British tradition, such as Australian, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand... A Bachelor of Arts (B.A. or A.B., from the Latin Artium Baccalaureus) is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course or program in the arts and/or sciences. ... Typical gown as worn for graduation at Cambridge University Photo by Harry Tubbs I, the creator of this image, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Typical gown as worn for graduation at Cambridge University Photo by Harry Tubbs I, the creator of this image, hereby release it into the public domain. ...

Gowns

The gowns in use in Cambridge, like those generally used throughout the UK but not the U.S., are open-fronted. The main types are the undergraduate gown, Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) gown, Master of Arts (M.A.) gown and doctoral gown. Motto: (1789 to 1956) (Latin for Out of many, one) In God We Trust (1956 to present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate or graduate course of one to three years in duration. ...

Hoods

Hoods are worn on the back as an indicator of academic status. The colours for some commonly seen degrees are listed below, in order of precedence.

Academic caps

A form of a black cap known as a mortarboard (or square) may be worn or carried. Properly, it is worn outdoors and carried indoors, except by people acting in an official capacity who may continue to wear it indoors. In practice, few people wear (or even carry) a cap nowadays; caps ceased to be compulsory for undergraduates in the 1950s after a shortage but are nominally still required for graduates. Graduation portrait of Linus Pauling, 1922 A mortarboard is an item of academic headgear consisting of a horizontal square board fixed upon a skull-cap, with a tassel attached to the centre. ...

With their festal gowns, Doctors wear Tudor bonnets, which are round and made of velvet, with gold string and tassels, except that Doctors of Divinity wear a black velvet cap. A tudor bonnet is an academic cap worn by one holding a doctorate degree as part of the academic dress. ...

Sub-fusc

Sub-fusc means "of a dark/dusky colour", and refers to the clothes worn with full academic dress in Cambridge. Generally, this involves a dark suit and white shirt, collar, bands and bow tie for men, and a dark suit and white blouse for women. The rules for dress on graduation for women also specify that women's attire must have long sleeves and, if a skirt is worn, it must be knee-length or longer and worn with tights. A Band is a form of formal neckwear, worn by some clergy and lawyers. ...

In place of sub-fusc, members of Her Majesty's Forces have worn their service uniform, persons in holy orders their clerical dress, and national dress has been worn, together with the appropriate gown and hood. (Military and national dress are not formally permitted, but have been allowed up to 2005, however there are current moves to prevent this.) Armed forces are the military forces of a state. ... A uniform is a set of standard clothing worn by members of an organisation whilst participating in that organisations activity. ... Roman Catholic deacon candidates prostrate before the altar of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles during a 2004 diaconate ordination liturgy Holy Orders in the modern Roman Catholic Church and in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican, Assyrian, Old Catholic, and Independent Catholic Churches, includes... National dress is a type of clothing which identifies with a certain nationality or culture. ...

The Cambridge form of sub-fusc is usually not as strict as that at Oxford, and gowns are often worn with less formal attire (particularly by undergraduates who are required to wear gowns to hall). However, the rules are enforced strictly at formal graduation ceremonies, and persons who are incorrectly dressed may be prevented from graduating in person and their Praelector or Presenter may be fined. In Cambridge University, praelectors are Fellows of colleges who formally present students during the graduation ceremony, the Congregation of the Regent House, when degrees are conferred. ...

Student dress

Undergraduates

All undergraduate gowns resemble knee-length versions of the B.A. gown, but many colleges at Cambridge have gowns that differ slightly from the main pattern. The standard gown is black, and most colleges' gowns include minor variations such as sleeve decoration. The most distinct differences are the blue colour of the undergraduate gowns of Trinity and Caius and the blue facings of Selwyn. Full name The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity Motto Virtus vera nobilitas Virtue is true Nobility Named after The Holy Trinity Previous names Kings Hall and Michaelhouse (until merged in 1546) Established 1546 Sister College(s) Christ Church Master The Lord Rees of Ludlow Location Trinity Street... Full name Gonville and Caius College Motto Named after Edmund Gonville & John Caius Previous names Gonville Hall (1348), Gonville & Caius (1557) Established 1348, refounded 1557 Sister College(s) Brasenose College Master Sir Christopher Hum Location Trinity St Undergraduates 468 Postgraduates 291 Homepage Boatclub Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, generally known... Full name Selwyn College Motto ΑΝΔΡΙΖΕΣΘΕ quit ye like men Named after George Augustus Selwyn Previous names - Established 1882 Sister College(s) Keble College Master Prof. ...

B.A. and M.A.

The two most common graduate gowns in Cambridge are the B.A. gown and the M.A. gown. Unlike in most other universities, except the University of Oxford, all undergraduates at Cambridge traditionally graduated with a B.A. degree after 3 years, although, these days, many graduates also obtain a master's degree, such as an M.Eng or M.Sci., after a further year of study, and graduate from both degrees at once. The University of Oxford (often called Oxford University), located in the city of Oxford, England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ...

As in Oxford, B.A.s are automatically entitled to proceed to the degree of Master of Arts after a period of time. In Cambridge, this is 6 years from the end of the first term after matriculation provided this is at least two years from obtaining their BA [1] — BAs are thus eligible for the MA at the first graduation ceremony in the 7th calendar year after matriculation. The matriculation ceremony at Oxford Matriculation refers to the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by acquiring the required prior qualifications. ...

The B.A. gown is a long black stuff (cloth) gown with long bell-shaped sleeves to the wrists. The gown is gathered at the back in a yoke, and falls down to just below the knees. The B.A. hood is of black cloth, bound and half-lined in white rabbit fur.

