In celebration of students’ hard work and achievements throughout their undergraduate and graduate studies, the College of the Humanities and Social Sciences established a dedicated master’s hooding ceremony. What began as a new initiative has grown into a meaningful tradition, with the college hosting its fourth annual ceremony this year.
The academic hood’s history and significance have changed over time. Originally derived from clerical attire, its original purpose was to provide warmth in monasteries and universities during the Middle Ages, according to Alex Kerr in his article “Layer Upon Layer: The Evolution of Cassock, Gown, Habit and Hood as Academic Dress.” However, as universities formalized traditions, the hood became a symbol of scholarly identity and achievement. Later, in the United States, the Intercollegiate Code of Academic Costume standardized academic dress, using color codes to represent various fields of study. According to the Intercollegiate Registry of Academic Costume, the code was formally adopted in 1895.
At CSUF, the practice of individually hooding master’s degree students began in the 1970s. With the introduction of department-level commencement ceremonies, each master’s degree candidate was hooded individually on stage, according to a June 1974 article in the Daily Titan.
In 2023, the College of Humanities of Social Sciences created an event focused entirely on graduate student recognition. The ceremony quickly became a success and demonstrated the value of dedicated hooding celebrations, encouraging other colleges across campus to explore similar events.
Family and friends gather in Meng Hall each year to watch their loved ones walk across the stage and receive their hoods from faculty members who guided them through their graduate studies.
The students recognized at this year’s ceremony represent 10 departments across the humanities and social sciences. This year’s graduates explored such topics as fantasy sports gambling, substance use among college students, climate change adaptation in Arctic communities and representations of masculinity in post-9/11 popular culture.
During the ceremony, Jessica Stern, dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, noted that despite their varied interests, graduates share “a conviction that careful inquiry and sustained research bring us closer to making sense of the world and the forces that shape it.”
Stern added that they are part of “a long lineage of thinkers who have grappled with the questions that animate the humanities and social sciences — what it means to be human, and how people come together to form societies.”
For Class of 2026 sociology grad Isabel Ramirez-Flores, the hooding ceremony offered a chance to celebrate that achievement in a more personal setting. “My parents drove three hours to attend the hooding ceremony rather than the larger commencement ceremony because it felt like a more personal way to celebrate the completion of my master’s degree,” she said.
“Being hooded by two members of my committee felt like the closing of one of the most challenging chapters of my life,” Ramirez-Flores said. “It was really meaningful to share that moment with people who had witnessed my start here.”
For the graduates, this recognition in front of their peers, loved ones and professors carries a deeply personal meaning.
Public administration graduate Kayla Woodson said she is glad she attended: “It was gratifying to be individually recognized for our achievements, especially among peers who understand the work it took for us to get to this moment.”