High School Graduation Gown Colors

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by lilykkg

This thread is the first time I ever heard of renting graduation gowns. I wish those were options at the schools my brother and I attended. The only gown my parents didn't have to pay out of pocket for was my high school gown, that was included in our tuition.

I bought my high school gown but rented for college and law school graduation.

Originally Posted by Sciencewoman

Academic hoods for professors are still made this way, with a pocket at the bottom. The interior colors indicate the school colors of the university where the doctorate was received, and the velvet signifies the subject area of the degree (light blue = education, kelly green = medicine, etc.)

The degree-granting school is actually indicated by the colors and the way those colors are arranged. For example one school may be indicated by red with one white chevron while another is indicated by red and two white chevrons, while yet another might be white with a red chevron. All 3 are red and white, but in different designs.

Originally Posted by PhoenixAzul

To the best of my knowledge, the reasons for the black gown and hoods was to recall the monastic origins of the education system.

Right; academic dress is derived from medieval clerical dress, since the faculty of European universities were clergy.

I've always preferred the British style of academic dress (and, to bring it back to clergy, the Scottish style of Geneva gown) to the American styles.