Budget - High School Senior Year

[2TxAgs]

Hi Disers - this year I have 2 kids who are seniors and will be graduating in June. I'm looking for helpful advice on keeping this year do-able from a budget standpoint.

I've already passed on the xtra photos by the school photographer - the kids only took a yearbook shot (drape/faux tux). We'll take photos ourselves for inclusion in announcements.

What have you done (or are you doing) to keep this year in check?

(Trying to keep expenses down to pay for the graduation cruise we hope to take!)

Thanks,

 

[Jaya]

My granddaughter made her own graduation announcements and they were adorable. Cost practically nothing and the ones ordered through the school were terribly expensive. When I go over to relatives' houses, I notice that some of them still have the announcement posted on their fridges (two years later) as it had a cute picture of her on it.

 

[disykat]

If they're going to a "grad night" see if there are early bird specials. I'm in charge of our school's and right now it's half price until Halloween!

My kids had senior pictures taken at JC Penny's and we buy the card style photos with their graduation date where it would normally say "Merry Christmas" or whatever. I think it cost about $50 total? We don't send the fancy announcements. My kids weren't interested in class rings.

Our only costs were pictures, renting the cap/gown, (we still have ds#1's so probably won't have to rent,) and grad night. For homecoming, he'll wear his suit (unless he makes court at which point they'll get them free from a local place) and for prom we'll buy him a black tux since he'll need one for college band. This worked great for our oldest. We'll offer to do dance dinners here; they often have them at someone's house and all the parents chip in. If they go to a restaurant we'll give him some cash, but he'll have to cover some of it himself.

My senior this year took the SAT junior year and isn't planning a re-take, so this year he'll just college application fees. They've taken AP tests every year so that's a standard cost for us. Yearbook is also a standard cost.

Since we're already knee deep in college, senior year costs hardly seem like a blip to us!

I think the biggest thing is the whole announcements/class ring thing. If you can avoid those it makes a huge difference.

 

[MSSANDRA]

One word of advice is to really listen to your kids and see what really is and is not important to them. Do they really really want a class ring or do they just think it's part of the plan. How important is a new expensive senior prom dress? Would they really be ok with another one? I found out my son really did not care about a lot of the stuff and just was going along with what he was suppose to do. Picture are mostly for you, we choose not to buy the expensive school shots. Start there and then make choices based on what they truly want and what you can afford. Nothing wrong with a part time job if the two of you can not come to an agreement.

 

[Southernmiss]

One word of advice is to really listen to your kids and see what really is and is not important to them. Do they really really want a class ring or do they just think it's part of the plan. How important is a new expensive senior prom dress? Would they really be ok with another one? I found out my son really did not care about a lot of the stuff and just was going along with what he was suppose to do. Picture are mostly for you, we choose not to buy the expensive school shots. Start there and then make choices based on what they truly want and what you can afford. Nothing wrong with a part time job if the two of you can not come to an agreement.

Agree with this! This is how we survived last year. DS got his letterman jacket his sophomore year, but did not want a class ring.

We did do the professional pictures, but didn't go overboard, mostly I wanted them. And truthfully, by the time he graduated, he had changed appearance since the time his pictures were taken in August.

We ordered 25 traditional invitations for close family and friends (smallest package and DS still has several) and then ordered a nice picture announcement from Walgreen's for out of town and more distant family and friends.

The thing that I had not counted on was the fees to apply to college. DS applied to about 5 colleges and each one had an application fee.

Also, DS took the ACT multiple times senior year to improve his score for scholarships, which he did--yea, but there were the ACT test fees.

DS paid for his own homecoming/prom expenses and other incidentals for school with his part time job.

We were not as fortunate to be able to save enough for a trip--lucky OP! But the above have made things more managable.

 

[westjones]

I had twins who just graduated. We only sent one announcement for the both of them.

For Open House, I didn't even want to have one, but they found two friends who wanted to join in, so we had a total of 4 grads for our open house (two were my girls). It really helped with the cost. I bought the cake and we put all four girls names and picture on it.

I will say, it was a VERY expensive year because one girl had 3 school trips and the other had 2 school trips (only one was in band and they went to NYC).

