在中世纪，房屋里一般不具备取暖设备，长袍成为了学子们避寒的必需品。

　　Academic dress for graduations started in the 12th and 13th centuries when universities first began forming. Whether a student or a teacher, standard dress for scholars was clerical garb. Most medieval scholars had made certain vows, and had at least taken minor orders with the church so clerical robes were their main form of dress to begin with.

　　毕业生穿着的学位服起源于大学形成初期的12至13世纪。当时无论学生还是老师，学者的标准服饰是牧师的衣装。大多数中世纪学者都要进行某种宣誓，并且起码举行一些宗教仪式，所以牧师的长袍成为早期学位服的主要形式。

　　In 1321, the University of Coimbra mandated that all Doctors, Bachelors, and Licentiates must wear gowns. In the latter half of the 14th century, excess in apparel was forbidden in some colleges and prescribed wearing a long gown. By the time of England's Henry VIII, Oxford and Cambridge began using a standard form of academic dress, which was controlled to the tiniest detail by the university.

　　在1321年，孔伯拉大学要求所有的博士、学士和硕士必须穿长袍。在随后的14世纪中叶，一些学院禁止过度花哨的服装，并且规定穿长袍。在英国亨利八世时期，牛津和剑桥大学开始采用一种标准款式的学位服，这是大学做出的最细微的规定。

　　Not until the late 1800s were colors assigned to signify certain areas of study, but they were only standardized in the United States. European institutions have always had diversity in their academic dress, but American institutions employ a definite system of dress thanks to Gardner Cotrell Leonard from Albany, New York. After designing gowns for his 1887 class at Williams College, he took an interest in the subject and published an article on academic dress in 1893. Soon after he was asked to work with an Intercollegiate Commission to form a system of academic apparel.

　　直到1800年，颜色才被用到学位服上预示着某一类学科，但是他们在美国是整齐划一的。欧洲的大学经常有不同种类的学位服，拜纽约奥尔巴尼的加德纳?科特尔?伦纳德所赐，美国的大学采用了一套规格确定的学位服。在为1887年的毕业班设计出长袍学位服后，他对这一领域产生了兴趣并且于1893年发表了一篇关于学位服的文章。不久，他被任命到校际委员会来规划一套学位服。

　　The system Gardner Cotrell Leonard helped form was based on gown cut, style and fabric; as well as designated colors to represent fields of study. For example green was the color of medieval herbs, and was assigned to medical studies. Because olive is close to green, was designated for pharmaceutical studies.

　　加德纳?科特尔?伦纳德设计形成的学位服系统建立在长袍的裁剪、款式和面料上，同时指定不同颜色代表某一学科。比如绿色是中草药的颜色，于是绿色就被运用到医学上。因为橄榄接近绿色，橄榄色就被运用到药学上。

　　In 1959, the American Council on Education had a Committee on Academic Costumes and Ceremonies review the costume code and make changes. In 1986, the committee changed the code to clarify the use of dark blue for a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

　　在1959年，美国教育理事会指派负责学位服和毕业仪式的委员会对学位服饰规格进行审查评估，并做出了改变。在1986年，委员会改变了服饰规格，明确了哲学博士使用深蓝色的学位服。

　　The shape and size of the hood and the sleeve design of the gown show the degree a student pursued: a Bachelor's Degree gown has pointed sleeves and no hood, a Master's Degree gown had long, closed sleeves with arm slits and a narrow hood, and a Doctor's Degree had bell-shaped sleeves and a draped, wide hood.

　　学位长袍中披肩布和袖子的形状、尺寸标志着该名学生获得的学位：学士学位服的袖口是尖的，并且没有披肩，硕士学位服的袖子长而且紧，在臂膀出有缝隙，有一个较窄的披肩，博士学位服的袖子是钟形的，较宽松的披肩围成一圈。

　　The color of the hood's lining tells which college or university the degree was given by. For example: Harvard is crimson, Temple is cherry and white, and Cornell is purple and white. However, other than the lining, the hood must be black.

　　披肩的衬里颜色表明了是哪所学院或大学授予的学位。比如：哈佛大学是赤红色的，天普大学是樱桃色和白色，康奈尔大学是紫色和白色，然而，除了衬里，披肩的其他部分必须是黑色的。

　　The field of study is designated by the color of the hood's facing. For example: Theology is scarlet, Arts Letters and Humanities are white, and Music is pink.各学科领域由披肩饰面的颜色来指定。例如：神学是猩红色的，艺术与人文学科是白色的，音乐学是粉色的。

　　Caps should only be made of black cotton poplin, broadcloth, rayon, or silk, to match gown they are to be used with. Velvet may only be used for a doctor's degree.

　　学位帽只能由黑色纯棉府绸、绒面、人造丝或丝绸制成，来和各类长袍匹配。丝绒一般只用于博士学位。

　　Tassels should be fastened to the middle of the cap's top and allowed to lie where it will. It should be black, or the color of field of study, unless it is for a doctor's degree in which case is may be gold.

　　流苏应当系在学位帽顶的中间部位并使之自然下垂。流苏应为黑色或者是该学科的颜色，而博士学位的流苏可以是金黄色的。