The University of Oxford has a long tradition of academic dress, which continues to the present day.

Occasions for use

Unlike most other universities, which only usually require it during specific university ceremonies such as graduation, academic dress is worn very often in Oxford (although no longer as an element of everyday dress). Every undergraduate and graduate must obtain a gown, cap, and white bow tie or black tie or black ribbon for the purpose of the university matriculation ceremony, where students formally become members of the university.

Regulations regarding gowns differ from college to college, but gowns are commonly worn to:

Formal Hall (formal dinner, which occurs as frequently as every night in some colleges and as rarely as once a term in others, or not at all) Major public lectures Chapel College collections (internal examinations at the start of term) Head of house's collections (end of term academic progress reports) College matriculation

Gowns and caps are worn to disciplinary hearings in the Proctors' Court.

In addition, gowns are worn with cap, hood (for graduates), and subfusc to:

University examinations University matriculation Graduation ceremonies The annual Encaenia (Commemoration) ceremony.

On certain occasions, e.g. the Encaenia garden party, by tradition, graduates wear gown and hood without subfusc.

The wearing of subfusc remains a popular tradition. In May 2015 students voted overwhelmingly in favour of compulsory academic dress in examinations, with 75.8% supporting subfusc and 78% supporting gowns, in a referendum with an unusually high 40.6% turnout. A previous referendum in 2006 showed 81% support for subfusc.Patrick Foster, 21st-century students vote to keep Oxford tradition, The Times, March 4, 2006. Both referendums were widely interpreted by students as a vote not so much as on making subfusc voluntary, but rather on whether or not to effectively abolish it by default, as it was assumed that if a minority of people came to exams without subfusc, the rest would soon follow.See, for instance, this article in the student press .

Components After the names of the components, the Groves classification system is given.

Gowns The gowns in use in Oxford can be divided into two basic shapes. All gowns are open-fronted, except for the Doctors' convocation habit which is closed at the front.

Clerical-type gowns Scholars' gown [u2] BA gown [b1] MA gown [m1] BD gown [m1] DD undress gown [m1] Doctors' full dress gown [d2] Doctors' convocation habit [d5] Proctors' dress gown [d2]

The clerical-type gown has no collar, but instead has the voluminous material of its back and sleeves gathered into a yoke. Most of the above have open sleeves; those of the BA have long points at the back of the sleeve reaching down to the hem of the gown, while doctors', assessors' and proctors' gowns have bell-shaped sleeves about wrist-length. Scholar's gowns reach only the wearer's knees, and their open sleeves are either bell-shaped or pointed, reaching just beyond the elbow. The exceptions are the MA gown and the Doctors' convocation habit; the MA gown has long closed sleeves with arm slits just above the elbow and a crescent-shaped cut at the foot of the sleeve, forming two forward-facing points, while the Doctors' convocation habit is sleeveless.

Gowns of the same basic shape are worn by barristers (see court dress), preachers and bishops in the Church of England.

Lay-type gowns Commoners' gown [u5] Graduate students' gown [u5] Higher faculties bachelors' and masters' laced gown [d4] Doctors' undress laced gown [d4] Chancellor's/Vice-Chancellor's gold laced gown [d4] Bedels', University Verger's, etc. gown [d4]

The lay-type gown derives from a garment fashionable in Elizabethan times. It is less voluminous than the clerical-type gown, and has a flap collar and long closed sleeves with arm slits just above the elbow, except for the Commoners' and Graduate students' gowns, whose closed sleeves have evolved into streamers through which the arm does not pass. Commoners' gowns reach to the wearer's waist, and Graduates' to around their knees. Doctors' undress gowns are the same as those of higher faculties Bachelors and Masters gowns, with the addition of even more decorative lace on the underside of the sleeves.

Gowns of the same basic shape are worn by solicitors, King's Counsel, court ushers, the Speaker of the House of Commons, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and the Lord Chancellor.

Hoods

Hoods in Oxford are of three shapes. Doctors (except Doctors of Clinical Psychology and Doctors of Engineering) and Bachelors of Divinity wear hoods in the Oxford full shape [f5], scarlet in the case of doctors and black in the case of Bachelors of Divinity. All other hoods can be either in the Burgon shape [s2] or the Oxford simple shape [s1], though some are traditionally made in one shape or the other. Most of the newer degrees use the Burgon whilst older degrees use either, although the Burgon shape is becoming more popular.

Generally, hoods are worn by graduates whenever subfusc is worn, but sometimes they are worn with an ordinary tie, e.g. by the lecturer at a public lecture.

Academic caps Men wear a mortarboard (also known as a square or trencher cap) [h1], which is not worn indoors, except by the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor and Proctors. When meeting the Vice-Chancellor, Proctors, or other senior official of the university in the street, it is traditional for a man to touch or raise his cap.