They had a friend take senior pictures, so we didn't do the pricey package ones.

But it will be a costly year, especially if you school does trips. Without the senior trip, and the science class trip and the band trip, it would not have been as bad.

 

[westjones]

Oh and for prom...if they have two proms....in that they are dating someone from a different school and they are going to that school's prom as well as their own school's prom with the same person.....what I did was order silk flowers and I had them use them for both proms.

 

[angierae]

My daughter just made Homecoming Court and I'm still waiting to see what extra expenses that's going to be. She already had her dress/shoes/etc but Homecoming Court gets special printed sweatshirts and I think they might do a photo shoot (we'd order, like one group pic for her to keep) but I'm going to have to take a half day off work for the Homecoming Parade now (it's at 5pm and she has to be there before that, and I usually work til 5:30) but we still don't know exactly what all is going on.

(The game/dance are on the 5th and 6th so I'm hoping to get this all figured out before then! Heh. We did NOT expect this.)

 

[clh2]

The one thing that was really-really-really pricey - but since I didn't know any better was cap/gown/tassels/announcments. Our school used Josten's.

I did know - from the Disboards of course...that you could sign up for "any number of grad announcments you wanted" instead of a package of 25 or 50. We bought 5. DD wanted one, and we wanted to send one to my parents.
(We bought a design from etsy for our grad party announcements.)

But - If I had known better - I would have networked the "heck" out of using someone's (from the prior class) to use their graduation gown. You can opt to just purchase the cap/tassels, but not the gown - if you can borrow some!

We did give my DD's gown to someone graduating in 2013. And - in an upcycling sort of way - I hope they pass it along to someone who can use it the following year.

Jostens=highway robbery in my opinion!

And OP - it sounds like you have 1 DS and 1 DD? Remind your DD that she in fact "can" wear any of her dresses again!(I know - that is such a tough concept for them!)

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

My DD is a junior and we've been discussing some of this so I can be prepared, she's my oldest.

Her school has a "college day" and if you apply on that day at the high school they waive application fees.

Also, if your child gets free lunch they will waive the SAT fee, at least in NC, so you may want to look into it if you'd qualify.

Clh2--I totally agree about Jostens!! I haven't looked at cap and gowns yet since it's early for us, but DD wants a class ring and the ring she liked was $250 in the cheapest metal available, she found a similar ring on a jeweler's website (Limoge's, I think) and it was $85 in gold. They have a "ring ceremony" at her school and she doesn't think she'll be able to participate if she doesn't go through Jostens, which makes me even more disappointed in that company, but luckily DD is frugal enough to understand that I'm not paying that for her ring.

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

The one thing that was really-really-really pricey - but since I didn't know any better was cap/gown/tassels/announcments. Our school used Josten's.

I did know - from the Disboards of course...that you could sign up for "any number of grad announcments you wanted" instead of a package of 25 or 50. We bought 5. DD wanted one, and we wanted to send one to my parents.
(We bought a design from etsy for our grad party announcements.)

But - If I had known better - I would have networked the "heck" out of using someone's (from the prior class) to use their graduation gown. You can opt to just purchase the cap/tassels, but not the gown - if you can borrow some!

We did give my DD's gown to someone graduating in 2013. And - in an upcycling sort of way - I hope they pass it along to someone who can use it the following year.

Jostens=highway robbery in my opinion!

And OP - it sounds like you have 1 DS and 1 DD? Remind your DD that she in fact "can" wear any of her dresses again!(I know - that is such a tough concept for them!)

Bolding mine: So are you saying that you bought the announcements saying that your DD was graduating from the school, then ordered party invites from someone on etsy? Are there other places to get quality announcements other than the school? I'm not crafty at all so prefer not to make them myself.

 

[MrsPete]

Be sure you order your cap and gown as soon as they're offered. We're a Jostens school, and our cap/gown/tassel set is only $9.99 -- IF you order it this month. They'll go up later; in fact, they'll be over $100 in June.

