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Academic Dress Policy

Section 1 - Key Information

Policy Type and Approval Body Administrative - Vice-Chancellor
Accountable Executive – Policy Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic)
Responsible Manager – Policy Pro Vice-Chancellor (Student Experience and Employability)
Review Date 13 November 2028
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Section 2 - Purpose

(1) This Policy prescribes:

  1. the core principles for the use of academic dress;
  2. the academic dress to be worn on ceremonial occasions of the University by various categories of staff, University Council (Council) members, and graduands/graduates and other recipients of University awards.
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Section 3 - Scope

(2) This Policy applies to:

  1. all graduands/graduates and other recipients of La Trobe awards recognised in the Australian Qualifications Framework;
  2. all staff participating in graduation and presentation ceremonies of the University or in other events at which the wearing of academic dress is required or permitted.
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Section 4 - Key Decisions

Key decision making  Role
Approve requests for changes to the University’s approved academic dress Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic)
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Section 5 - Policy Statement

(3) The University will prescribe from time to time the academic dress to be worn on ceremonial occasions, including graduations and presentation ceremonies and such other occasions as the Council may specify, by:

  1. officers of the University, members of Council and other members of the University; and/or
  2. graduands or graduates of degrees and other awards of the University. 

(4) The colours used for gown facings, hoods or stoles for particular awards generally will reflect the discipline content of the award, rather than the specific award program or the academic unit that teaches the course. 

(5) Staff or students of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander descent who are entitled to wear academic dress may opt to wear also a stole in Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander colours. 

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Section 6 - Procedures

Part A - Dress and Colour Protocols

(6) Except where otherwise indicated, the colours referred to in this Procedure and on the Academic Dress webpage are those defined in the British dictionary of colour standards: adopted by the British Standards Institution as British standard no.543-1934, British Colour Council.

(7) Where the academic dress includes a hood, the hood is worn with the hood’s silk exposed on the right shoulder except where otherwise specified (i.e. in the case of Honours qualifications).

Part B - Requests for Changes or Additions to Academic Dress

(8) Any requests for changes to the University’s approved academic dress must be submitted for approval to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), through the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Student Experience and Employability). The request must be supported by a business case.

(9) Where the University introduces a qualification in a discipline not previously taught by La Trobe, the responsible school must recommend to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), through the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Student Experience and Employability), the colour of silk to be used for the gown facing, hood or stole. A justification must be provided.

Part C - Recording of Academic Dress Requirements

(10) At the time a new award course is approved by the University, the academic dress requirements that pertain to that award are recorded in the Student Information System.

Part D - Graduands and Graduates of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Descent

(11) Graduands/graduates of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander descent may opt to wear, in addition to the appropriate academic dress described in Part E, a stole ten centimetres wide of the following colours:

  1. Aboriginal: equal bands of Jet Black, Saffron and Post Office red silks
  2. Torres Strait Islander: larkspur silk edged on each side with Juniper silk, each colour separated by a narrow band of black piping.

(12) Graduands requiring one or both of these stoles should indicate this when registering to attend their ceremony.

Part E -  Specific Academic Dress Requirements

Staff, Council Members and Visitors

Role Academic Dress
Chancellor A gown of Ruby and Cardinal silk damask with gold braid trim, red silk lining and a black velvet Tudor bonnet and gold tassel
Deputy Chancellor A gown of Ruby and Cardinal silk damask with silver braid trim, red silk lining and a black velvet Tudor bonnet and silver tassel
Vice-Chancellor and President A gown of Oxford blue silk damask with silver braid trim, blue silk lining and black velvet Tudor bonnet with silver tassel
Deputy Vice-Chancellors and Vice-Presidents A gown of Smalt cloth with a 10-centimetre wide silver braid trim, with blue silk lining and inserts of black velvet on the shoulders and a black Tudor bonnet with silver tassel
Provost A gown of Smalt cloth with a 10-centimetre wide silver braid trim, with blue silk lining and inserts of black velvet on the shoulders and a black Tudor bonnet with silver tassel
Members of Council The academic dress appropriate to the degree of the Council member or, not being a graduate, a gown of Oxford blue cloth with a 10-centimetre wide Post Office red facing and cuffs and the shield of the University on the facing
All Other Members of the University
Graduate members of the University other than those listed above will wear the academic dress appropriate to the member’s qualification. Where the qualification was completed at an institution other than La Trobe University, the member may wear either the academic dress of that institution (which they must provide themselves) or the La Trobe academic dress appropriate to their highest qualification.
Members who are not graduates will wear a gown of Oxford blue cloth without coloured facing or cuffs. No trencher is worn.
Visiting Academics Visiting academics who are participating in academic ceremonies or processions at La Trobe University may wear either their own academic dress or the La Trobe academic dress appropriate to their highest qualification.
 

