Graduation

Graduation is getting a diploma or academic degree or the ceremony that is sometimes associated, in which students become graduates. Before the graduation, candidates are referred to as graduands. The date of graduation is often called graduation day. The graduation ceremony itself is also called commencement, convocation or invocation. In the United States and Canada, the term is additionally increasingly being used to refer to the advancement from a primary or secondary school level. When ceremonies are associated, they usually include a procession of the academic staff and candidates and a valediction. At the college and university level the faculty will usually wearacademic dress at the formal ceremonies, as will the trustees and degree candidates.

"Graduation" at the college and university level occurs when the presiding officer confers degrees upon candidates, either individually or en masse, even if graduates physically receive their diploma later at a smaller college or departmental ceremony. After degree completion, graduates can be referred to by their graduating year.

In some places, graduation parties to celebrate graduation from school, college or university are popular. In a recent 2014 nationwide survey in the United States, $985 was the average amount spent on graduation parties

Graduation traditions are varied across universities observing different cultures. Most universities across Sweden are research-oriented and may present its students with bachelor's, master's, and doctor's degrees covering all academic streams. Universities across the country are based through the Higher Education Ordinance. A large number of candidates continue their education onto secondary and upper secondary education. Most of the national programs provide Swedish, English, Math and Science among majors.

In Zimbabwe, graduation ceremonies are often associated with the guest of honor who most of is the ceremonial head of the institution. At state universities the President of Zimbabwe officiates as chancellor and guest of honor. Every graduate of a state university in Zimbabwe can claim to have shaken the President's hand. The person most associated with graduation at those institutions is President Robert Gabriel Mugabe. At other State Institutions of higher learning the vice Presidents or any other Senior Government officials may preside.^[2]

History of graduation[edit]

Ceremonies for graduating students date from the first universities in Europe in the 12th century. At that time Latin was the language of scholarship. A "universitas" was a guild of masters (MAs) with licence to teach. "Degree" and "graduate" come from gradus, meaning "step". The first step was admission to a bachelor's degree. The second step was the masters step, giving the graduate admission to the universitas and license to teach. The typical dress for graduation are gowns and hoods or hats adapted from the daily dress of university staff in the Middle Ages, which was in turn based on the attire worn by medieval clergy.^[3]

The tradition of wearing graduation hats in Sweden has been in place since the mid 18th century. The cap is typically a white sailor hat with a black or dark blue band around it, a crown motif and a black peak at the front. The graduation hat tradition was initially brought into practice by students at Uppsala University. The headgear then became popular across several other European nations as well.^[4]

Without caps[edit]

After being vested the power to award its own degrees from the University of London in 2006,^[5] graduates of King's College London began wearing in 2008 anacademic dress that does not feature a hat. Designed by Vivienne Westwood, the academic dress features instead an oversized hood that could be worn as a headgear by the graduands^[6] With the influence of the University of London's tradition, being the first university in the world to devise a system of academic dress based on faculty colours,^[7] the gowns and hoods have been designed with colours that reflect the university's faculties/schools/institutes of study and the level of the degree.^[8] Owing to its unique shape, the hood cannot be folded flat.