United States   “Mortar board” Washington University This is my own mortar board from Washington University in St. Louis. The white tassel indicates that I was a liberal arts student. You hang the tassel from the left side before you receive your degree and move it to the right afterwards. Other tassel colors have other meanings, for example, green is for medicine, brown is for business, etc. I can’t remember all of them, although they were listed on the commencement ceremony program, which I partially memorized during the boring speeches. Actually, there was a high point during the ceremony when Ella Fitzgerald was awarded an honorary PhD for her contributions to American culture. So folks, this cap has actually been to an Ella Fitzgerald concert. Not many mortar boards can make that claim!