Graduands/Graduates and Other Award Recipients

Award Academic Dress
Sub-degrees A La Trobe University Bachelor’s gown, together with a stole ten centimetres wide lined with silk in the colour of the discipline. The stole is worn around the neck and drapes down the front of the gown. No trencher is worn.
Bachelor Degree  A gown in Oxford blue cloth, with bell-shaped sleeves to the wrist, together with a Burgon style Oxford hood of Oxford blue cloth with a 10-centimetre-wide silk facing in the colour of the discipline, and a black cloth trencher. The hood is worn with the hood’s silk exposed on the right shoulder.
Bachelor Degrees with Honours The components are identical to the components of the academic dress worn by graduates of a Bachelor pass degree. However, Honours graduates will wear the hood with the hood’s silk exposed on the left shoulder instead of on the right
Graduate Certificates or Graduate Diplomas A La Trobe University Bachelor's gown with a stole ten centimetres wide lined with silk in the colour of the discipline, and a black cloth trencher. The stole is worn around the neck and drapes down the front of the gown.
Master Degree  A gown in Oxford blue cloth, with long sleeves that are squared and closed at the ends with a horizontal slit just above the elbow, together with a Burgon style Oxford hood of Oxford blue cloth lined and bound to a depth of two centimetres with silk in the colour of the discipline, and a black cloth trencher. The hood is worn with the hood’s silk exposed on the right shoulder.
Doctor of Philosophy A gown in Signal red cloth with 10-centimetre-wide facing and cuffs, together with an Oxford doctorate cut hood in Signal red lined with Victrix blue silk, and a black velvet Tudor bonnet with a Post Office red cord and tassel. The hood is worn with the hood’s silk exposed on both shoulders. 
Other Doctoral Degrees and Honorary Doctorates 
The same dress as for the Doctor of Philosophy, except for the colour of the silk facing, cuff and hood lining.
Gown: Oxford Doctor’s style, scarlet cloth with silk facings and sleeve linings in the below colours.
Headwear: Black velvet Tudor bonnet with cord and tassel matching silk facing colour.
The schedule of colours are as follows:
Doctor of Education (Claret)
Doctor of Laws – Crocus
Doctor of Letters – Turquoise
Doctor of Nursing (Signal Red)
Doctor of Public Health (Signal Red)
Doctor of Science – Saffron
Doctor of the University – (Signal Red)
The hood is worn with the hood’s silk exposed on both shoulders.
Professional Doctorates
The academic dress worn by graduands and graduates with professional doctorates is a gown in Oxford blue cloth with a 10-centimetre-wide Signal red silk facing and cuffs, together with an Oxford doctorate cut hood in Oxford blue, lined with Signal red silk, and a black velvet Tudor bonnet with a Signal red cord and tassel. The hood is worn with the hood’s silk exposed on both shoulders.

Professional doctorates include the degrees of Doctor of Education, Doctor of Health Psychology, Doctor of Nursing and Doctor of Psychology and any other doctorates determined by Council to be professional doctorates.
Honorary Degrees Other Than Doctorates Recipients of an honorary degree other than a doctorate will wear the academic dress appropriate to the degree being awarded (see Honorary Doctorates above).
Multiple Awards
Students graduating from a double or combined qualification normally will wear the colours of, and participate in the ceremony for, one degree only, that being, in descending order: the colours of the highest level award ; the colours of the most specialised award ; or, in the case of two degrees of equivalent level, the colours of the discipline associated with the school that owns the course.
Where the qualification for which the colours are worn has been completed with Honours, the relevant hood(s) will be worn with the silk exposed on the left shoulder instead of on the right.
More Than One Stand-Alone Award
The student normally will wear the colours of, and participate in the ceremony for, one degree only, that being, in descending order: the colours of the highest level award; the colours of the most specialised award; or, in the case of two degrees of equivalent level, the colours of the discipline associated with the school that owns the course.

Where the qualification for which the colours are worn has been completed with Honours, the relevant hood will be worn with the silk exposed on the left shoulder instead of on the right.
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Section 7 - Definitions

(13) For the purposes of this Policy:

  1. academic dress: the gown, hood or stole and cap, or combination thereof, worn by persons who are entitled to wear them by virtue of their completion of a University award. Academic dress is normally worn only on ceremonial occasions, such as graduations, at which the wearing of academic dress is required or permitted.
  2. specialised award: a higher education program that prepares a graduate for a specific career that is generally identified in the name of the award (e.g. Bachelor of Laws, Master of Physiotherapy Practice). It normally requires the graduate to meet the requirements of an external accreditation or registration body as well as the University’s own requirements.
  3. trencher: mortarboard; a kind of cap with a stiff, flat, cloth-covered square piece.
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Section 8 - Authority and Associated Information

(14) This Policy is made under the La Trobe University Act 2009.

(15) Associated information includes:

  1. Academic Dress webpage.