The Convocation Tradition
Throughout their long and proud history, universities have retained and cherished strong ties to their ceremonial roots. The faculties have gloried in the rich imagery and colorful panoply associated with Convocation, commonly held at the beginning of each academic year.
The pageantry and symbolism of Convocation are typified by the cap and gown, which in their original forms were simply the everyday attire of the medieval scholar. The additions of the centuries have made the regalia what it is today.
The academic costume has three basic parts: the cap, the gown, and the hood. Three factors must be taken into consideration—the degree (bachelor, master, doctor); the branch of knowledge (art, science, engineering, business, etc.); and the university by which the degree is granted.
The bachelor’s gown is black, has long sleeves, and is worn closed. The master’s gown is black but has short sleeves and a crescent cut at the sleeve end. Some are open at the wrist; others have a slit in the upper part of the sleeve. The doctor’s gown is often black, preferably silk, with full, round sleeves that are barred in either black velvet or velvet of the color used in the hood to designate the branch of learning. Many American universities, as well as British ones, now have gowns of characteristic color for doctoral graduates. For instance, a graduate of Harvard University may wear a crimson gown, a graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology a gray faille gown, and a Drexel University graduate a gown of blue.
The shape and size of the American hood mark the degree of the wearer. The lining of the hood is indicative of the institution granting the degree and is usually the official color or colors of the school. If two colors are used, one is generally arranged as a chevron upon the other. Drexel University hoods have a blue chevron on a gold background. The velvet trim of the hood indicates the major field of knowledge: architecture, blue-violet; arts and letters, white; business and commerce, drab; engineering, orange; laws, purple; information studies, golden yellow; science, golden yellow.
Caps are traditionally black with a long tassel fastened to the mid-point. A doctor’s cap may have a tassel of gold thread. The tassel is worn on the right side until the baccalaureate degree has been conferred; it is then worn on the left.
Convocation begins and ends with the academic procession, led by the chief marshal carrying the mace, which traces its origins to the Roman fasces. The ceremony officially begins with the placing of the mace before the assembly and ends when the chief marshal retrieves it and leads the recession.