Along with cap and gowns, find out your school's dress code for graduation (especially if you have a boy 'cause they just don't pay attention to what they see as trivial). Our school announces it the first week of school. You don't want to assume that he needs dark dress pants, only to discover the day before graduation that guys are all expected to wear khaki. If you know now, you'll have plenty of time to get what you need at a good price.

School announcements are only about $1 each, but they're ugly. We ordered personalized invitations from an online place (included her party and her actual graduation on the same item). They cost more than the school's invitations, but they were still very reasonable. Count up how many you actually want to send out. Jostens suggests big numbers like 50-100 per student. We sent about twenty.

When it came to ordering senior items, I gave my daughter a certain amount of money and told her that she HAD TO order her cap and gown, and anything else was her choice. She ordered ONLY the cap and gown. If I'd offered to write an unlimited check, she probably would've chosen a bunch of junky scrapbooks, etc. that would now be dust collectors.

Find out now whether your school sets a limit on how many people may attend graduation. Some schools give each senior X number of tickets (and it's always because of venue size /fire code), while others don't need to bother with this. Okay, this won't save you money, but it will save you the embarassment of inviting all the aunts and uncles, only to find that you don't have enough tickets for the grandparents.

Order your yearbook, senior page, senior tee shirt, whatever AS SOON AS IT IS AVAILBLE. Usually you can save a few dollars by ordering early. You're not likely to be swimming in money next spring, so go ahead and do it now.

Read everything your school sends home, and don't hang up on the school's automated phone calls. An amazing number of my high school seniors (and their parents) simply don't know what's going on -- and it's because they ignore the school's messages.

Find out now when your school takes senior pictures, cap-and-gown pictures, senior class pictures, whatever. Decide which ones you want, and write those dates on the calendar now. I can't tell you how many girls are caught by surprise and are upset because they wanted to have their hair done before pictures . . . and suddenly pictures are tomorrow.

We have free applications week sometime in November (I don't think the date's been announced yet this year). The big schools don't participate -- probably because you'll pay to apply to them anyway -- but many of the small private schools need to drum up business. You probably should go ahead and send in your first-choice school applications now . . . but this is an opportunity to send in a couple more without paying application fees.

If you get a physical copy of your transcript from your school, it'll cost you five dollars; however, if you apply online through -- oh, someone say the name of that big website that hosts the Common Application -- you can send the transcript for free. Note that not all schools accept Common Ap.

When you're getting transcripts, it's not a bad idea to go ahead and get an extra one. That way if you discover a potential scholarship at the last minute, you have one sitting ready in your drawer.

Have your senior check NOW to see whether he owes any fees to the school. MOST seniors owe something, though most of them owe only small amounts. Typical situations: The student never paid the $10 fee for Biology class. The student failed to turn in his Geometry book back when he was a sophomore. The student has a $2.40 fee for having kept a library book overdue when he was a junior. If you owe the money, you're going to have to pay up -- but find it out now rather than waiting 'til the week before graduation. A few people (usually the ones who can't be bothered to return their textbooks) owe literally HUNDREDS. The really bad thing is that they usually go through their closets and find the books and return them; but we've been without the use of the book for years. I don't know why we can't require students to "pay up" at the end of every school year.

Prom and other spring events all cluster together, and they can be expensive. Talk with your senior to find out what is really important to him or her. Except for tickets, it's possible to spend very little on these events. My daughter's senior prom dress was $50 (a last year's style from the clearance rack), and it was perfect for her. Once you see what events are offered, consider giving your senior X amount of money and letting her manage it for herself. It's a good exercise in budgeting to let her choose between the expensive dress and the expensive restaurant.

Don't skimp on pictures. No one ever says, "I just don't care about all those pictures of my kids."

 

[clh2]

Bolding mine: So are you saying that you bought the announcements saying that your DD was graduating from the school, then ordered party invites from someone on etsy? Are there other places to get quality announcements other than the school? I'm not crafty at all so prefer not to make them myself.

Absolutely...again we only ordered "5" announcements from Josten's. One for DD's scrapbook, and one for my parents. And 3-others that will probably never get used.

