page_title: Academic dress of the University of Oxford
section_title: Subfusc
hierarchical_section_title: Academic dress of the University of Oxford / Components of Oxford academic dress / Subfusc
caption_attribution_description: Students walking seen from behind, some wearing short commoners' gowns over subfusc suits: this is required wear only for very formal occasions such as examinations, matriculation, and graduation; for formal college dinners, a gown worn over everyday clothes is usual.DSC00156
context_page_description: The University of Oxford has a long tradition of academic dress, which continues to the present day.
context_section_description: Subfusc (/sʌbˈfʌsk/) comes from the Latin for ‘of a dark/dusky colour’, and refers to the clothes worn with full academic dress in Oxford. Their origins stem from the formal day dress worn in the past that has, to a certain extent, fossilised around the Edwardian period into what it is now and has changed only slightly since to accommodate modern trends and needs.
  As of October 2012, the University of Oxford regulations on subfusc have no reference to sex, meaning students identifying as either sex can wear what is historically prescribed as male or female clothing, or, under the letter of the regulations, even a combination (although this is informally discouraged).
  Previously, men were required to wear:
  Dark suit and socks.
  Black shoes.
  White shirt and collar.
  White bow tie.
  Women were previously required to wear:
  White blouse.
  Black tie (either a bow tie or velvet ribbon).
  Black skirt or trousers.
  Black stockings or tights.
  Black shoes.
  Dark coat (if desired).
  In addition, doctors in the higher faculties and senior university officials wear bands, such as those worn with legal court dress.
  Members of the British Armed Forces may wear their service uniform with gown and hood (for graduates) in place of subfusc and cap. There is no formal guidance about what order of dress should worn (i.e. Army No. 1 or Service Dress) or whether swords are worn; however, uniform caps are worn in the street and carried when indoors. Persons in Holy Orders may wear clerical dress instead of subfusc.
  Subfusc is worn at university matriculation, at university examinations and degree ceremonies and at Encaenia. It is traditional, although not compulsory, that during exams, candidates also wear a carnation: white for the first exam, pink thereafter, and red for the final exam of the run. The one exception to this is found in the law students of Magdalen College, who wear green carnations for all of their Law Moderations. Although this system has differed over time, this is the one currently advised by the University and its Colleges. The carnations are often, although not necessarily, gifted to candidates by friends or members of their college "families".
  A number of myths surround subfusc and its use in examinations - for example, that subfusc has a counterpart in 'full fusc', said to be a full suit of armour, which if worn to Finals examinations automatically results in a student being given a First; or the claim that one enterprising undergraduate examined the University statutes prior to an examination and discovered that all students sitting exams in full fusc are entitled to a glass of sherry. He demanded his due in the exam, and the University's Proctors duly responded, before fining him one shilling for failing to wear his sword, allegedly also part of the archaic statutes. This latter story is disputed as untrue, and has been circulating in various forms (sometimes attributed to Cambridge) since at least the late 1950s.
caption: Oxford undergraduates walking along New College Lane some wearing short commoners' gowns over subfusc suits: this is required wear only for very formal occasions such as examinations, matriculation and graduation
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