The M.A. gown is similar to the B.A. gown, except that it has "boot" sleeves, which are long, rectangular and closed at the ends, with a crescent cut out of each sleeve-end, and a horizontal arm-slit just above the elbow. It falls down to calf length (slightly longer than the BA gown). The M.A. hood is of black cloth bound and lined in white silk.

Other Masters' gowns vary from subject to subject at Cambridge; for example, the Master of Engineering (MEng) and M.Sci. gowns are the standard M.A. gown but with an embroidered wheel on each sleeve, and a corresponding hood is worn. The M.Phil gown is the same as the M.Sci. gown, but instead of an embroidered wheel, it has two buttons connected by a horizontal embroidered line at the shoulder. Engineering is the application of scientific and technical knowledge to solve human problems. ...

Persons without a Cambridge degree (including those with a degree from another university) wear a "B.A. status" or "M.A. status" gown, which is identical to a B.A. or M.A. gown but with the "strings" (black ribbons attached inside the shoulder) removed. The B.A. status gown is for those aged under twenty-four while the MA gown is for those aged twenty-four or over. (The rationale is that Cambridge students would usually join the university at 18, obtain their B.A. after 3 years, at 21, and their M.A. after a further 3 years, at 24.)

Doctors

Doctors in Cambridge have two forms of academic dress: undress and full dress (or scarlet). Scarlet is worn on formal college and university occasions, and so-called Scarlet Days (mostly Church of England festivals such as Easter and Christmas). The Church of England is the officially established Christian church[1] in England, and acts as the mother and senior branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion, as well as a founding member of the Porvoo Communion. ... This article is about the Christian festival. ... Christmas is a Christian holiday held on December 25 which celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. ...

The undress gown is similar to an M.A. gown (for Ph.D, Litt.D, Sc.D and in practice D.D.) or is a 'lay-type' gown similar to that worn by Queen's Counsel (LL.D., M.D., Mus.D.). Different doctorates are distinguished by different arrangements of lace on the sleeves, facings or flap collar. The gown may be worn with a doctor's hood. The Ph.D. hood, the one most commonly seen, is made of black silk lined with scarlet cloth; the hoods of higher doctors are made of red cloth and lined with silk in the faculty colour (scarlet for letters, pink shot light blue for science, light cherry for laws, mid cherry for silk, dove grey for divinity). The Mus.D. hood is of cream damask lined with dark cherry satin. The official portrait of former Canadian Prime Minister Kim Campbell, who was made a Queens Counsel as Justice Minister in 1992. ...

The full dress or scarlet gown differs for each doctorate, but uses the same material and colours as the hood. For Ph.D.s, the scarlet gown is the same as the M.A. gown, with the addition of a broad red cloth stripe down each side at the front; a common but unauthorised variation uses detachable facings on an undress Ph.D. gown, which is distinguished from the M.A. gown by doctors' lace on the sleeves that is not found on the proper festal Ph.D. gown. For the higher doctorates, such as LL.D. or Sc.D., the scarlet gown is a more impressive affair, being brightly coloured and voluminous, with open bell-shaped sleeves and gathered at the yoke. The linings of the sleeves and the facings are in silk of the faculty colour.

University officials

University officials dressed for a degree (graduation) ceremony

Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...

The Chancellor

The Chancellor of the University wears on ceremonial occasions a black silk gown with a long train, decorated with gold lace, similar to the gown of the Lord Chancellor. This article or section needs a complete rewrite for the reasons listed on the talk page. ...

Persons presenting for or conferring degrees

The Vice-Chancellor or his/her deputy, when conferring degrees, and anyone who is not a praelector of a college presenting a graduand (in practice, this is limited to the professors or their deputies presenting for higher doctorates) wears a scarlet cope trimmed with white fur, as shown in the image.

Proctors

The Proctors in Cambridge are formally responsible for the discipline of junior members of the university. In addition, they have various ceremonial and administrative roles, which they are, in practice, mainly occupied with. Proctor is the name of certain important university officials. ...

In both Oxford and Cambridge, the Proctors could formerly be seen patrolling the streets after dark with the university police, or bulldogs, who wore top hats in Cambridge and bowler hats in Oxford. These traditions have now ceased, although the Proctors are still responsible for posting various disciplinary notices (e.g. highlighting the restriction on undergraduates' possession of motor cars) around the Colleges. Their Constables continue to wear top hats and cloaks on ceremonial occasions.

The Proctors wear the academic dress of a Master of Arts, but with a distinctive 'ruff' at the neck. (See also Ruff (clothing).) Ruff of c. ...

Other officials

Other officials such as the Esquire Bedell or Orator wear the academic dress appropriate to their degree. An Esquire Bedell is a junior ceremonial officer of a university, usually with official duties relating to the conduct of ceremonies for the conferment of degrees. ... Orator is a Latin word for speaker (from the Latin verb oro, meaning I speak or I pray). In ancient Rome, the art of speaking in public (Ars Oratoria) was a professional competence especially cultivated by politicians and lawyers. ...

External links

• Ordinances Chapter II, with academical dress regulations (PDF)
• The Burgon Society, founded to promote the study of Academical Dress
• Cambridge University Heraldic & Genealogical Society gown guide
• Dress at graduation
• Academic dress
• Discussion of the wearing of academical dress on scarlet days
• Discussion of academical dress for the Vet.M.D. degree
• Ryder and Amies academic tailors, with images of academic dress on their website
• Information on dress at graduation from the website of Trinity Hall
• Information on the Cambridge MA from the Cambridge University website