The etsy design we used was:

The cost to have this done was $15, and then we had reprints done at Costco for $0.39 each (or was it $0.40). There are many desgins that are $10, and some even less than that - this particular design just suited my DD to a tee. You can design invites in the photo websites for Walgreens, Walmart, etc too, and then you just pay for the printing. I just happened to "really" like the etsy design best. Again - it just "fit" our DD. We didn't "get" the invites from the etsy shop - just the file. Hope that makes sense!

 

[pjlla]

I haven't yet read all of the other replies, so sorry if I am duplicating ideas.

Other than a Senior trip (day trip) and Senior Prom, I can't imagine what else I would be looking toward for major expenses. Maybe our school just doesn't do lots of stuff??

Anyhow, in regards to her Senior photos, she has a friend who is in Art school, majoring in photography. I've seen her work and LOVE it, so I asked DD to ask her over the summer if she would do the photos and how much she would charge. She charged us $50 flat rate and we got full access/rights to the photos. They came out lovely and now I just need to decide which ones and how many to order. I will probably order an 8 x 10 for myself, 5 x 7 for the grandparents and a few selected aunts/uncles. Then maybe a handful of 4 x 6 for friends, etc. I will order them from Shutterfly and don't anticipate the cost being over $100. I'll try to wait for a sale.

I am a scrapper and will definitely be doing our own graduation announcements and graduation party invitations. I've always done my kids birthday invites, etc, so I'm not too concerned about this idea.

The graduation party will be a home party. We've already started primping the house up for next year (painting, landscaping), so that we don't have a lot of last minute stuff next spring. We have been brainstorming food ideas and party themes and will settle on that some time during the late winter. We have a color theme picked out already because we have bought our paper napkins for the party already! On clearance for 75% off at the end of this summer! No date on them, just graduation themed and the right colors to either use her school colors or black and white or pretty much any primary color combo.

I know expenses will crop up along the way like cap/gown, etc. but since she is my oldest, I imagine I'm not aware of everything. Right now we are concentrating on getting college visits done and getting ready to get those college apps done and in the mail!

Curious to read the other responses and see what I might be up against!...........P

 

[MrsPete]

Other than a Senior trip (day trip) and Senior Prom, I can't imagine what else I would be looking toward for major expenses. Maybe our school just doesn't do lots of stuff??

Oh, the list can be rather long:

Senior pictures
Cap & Gown pictures
Senior yearbook
Special page in the yearbook
Class group picture
For athletes, recognition ad in the sports media guide
For athletes, sports team pictures
Cap and gown
Clothing for graduation
Announcements & name cards, party invitations
Class tee-shirts, sweatshirts, keychains, extra tassels (all sold along with cap and gowns)
Class ring -- though I think most people buy these junior year
Letterman's jacket -- again, most people buy them earlier, though you might add patches senior year

College visits (gas, meals, time)
College tees /sweats -- at least for the school she chooses
College admissions fees ($50-80 per school)
Transcripts for each college application
SAT or ACT fees
AP testing fees
AP test prep books -- well worth the money
Acceptance fee once she chooses her college -- I don't remember paying money to accept when I was a student, but I could be wrong
Housing downpayment
Doctor's visit for college health form & vaccinations
College orientation fee -- orientation is mandatory
Dorm stuff like lamps and bedsheets
Laptop for college

Prom expenses -- possibly other special events such as Homecoming dances, Semi-formal, Volleyball Banquet, etc.
Senior picnic, breakfast, grad night . . . whatever your school hosts
Senior class gift to the school
School fees, if your student owes money from previous years
Graduation party -- even an at-home party will cost money; you'll buy food and drinks at least
Graduation gift -- for her, and you'll probably buy something for the kids who've been her close friends over the years

Obviously, not all schools do all these things; obviously, not all families will partake in every option available. But the list is longer than a first-time senior parent might expect. Expect to be surprised a couple times during the year, and expect it to add up -- yeah, a transcript is only $5 and a tee-shirt is only $15 . . . but when you add up all these little things, your checkbook will take a hit. Other things are expensive in and of themselves; for example, if she applies to 3-4 schools (and many students apply to 8-10, though personally I think that's spreading yourself too thinly), you've spent $200 in admissions fees.

