Regalia
A traditional black cap and gown is required for your participation in the commencement ceremony. Caps are worn with a colored tassel indicating the degree being awarded. Master’s candidates will also receive a hood colored to indicate the field of study.
Master's and bachelor's regalia
Bachelor and masters regalia may be purchased from the WMU Bookstore shops during regular business hours after March 28 up to the day of commencement. Regalia can also be ordered in advance and picked up in the WMU Bookstore or mailed to your address. In order to ensure on time delivery for commencement, orders must be received the Friday before the week of commencement.
Faculty and doctoral gown rental
Faculty gowns will be available for pickup an hour before the first ceremony in the York Arena Theatre. Doctoral candidate gowns will be available for pickup April 25 - 30 in the WMU Bookstore Shops—Textbook Alley location.
Regalia history
The use of academic dress stems from costumes worn in universities in the 14th and 15th centuries, particularly at Cambridge and Oxford in England. Since colonial times it has been worn in the United States and was standardized by an Intercollegiate Code in 1895.
Gowns
The major distinguishing characteristics of the gowns are the sleeves, styled in the following fashions:
- bachelor—long pointed
- master—oblong
- doctor and specialist—bell shaped
The doctor’s gown has a velvet collar, facing and three bars on the sleeves. The specialist’s gown differs from a doctor’s in that it has no sleeve bars.
Masters, specialists and doctors wear hoods lined with the official colors of the college from which the degree is granted. They vary in size and shape to indicate the several degrees. The doctor’s hood is the largest and most lavishly decorated. The color of the velvet that circles the opening of the hood shows the degree earned: light blue for doctor of education, dark blue for doctor of philosophy and peacock blue for doctor of public administration.
Caps and tassels
Caps are mortar boards with the tassel worn over the left front quadrant. The tassel’s color indicates the academic program area.
Degree designation
Bachelor’s degree
| Degree | Color name | Color swatch |
|---|---|---|
| Arts | White | |
| Business administration | Sapphire blue | |
| Education | Light blue | |
| Engineering | Orange | |
| Fine arts | Brown | |
| Music | Pink | |
| Nursing | Apricot | |
| Science | Golden yellow | |
| Social work | Citron |
Master’s degree
| Degree | Color name | Color swatch |
|---|---|---|
| Arts and development administration | White | |
| Business administration and accountancy | Sapphire blue | |
| Education | Light blue | |
| Engineering | Orange | |
| Fine arts | Brown | |
| Medicine | Green | |
| Music | Pink | |
| Nursing | Apricot | |
| Public administration | Peacock blue | |
| Science | Golden yellow | |
| Social work | Citron |
Doctoral and specialist degree
| Degree | Color name | Color swatch |
|---|---|---|
| Audiology (doctoral) | Gray | |
| Education (doctoral) | Light blue | |
| Education (specialist) | Light blue | |
| Philosophy | Dark blue | |
| Public administration | Peacock blue |