No student who completed nearly four years of college could be naive enough to expect that graduation will be an inexpensive process. If attending school costs a fortune, then surely, universities will squeeze out every last penny until their students complete the walk across the stage to shake hands with President Deborah Stanley. The graduation fair was a disappointment to many students for several reasons, including, the emotional and financial costs of attending. Many students felt like tourists in Chinatown with all the attractive vendors selling class rings, photos, picture frames, personalized Laker gear and the like.
Many students were upset with the email announcement for the graduation fair arriving only one day before it took place. Included in the email were most of the resources seniors could access at the fair. Not included in the email was just how much students should expect to spend for the bare minimum required for commencement: the cap and gown. Instead, the email seemed to emphasize all the “great deals” graduating seniors would be able to get for attending. The email stressed in bold type, “Cap and Gown portraits! No sitting fee, no obligation and free proofs!” Though professional cap and gown photos would be a nice luxury, students were not thrilled to feel pressured to get them taken after waiting in line for some time to receive the cap and gown that already set them back $90. “10% off all diploma frames,” read another bullet point in the email. Perhaps that was supposed to make up for the cost of a cap and gown.
Admittedly, like most things for college students, we could have discovered the cost of a cap and gown with our own research online, but including that information in the email the day before we had to pay up would have been helpful. Career Services deserves credit for putting the whole fair together, fully knowing the expensive cost and headache it would cause. Holding the event from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. gave seniors plenty of time to squeeze it in their schedule. However, many students probably did not expect to stand in a long line to purchase the cap and gown. The line was especially lengthy for the school of communication and media arts and the school of education.
By far the biggest surprise was the additional $30 for the stol that magna cum laude graduates must get for their cap and gown. Cum laude graduates paid an additional $20 for their tassel. Summa cum laude graduates’ hard work paid off. They received an all-gold cap and gown to recognize their achievement. Students could have saved a few bucks by graduating with a GPA lower than 3.3. The extra recognition is nice, but the surprise fee for a piece of fabric seems to penalize achievement.
All told, the process was relatively simple, and the cap and gown comes with everything seniors need moving toward commencement. Also, given the cost of attending college, 100 or so bucks for graduation is a drop in the bucket. Nevertheless, seniors would have benefitted from a more extensive overview of what to expect and more advertising for the event in the weeks leading up to it.
Photo provided by Pixabay
