Many traditions have been formalized over the years and are largely universal, like the cap and gown. Other traditions are more casual and personal, like graduation dinners or parties, senior pictures and Yearbooks. This article will recall and make note of various traditions and the meanings behind them.
GRADUATION ROBES
The uniform of a graduate is perhaps the most common denominator of graduation…the cap and gown are inseparably tied to the event at both the high school and college level. For high school graduations the cap and gown are usually the same as the school colors and all the graduates wear the same style.
For college each student receiving a particular level of degree will wear the same robes at each school but will have different hoods that identify the degree earned by the wearer and the institution awarding the degree—basically, it is a color-coded system.
The idea of academic robes first came about in the 12th and 13th centuries with the rise of universities. Back then, most scholars were a part of the church, which may be why academic clothing closely resembled clerical outfits at the time. Many historians believe the long robes served a functional purpose. The academic buildings were generally unheated, and the long robes with hoods may have kept the scholars warm during their studies. Oxford and Cambridge were the first recorded schools to standardize the long gowns to represent unity during graduation.
The dress of scholars became highly uniform at Cambridge and Oxford by the time of Henry VII. The schools dictated how their scholars would appear. Up until the 1800s black was the color for these robes. A system of colors designating what students had studied was developed in the 1800s. Today, for ceremonies in higher education, these colors usually show up in the velvet edge on the robe. For example, a graduate with a medical degree has a green velvet edge; a graduate with a law degree has a purple velvet edge.
THE GRADUATION CAP
The cap, often called a mortarboard, is believed to have developed from the biretta. You’ve seen the biretta. It’s the square, upright cap with three or four peaks worn by the Roman Catholic clergy and academics, typically in red or black. The caps were worn by students and artists in the fourteenth and fifteenth century to honor their superiority and intelligence. Originally the mortarboard, called that because of its similarity to the mortar board used by bricklayers, was only allowed to be worn by those who had achieved their master or doctorate degrees. Today all graduates wear the mortarboard.
POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE
Second only to the cap and gown, Pomp and Circumstance is one of the most well-known graduation traditions. Many people may not recognize the tune by name, but when they hear the melody played, most easily identify it as the graduation march. Though it is played at graduations across the United States, the song is actually British in origin. The song was written by British composer Sir Edward Elgar in 1901 and was a small piece of his composition “March No. 1 In D Major” and part of his “Pomp and Circumstance Military March” series that spanned nearly thirty years of his career. Elgar was invited to come to Yale’s commencement in 1905 to receive an honorary doctorate. As an honor to their guest, Yale had the New Haven Symphony Orchestra play parts of Elgar’s compositions (including Pomp and Circumstance) as students marched in and out of the ceremony. The tradition spread to other universities and quickly became fashionable to play at other commencements. From then on it has continued to be the traditional musical selection for any graduation processional or recessional.
MOVING THE CAP TASSEL
The tassel has been worn on the cap for centuries, but it’s only in the last forty or fifty years that it has been moved from the right side of the cap before receipt of the diploma to the left side of the cap after receipt of the diploma. Moving the tassel from the right side to the left symbolizes the movement from being a candidate of a degree to a recipient of the degree.
TOSSING THE CAP IN THE AIR
Tossing the cap in the air after graduation was started by the U.S. Naval Academy in 1912. Prior to that year, graduates of the Naval Academy spent two years as midshipmen and needed to keep their midshipman’s hats to wear. However in 1912 the decision was made to immediately commission the graduates as officers. The graduates no longer needed their old hats because they would now wear new officer hats. So the old midshipman hats were thrown into the air after the commencement ceremony. Throwing caps in the air quickly became popular and the tradition caught on at other institutions throughout the country. Now the action is regarded as a symbolic gesture of the end of a chapter in a graduate's life. Though a tradition for graduates of all kinds to toss their caps into the air after commencement, many schools and universities now discourage the practice because a sharp corner of the board has been known to hit another graduate in the eye and cause retinal trauma.
THE DIPLOMA
Diplomas didn’t always have the prestigious, decorated look they do now. The word “diploma” for graduation originated in the mid 17th century. Specifically, diploma means “double folded paper” in Greek Latin. Unlike the cap and gown, awarding a diploma to a graduate began in the United States at Harvard College. Harvard’s first commencement actually took place on September 23, 1642. The nine graduates received “a Book of Arts” to represent their achievement. After the ceremony, the school took back each book. It wasn’t until 1813 that Harvard College graduates received a uniformly sized, textually common diploma they could keep. Over the years the diploma has been called a sheepskin. Originally diplomas were hand-written on paper-thin sheepskin before being rolled and tied with a ribbon. This practice ended about a hundred years ago when diplomas began to be printed on parchment paper instead, and the sizes were standardized. Diploma covers were developed to protect, store and display the diploma. But the idea of rolling a diploma persists because of this old tradition. Often when a ceremony is held before grades are finalized, a rolled, ribbon-tied paper is handed to the graduate to represent the diploma that will be mailed to them after the ceremony.
THE CLASS RING
The first class ring appeared in 1835 when the United States Academy at West Point had them made. The first rings were designed to represent the school. All graduates of a particular school wore the same style ring. Eventually, rings began to be personalized. Now schools that have rings have them designed to represent the interests and style of the individual graduate. They come with a variety of options from the decorations on the side of the ring, the choice of metals, and the stone. Homeschool students often purchase a class ring that reflects their studies and interests during their schooling.
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I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13 NASB
Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe. 1 Timothy 4:12 NASB
In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:6 NASB
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters… Colossians 3:23 NIV
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