Spring Break
Students splurge on caps and gowns
Joe Shreve
Daily Staff Writer
Similar to high school graduations, graduation from college is a time for spending money. Caps and gowns, graduation notices, diploma frames, department banquets, graduation filing fees and other graduation paraphernalia all cost money. Depending on how much fanfare a graduating student and his or her parents want, graduation can cost a lot of money.
Jen Skebba, manager of gifts and clothing at the Spartan Bookstore, is in charge of the sales of caps and gowns and other various graduation essentials. Cap and gown packages are available for students earning their bachelor's degree for $40. For those graduating from a master's program, the basic package costs $70, because their outfit requires a hood.
Skebba said most students get graduation notices because they work much the same way as they do in high school, as incentives for graduation gifts.
Timothy Hegstrom, interim dean of the College of Social Sciences, said in addition to the university-wide commencement ceremony, which takes place on May 28, individual departments often hold a smaller celebration in honor of the graduates from that department. The costs of these events vary, depending on the event.
Rod Galindo, a senior majoring in kinesiology, said his department is planning a $35-per-guest dinner party the night before the university-wide commencement ceremony. He said he is trying to save as much money as he can during graduation.
"I didn't get the announcements professionally made. I just bought invitations - the blank cards with the tower on them," Galindo said.
Galindo also said he had had his graduation photo taken at the bookstore as well, which he said cost him nearly $80.
The university-wide graduation ceremony is held at the Spartan Stadium. Because many people can be seated in the stadium, there is no charge for attending the ceremony.
The filing cost for graduation is $25 with the submission of the graduation request form, which normally should be taken care of several months prior to the graduation date.
"The process and the paperwork was more of a nightmare than the money," Galindo said. "I didn't get my paperwork back until early April, so I wasn't sure if I would be officially graduating. That was more stressful than the financial part."
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