Do you think my daughter deserves a big college graduation party when a degree means nothing these days?
Grabbing some popcorn and pulling up a chair.
I think I’ll bring some hard root beer to have with my popcorn.
Got laugh when even the mods pull up a chair and pop popcorn for another “noobie” thread start.
Which hard root beer? Aldi has some decent ones… ?
But I will take the bait…
Yes, throw her a huge party(whatever you can afford). It’s an accomplishment that deserves recognition.
But I must know… Why do you feel that college degrees have no worth? What did she major in?
Is it too early for wine?
Don’t throw her a party. Just give her the money you would have spent on the party and let her fly from the coop.
Yep…the Aldi hard root beer. It’s terrific!
Value of a college degree aside, in my opinion you do not need to give a big graduation party. HS is different because your child tends to have friends, parents, teachers and mentors etc. that know your child and are usually nearby. Most of your child’s college companions, professors, etc. will be no where near you. We went to our D’s graduation, took her our for a nice dinner then helped her move somethings out of her apartment. We had a family dinner later on with some local family and friends and that was it. Good luck I hope your child finds their degree does benefit their future.
Does she want a party, big or otherwise? We had a college graduation party for our S, as a fun celebration and excuse to have family get together. No gifts. My D didn’t want a party. Both were happy with their choices.
A degree means “something” to many people - including employers that require one for many entry level jobs, and people who wish they had the opportunity, time, and money to get one and can’t.
It’s up to you. One of my kids didn’t participate in the graduation ceremony and then was disappointed when no one made a big deal about her graduating. She thought she’d somehow get a lot of attention and gifts even without the ‘event.’ She got cards and gifts, but nothing like her boyfriend received two years earlier. She also doesn’t seem to understand that we have a small family and he seems to be related to half of New Jersey.
She was especially disappointed 6 months later when her sister graduated and people actually attended and we all went out to lunch. I think she wished she’d have done a little more.
I don’t think graduation is meaningless, but if you do, don’t make a big deal out of it.
I didn’t give my D a party when she graduated from a 5 year program with a masters. We all went out to a dinner in her college town and allowed her to bring a few friends - nothing fancy, think Red Lobster, Olive Garden type place - but we had a blast. She worked in her field for one year and is now doing something totally different.
S17 is set to graduate next year and he has already said that he doesn’t want a party. We will probably do a dinner in his college town. Since he is graduating a year early, most of his cohort is not going to be walking with him, so we will take some of them out to dinner, probably the night before as they will leave before graduation since they are not graduating. When he gets home, I might let him take a few friends out or have a small BBQ but not a huge party.
Define “big graduation party”.
I just feel any milestone like this is a good reason to celebrate an accomplishment (it could just be making a favorite meal). We do life once. No regrets
What do you mean by “big graduation party”?
A family dinner at a park or someone’s home?
An event at an event place…you know catered with an open bar?
Dinner at a restaurant?
Party for friends and relatives with the expectation that gifts will be received?
Party just for friends?
Party for 10…100…200? Which?
No definition makes it impossible to answer your question. But I’ll tell you what we did.
We rented a B and B and invited family to attend who lived 3000 milers away…and 12 came. We had a nice dinner out the night before the graduation. After the ceremony, we took everyone out for a great early dinner. In the evening, we hosted a pool party with food for our kid and any friends and their families she wanted to invite, along with our family.
For kid 2, we had an early dinner before a senior music recital for family and friends we invited…most were traveling a couple of hours. Then we hosted a post recital reception for everyone who attended. The next morning, we took the family who attended out for a very nice brunch…private dining room.
We did this because we wanted to. It doesn’t sound like the OP wants to have a celebration of any kind. If that is the case…then just don’t.