Academic Dress (Regalia)
Academic dress at GW varies by the degree type but there are several key pieces that you will see throughout Commencement Week.
Cap
Graduates earning a bachelor's or master's degree wear custom navy caps with blue tassels. Doctoral graduates wear caps that are often made of soft material like velvet and are not usually the conventional mortarboard shape.
Gown
All graduates earning bachelor's or master's degrees wear custom navy gowns with the GW logo embroidered on the right sleeve. The bachelor's and master's gowns are two different styles that by tradition are easily recognized. The bachelor's gowns have pointed sleeves and the master's gown have oblong shaped sleeves with wrist openings. The back of the sleeve extensions is cut square, while the front edges have a curved finish for a more refined look. Doctoral graduates from GW wear a custom navy gown with black velvet panels and chevrons. Faculty will usually wear a black gown but may wear theirs from the university where their degree was conferred. Usually, it is also black, but sometimes it may be the color of that school.
Academic fields may be indicated with their traditional color through the velvet of doctoral gowns: three two-inch bars on the sleeves and a five-inch border extending from the back of the neck down both sides on the front of the gown. These colors are consistent with those in the hood.
Hood
The most significant piece of the academic costume is the hood, which includes a velvet border and a satin lining. The velvet border indicates the field of study that the graduates earned their degree in and the color of the satin lining represents GW colors. Master's and doctoral graduates' hoods differ in size and shape, with the doctoral hood being the largest, followed by the master's hood.
Military Dress
Military students or veterans can wear their military uniforms in lieu of academic regalia at Commencement on the National Mall, their school or other ceremonies.
Colors
Traditionally, academic fields are represented by specific colors at universities across the country and the world, including at GW.
- Arts, letters and humanities - white
- Commerce, accountancy & business - drab
- Education - light blue
- Engineering - orange
- Fine arts, including architecture - brown
- Health administration - kelly green
- Law (JD, LLD, LLB) - purple
- Medicine - green
- Nursing - apricot
- Philosophy - dark blue
- Physical education - sage green
- Public administration, including foreign service - peacock blue
- Public health - salmon
- Science - golden yellow
Regalia (Cap and Gown) Pre-order, Purchase and Rental Information
Wear your regalia to Commencement on the National Mall, school celebrations and individual recognition ceremonies, such as Phi Beta Kappa Induction Ceremony. You can keep your regalia unless you are a J.D. graduate or have rented it.
J.D. candidates should visit GW Law for information about regalia.
Bachelor's and master's regalia can be purchased online until April 29th or purchased in-person at various times throughout the Spring semester. Regalia rentals are not available for bachelor's or master's candidates.
Online shipping charges are $25 until midnight on April 19th and $36.90 from April 19th-April 29th.
In-person purchase options:
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Grad Fair, March 21st-23rd, Marvin Center Continental Ballroom
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GW Campus Store, March 24th-April 25th, Marvin Center Lower Level
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GW Spirit Shop, April 29th-May 18th, Marvin Center First Floor
Custom doctoral regalia purchases take approximately six weeks from the time of purchase for manufacturing and shipping. We strongly recommend that you place your order for custom doctoral regalia by March 26th. Alternatively, standard doctoral regalia can be rented without this lead time.
All online orders for doctoral regalia for "Pick-up Cap & Gown on Campus" need to be placed by midnight on April 10th. All online orders for doctoral regalia for "Ship Cap & Gown Home" need to be placed by midnight on April 19th. The shipping charges are $25.
You can also pre-order rental or custom regalia in-person at Grad Fair, March 21st-23rd, in the Marvin Center Continental Ballroom.
Online and Grad Fair rental orders will be available for pick-up and regalia can also be rented from The GW Spirit Shop, Marvin Center First Floor from May 13th-May 18th. Emergency pick-ups and rentals only on May 19th.
Regalia Purchase and Rental Costs*
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Bachelor's Gown & Cap with Tassel
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$60.00
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Master's Gown, Hood & Cap with Tassel
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$99.00
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Doctoral Gown & Tam without Hood - Rental
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$120.00
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| Doctoral Gown, Tam & Hood - Rental | $150.00 |
| Doctoral Gown - Custom Purchase | $850.70 |
| Doctoral Hood - Custom Purchase | $157.00 |
| Doctoral Tam - Custom Purchase | $136.00 |
| GW Custom Stole | $29.00 |
| Souvenir Tassel | $9.00 |
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SMHS - M.D. (Gown, Hood & Tam with Gold Tassel) - Rental
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$109.00
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Law - Rental
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Contact Law School directly 202-994-6288
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* Prices are subject to change.
Watch: We asked the Class of 2018 what song is on your mind at Commencement? And then we made them sing it.