Women may choose between the mortarboard or the soft cap [h5]. Originally, women were required to wear their soft caps during university ceremonies. From Michaelmas 1995, they were required to wear the soft cap, but permitted either to wear or to carry the mortarboard. From Hilary 2008, they are now, like men, required to carry their mortarboards when at university ceremonies indoors. Women who opt for the soft cap must still wear, and not carry, them indoors.

Doctors in the lay faculties (i.e. those except Divinity and Philosophy) wear Tudor bonnets [h2], which are round and made of velvet.

Subfusc

Subfusc () comes from the Latin for 'of a dark/dusky colour', and refers to the clothes worn with full academic dress in Oxford. Their origins stem from the formal day dress worn in the past that has, to a certain extent, fossilised around the Edwardian period into what it is now and has changed only slightly since to accommodate modern trends and needs.

As of October 2012, the University of Oxford regulations on subfusc have no reference to sex, meaning students of either sex can wear what is historically prescribed as male or female clothing, or, under the letter of the regulations, even a combination (although this is informally discouraged).

Previously, men were required to wear:

Dark suit and socks. Black shoes. White shirt and collar. White bow tie.

Women were previously required to wear:

White blouse. Black tie (either a bow tie or velvet ribbon). Black skirt or trousers. Black stockings or tights. Black shoes. Dark coat (if desired).

In addition, doctors in the higher faculties and senior university officials wear bands, such as those worn with legal court dress.

Members of the British Armed Forces may wear their service uniform with gown and hood (for graduates) in place of subfusc and cap. There is no formal guidance about what order of dress should be worn (i.e. Army No. 1 or Service Dress) or whether swords are worn; however, uniform caps are worn in the street and carried when indoors. Persons in Holy Orders may wear clerical dress instead of subfusc.

Subfusc is worn at university matriculation, at university examinations and degree ceremonies and at Encaenia. It is traditional, although not compulsory, that during exams, candidates also wear a carnation: white for the first exam, pink thereafter, and red for the final exam of the run. The one exception to this is found in the law students of Magdalen College, who wear green carnations for all of their Law Moderations. Although this system has differed over time, this is the one currently advised by the university and its Colleges. The carnations are often, although not necessarily, gifted to candidates by friends or members of their college "families".

A number of myths surround subfusc and its use in examinations - for example, that subfusc has a counterpart in 'full fusc', said to be a full suit of armour, which if worn to Finals examinations automatically results in a student being given a First; or the claim that one enterprising undergraduate examined the university statutes prior to an examination and discovered that all students sitting exams in full fusc are entitled to a glass of sherry. He demanded his due in the exam, and the university's proctors duly responded, before fining him one shilling for failing to wear his sword, allegedly also part of the archaic statutes. This latter story is disputed as untrue, and has been circulating in various forms (sometimes attributed to Cambridge) since at least the late 1950s.

Materials Although gowns and robes have traditionally been made from stuff, Russell cord or (in the case of members of the higher faculties) silk, most modern gowns and robes are made from synthetic material such as polyester. Similarly, hoods and gowns traditionally made out of silk are now more usually made of synthetic "art silk". Rabbit fur is also rarely now used in the making of bachelors' hoods, with artificial fur used instead.

Student dress Undergraduates Commoners (i.e. those without a scholarship or exhibition) wear a short black lay-type gown which just covers the suit jacket. The gowns have a flap collar and instead of sleeves have two streamers adorned with folds. These are the remnants of closed sleeves, as can still be seen on the laced gowns of the higher faculties.

Scholars (and some exhibitioners) wear a black clerical-type gown down to the knee. The gowns are gathered at the yoke, and have bell sleeves to the elbows (in effect they are shorter versions of the BA gown). For undergraduates, scholars are likely to be students who received a distinction in their first-year examinations, or who have received a scholarship for academic excellence in a specific topic. As a very general approximation, students wearing scholars' gowns may be predicted to achieve a first-class degree on completion of their final examinations.

Until the abolition of their statuses in the nineteenth century, gentlemen-commoners and noblemen-commoners each had distinct gowns, generally of coloured silk in the lay shape, decorated with lace.

Undergraduates and mortarboards It is often claimed that undergraduates by custom do not wear their caps (or even that they can be fined for doing so). This is incorrect. Outdoors, caps may be worn, but it is customary to touch or raise one's cap as a salute to senior university or college officers. Like all other male members of the university (including graduates) other than the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor and Proctors, male undergraduates must remove their caps during university ceremonies indoors.

It is also only in recent years that female undergraduates have been permitted to remove their mortarboards during university ceremonies. Women who opt for the mortarboard now no longer wear them indoors, but conform with the practice of male members of the university. As mentioned earlier, women who opt for the traditional women's soft cap still do not have this dispensation, and should remain covered at all times.

There are instances when male undergraduates are required to wear their mortarboards indoors. Undergraduates appearing before the Proctors' Court are required to present themselves wearing their caps and to salute the Proctors in the customary manner upon entering. They then remove their caps for the remainder of the proceedings.

Postgraduates