Chatham University holds its commencement ceremony each spring — for example, Spring 2025 Commencement was held on April 27 at the David Lawrence Convention Center and streamed live for remote attendees. During commencement, graduates wear full academic regalia, including a graduation cap, gown, and, for those earning advanced degrees, a hood.

According to Chatham’s regalia tradition, most robes are black, and each includes the university seal. Bachelor’s graduates wear a hood in Chatham purple, while master’s and doctoral graduates wear hoods with velvet trim and lining specific to their academic disciplines. Chatham defines its hood-color scheme by major: for example, white for Arts, olive drab for Business, light blue for Education, apricot for Nursing, teal for Physical Therapy, golden yellow for Science, citron for Social Sciences, and kelly green for Sustainability, among others.

Tassel policy at Chatham recognizes degree level and honors: doctoral graduates may wear gold tassels, while undergraduate and master’s tassels are likely standard or discipline-neutral. For academic distinction, Chatham’s Honors Program awards gold cords to graduates who meet its GPA criteria.

Chatham also has commemorative regalia traditions through its Multicultural Graduation and Lavender Graduation ceremonies. In the Multicultural Graduation, students receive Kente-pattern stoles to reflect their cultural heritage. Lavender Graduation honors LGBTQIA+ students — participants wear lavender stoles to symbolize identity and resistance.

Faculty participating in commencement wear traditional academic gowns; their regalia likely includes discipline-specific hoods, though Chatham’s publicly available catalog does not specify a uniform faculty gown color.

In summary, Chatham University’s commencement regalia practice blends traditional academic dress (black gowns, mortarboards, degree hoods) with meaningful identity-based accents (Kente stoles for multicultural graduates and lavender stoles for LGBTQIA+ graduates), honoring both academic achievement and community diversity.

Chatham University Graduation Regalia

Product Highlights

• Black academic gown — the foundation of Chatham’s commencement attire.
• Mortarboard cap — traditional square design for all graduates.
• Hood options: purple-lined for bachelor’s, discipline-trimmed for graduate degrees (e.g., sage-green Business, brown Fine Arts, teal Physical Therapy).
• Tassels: gold for doctoral, standard for bachelor’s and master’s.
• Honor cord: gold cord for Chatham Honors Program graduates (GPA-based).
• Identity stoles: Kente for multicultural graduates, lavender for LGBTQIA+ graduates (Lavender Graduation).
• Faculty regalia: gowns and hoods with discipline-specific colors; no single uniform color mandated.

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Note: To confirm the exact colors of the graduation gown, cap, tassel, honor cords, and stoles for your specific program at Chatham University, you can reach out directly to the college's administration or the office responsible for commencement and student services. They can provide you with the most accurate and up-to-date information regarding academic regalia.