May 2007: UAA holds 2nd Annual Master's Degree Hooding Ceremony
by Kathleen McCoy |
Event provides special recognition for master degree graduates
UAA adds to the graduation experience with a master's candidate hooding ceremony on
Saturday, May 5 from 10 a.m. to noon in the Wendy Williamson Auditorium. A short
reception after the ceremony in the foyer of the auditorium will allow graduates,
faculty and family members to share congratulations. Nearly 200 students will participate
in this year's hooding ceremony, twice the number of last year.
This special hooding ceremony makes it possible to focus on advanced degree candidates
and their accomplishments. It allows graduate faculty and staff, family and friends
a chance to witness the ceremonial hooding of their graduate student in a more intimate
setting. UAA's Master's Degree Hooding Ceremony does not take the place of Commencement.
Graduate students will continue to walk, receive their diplomas and have their degrees
conferred at Commencement on Sunday.
Among the ceremony's participants are graduates of UAA's Master of Science in Project
Management (MSPM) Alaska Airlines cohort. These ten students participated in a customized
fast tracked program designed by MSPM chair Dr. Jang Ra, allowing students to complete
their coursework in a short 18 months rather than the normal two years. To facilitate
the process, UAA professors traveled to Seattle every-other-weekend to teach at the
Alaska Airlines campus. A wide range of Alaska Airlines employees participated in
the program and have benefited greatly by earning their advanced degree from UAA.
History and significance of the graduate hood
The origins of academic dress date back to the 12th and 13th centuries, when universities
were taking form. Regardless of whether the scholar was a student or a teacher, they
wore ordinary dress of a cleric. With few exceptions, the medieval scholar had taken
at least minor orders, made certain vows, and perhaps been tonsured. Long gowns were
worn and may have been necessary for warmth in unheated buildings. Hoods seem to
have served to cover the tonsured head until superseded for that purpose by the skull
cap.
Today, hoods are the most expressive component of the academic costume. They serve
to communicate the owner's school, degree and field of study through their length
and the colors of the lining and binding. Today's hoods have evolved from a serviceable
article of clothing to a type of elongated scarf draped over the shoulders and displayed
down the back with the lining turned inside out.
UAA master's degree graduates and candidates receive their hood because of the level
of education they have pursued beyond the baccalaureate degree. The University of
Alaska Anchorage's colors are gold and green, hence these colors on the hood. The
velvet trim on the hood signifies the scholar's field. For example, a Master of Education
recipient will have his gold and green hood trimmed in light blue; a Master of Science
recipient will have his gold and green hood trimmed in golden yellow.