Academic dress is available for hire prior to your graduation ceremony. You can do this in the application process to graduate in your eVision portal, where you select the regalia you need and pay by credit card. You should complete payment at least five weeks before your graduation ceremony.
At your graduation ceremony you will wear a:
- Cap — the cap for all master's and bachelor's degrees is a black trencher or mortar board. Doctoral graduands (including PhDs) wear a black velvet cap
- Gown — there are four types of gown:
- A black bachelor's gown
- A black master's gown
- A maroon PhD gown (also worn for DClinDent, EdD, DBA, and DMA degrees)
- A scarlet gown for other doctoral degrees
- Hood — this hangs around your neck and down your back, over the gown; the colour of the hood lining denotes the degree.
Coloured hoods are worn with the appropriate academic dress for the University of Otago graduation ceremonies.
The Academic Dress Statute details the colours used for the hoods depending on the qualification you graduate in.
When you apply to graduate with a degree, the system automatically fills the correct hood.
If you are graduating with a diploma and applying to graduate in eVision, you will be prompted to indicate the degree you already hold as this is the colour hood you will wear.
Email: academic.dress@otago.ac.nz if you have any queries about the hood colour for your academic dress.
The Academic Dress (Regalia) page has further information about the requirements and photos of regalia:
You will need to attend the ceremony wearing the gown and hood and carrying the trencher, which you will wear once you have been capped and received your degree.
If you are receiving two degrees, you can choose which hood to wear at the ceremony as you can only wear one, though you are welcome to hire the second hood for photographic purposes.
If you are receiving a diploma and do not hold a degree, you need only a black bachelor's gown, worn without a hood or trencher.
Regalia for different degrees or qualifications should not be mixed (e.g. a bachelor's hood should not be worn with a master's gown, and a University hood should not be worn with the gown of any other institution).
Hiring regalia
Academic regalia is normally hired from Graduate Women New Zealand (Otago Branch). Proceeds from hire support fellowships, awards, and grants.
If you are graduating with a diploma or postgraduate diploma and obtained your degree from another institution, availability of non-Otago regalia cannot be guaranteed.
Information about collecting and returning your regalia, along with contact details for the regalia conveners for your ceremony, will be emailed to you approximately six weeks before your graduation ceremony.
Staff wanting to hire academic dress submit an order through their eVision staff portal. Graduate Women (Otago) only provide academic dress for the University of Otago, hoods for some Otago disciplines may not be available for staff to hire.
What to wear with regalia
There is no prescribed dress code, but most graduands wear smart, semi-formal daywear. As graduation day involves a significant amount of walking and stairs, practical footwear is recommended.
Korowai and equivalent ceremonial garments of other cultures may be worn with academic regalia.