I was pleased enough with what we spent. We did enough to feel that we "celebrated" her senior year, college acceptance and graduation, but we didn't do anything really extravagant. We could certainly afford what we chose to spend.

 

[MrsPete]

Absolutely...again we only ordered "5" announcements from Josten's. One for DD's scrapbook, and one for my parents. And 3-others that will probably never get used.

The etsy design we used was:

The cost to have this done was $15, and then we had reprints done at Costco for $0.39 each (or was it $0.40). There are many desgins that are $10, and some even less than that - this particular design just suited my DD to a tee. You can design invites in the photo websites for Walgreens, Walmart, etc too, and then you just pay for the printing. I just happened to "really" like the etsy design best. Again - it just "fit" our DD. We didn't "get" the invites from the etsy shop - just the file. Hope that makes sense!

We used an online printing place -- Pear Tree was in the name. We ordered two-sided announcements that invited people to her graduation, her luncheon beforehand, and ended with a line telling where she would attend college /what she would study.

We bought 25 announcements (included 3 pictures of her) plus color-coordinated cards with her name on the front (to use as Thank Yous -- cards that actually read Thank You on the front are so crass). I want to say it was in the $35-40 range. The school invitations would've cost $12-15, but they were ugly.

 

[disykat]

Thank Yous -- cards that actually read Thank You on the front are so crass.

Seriously?

 

[LoriNSC]

Order everything early as the prices will go up later on. I did get his senior pictures since he's not a camera person-that was my biggest expense. We just ordered the basic invitations, cap/gown set, and a cove for his diploma. As for prom he paid his own gas and for dinner. I rented the tux and shoes from a local shop that had a special for his high school and he just went kinda basic but looked so good. I have a DSL Cannon camera so the girls mom and I took them to a local university that has a lake and rose garden and I took their pictures. When they left for dinner, me and her mom took off to Walmart and got a lot of pictures printed right in store. We both got all the pics on a cd, and bought photos albums right there and loaded them up at home. They each had a nice album of pictures on their beds when they got home.

 

[pjlla]

Oh, the list can be rather long:

Senior pictures - Done, as I mentioned.

Cap & Gown pictures - Not done around here.

Senior yearbook - already ordered and no more expensive than last year.

Special page in the yearbook - not done around here.

Class group picture - not aware of this... maybe it comes in the spring??

For athletes, recognition ad in the sports media guide - never heard of such a thing and DD is a 3 year varsity swimmer.

For athletes, sports team pictures - this is a yearly thing and only about $20

Cap and gown - obviously, but already prepared.

Clothing for graduation - actually bought MY dress for her graduation yesterday on clearance at Macy's! I'm sure she will just wear a sundress and sandals, as that is what most of the girls do.

Announcements & name cards, party invitations - Not sure what a "name card" is and I will be making the combined announcements/invites myself.

Class tee-shirts, sweatshirts, keychains, extra tassels (all sold along with cap and gowns) - t-shirts are in the works, never seen or heard of class sweatshirts or keychains here. Extra tassels I assume are for honor societies?? DD is in NHS, Latin HS and Spanish HS, so I am already assuming that there will be extra expenses for graduation attire for those.

Class ring -- though I think most people buy these junior year - Around here it is sophomore year usually. We gave DD $$ for her ring for Christmas last year and she ordered it this summer and it came the first week of school. It was a bit more than we had planned, but not terribly expensive and it was a Christmas gift.

Letterman's jacket -- again, most people buy them earlier, though you might add patches senior year - Not something I've seen around here. Didn't even realize that schools still did those.

College visits (gas, meals, time) - I consider these "college" expenses and honestly, we drive so much already for swim and such, a few more tanks of gas aren't really noticed. I try hard to pack meals and snacks in the car whenever possible....both for health reasons and for budget reasons. We are heading to RI this weekend to re-visit two schools and will stay overnight with family nearby to save on hotel costs.

College tees /sweats -- at least for the school she chooses - Not a necessity and again, we've seen that many of the colleges offer either a free t-shirt after you are accepted or at least a discount in the campus book store. And this is NOT a senior year necessity. If she has made a college choice by Christmas, then I will suggest she ask for college gear for gifts.

College admissions fees ($50-80 per school) - Again, I consider this a "college" expense and we are prepared for it.

Transcripts for each college application - See above

SAT or ACT fees - She took the SAT last year and is taking it again next month, hoping to improve her math score. Not such a major expense.

AP testing fees - Did 3 last year and will do 3 again this year. Money well spent.

AP test prep books -- well worth the money - Not a necessity and probably will NOT buy any. The AP teachers offer enough extra study sessions and a lot of AP prep is available free online.

Acceptance fee once she chooses her college -- I don't remember paying money to accept when I was a student, but I could be wrong - Never heard of such a thing, other than a tuition deposit. But again, I consider this a college expense and it will come from her college savings.

Housing down payment - see above.

Doctor's visit for college health form & vaccinations - Health insurance will pick this up.

College orientation fee -- orientation is mandatory - College expense.

Dorm stuff like lamps and bedsheets - Already told her to start asking for this stuff for Christmas and I have already been putting a bit aside for such things (although I KNOW not to buy anything decorative as she and any potential roommates may want to coordinate this stuff).

Laptop for college - Already planned for.... may be her HS graduation gift.

Prom expenses -- possibly other special events such as Homecoming dances, Semi-formal, Volleyball Banquet, etc. - Homecoming is Friday. She is still debating whether or not to attend. Tickets are only $5 and she is okay with wearing last year's dress (which I bought for $5 off the Macy's clearance rack). I bought some dresses yesterday at Macy's for her to try, but she didn't like any of them, so back they go.

Prom dress/shoes/bag will have a budget. She bought very neutral shoes and bag last year with the hopes of wearing them twice. I do NOT expect her to wear her dress again, but she will have a budget of $200, as she did this past spring. She and some friends (from another school area) are talking about a dress swap. It would be great if that worked out! Hopefully tickets won't be more than $50 (this includes dinner and dancing). If she has a date or decides to go with a group and they want to share a limo, then she can figure out how to pay for it. Otherwise she is welcome to drive my car or carpool.

No sports banquets here.... there is a sports awards night at the HS and for the swim team that has traditionally been followed by a dessert night or even a pasta supper at the Team Captain's house.... which this year is us!!

Senior picnic, breakfast, grad night . . . whatever your school hosts. - Again, haven't heard of any of this stuff.... usually it is just a day trip somewhere local like Six Flags. Most kids take a BIG trip abroad Junior or Senior year and that is considered their big trip.

Senior class gift to the school - That usually comes from the class till.

School fees, if your student owes money from previous years - Never have paid any additional fees for any classes at our HS, other than AP or SAT test fees.

Graduation party -- even an at-home party will cost money; you'll buy food and drinks at least - As I mentioned in my original post, we are already preparing for and planning her graduation party! Can't wait!!

Graduation gift -- for her, and you'll probably buy something for the kids who've been her close friends over the years - Already talking about fun, affordable gifts for friends (probably about 10 at this point) and have come up with some GREAT original ideas. Her new college laptop computer may be her graduation gift.

OH MY! That list is LONG! But I can honestly say, I've never heard of most of this stuff with regards to our high school! But I can honestly say THANK YOU for the big heads up! You are right.... all of this stuff can nickel and dime you to death!! ..............................P

 

[aprilgail2]

But - If I had known better - I would have networked the "heck" out of using someone's (from the prior class) to use their graduation gown. You can opt to just purchase the cap/tassels, but not the gown - if you can borrow some!

Be sure you order your cap and gown as soon as they're offered. We're a Jostens school, and our cap/gown/tassel set is only $9.99 -- IF you order it this month. They'll go up later; in fact, they'll be over $100 in June.

?? Your school has you buy a cap and gown?? Our school here provide them and then you give them back when you are done with them- if you don't give it back they withold your diploma until you give it back! Never heard of anyplace that made you buy one- what in the world do you do with it after the 2 hours that you use it??? The cap and gown go back and the tassel you keep.