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How much cash is appropriate for a high school graduation gift?


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We're facing this too. I think part depends upon how many are in your family as well, as precedent will be set for the first :glare:

 

We have 3 immediate nephews, that's it. Our first nephew is graduating in a few weeks. The second and third are 2 and 4 years later, respectively.

 

We'll be giving $100 cash to each.

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We're facing this too. I think part depends upon how many are in your family as well, as precedent will be set for the first :glare:

 

We have 3 immediate nephews, that's it. Our first nephew is graduating in a few weeks. The second and third are 2 and 4 years later, respectively.

 

We'll be giving $100 cash to each.

 

:iagree:

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We're facing this too. I think part depends upon how many are in your family as well, as precedent will be set for the first :glare:

 

We have 3 immediate nephews, that's it. Our first nephew is graduating in a few weeks. The second and third are 2 and 4 years later, respectively.

 

We'll be giving $100 cash to each.

 

Well see this is a huge thing. I know I give much much less than what I see others giving. Some of that is simply our finances. Some of it is that I have 13 nieces and nephews and then if you add in cousins or in my case even great nieces and nephews all graduating, getting married, having babies at the same time. . . :svengo:

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This year it would be a check for 20.10

 

Ooh, love that one! My kids have started taping change on the inside cover of their friends' birthday cards based on their age (a dime and a couple pennies for 12, etc.) They love it!

 

For HS graduation, I would say $25 would be about right for anyone, although you might want to give more for family. It is not unusual for a grandparent or more well-off friend of the family to give $50 or $100 (although I would say that is a more typical gift for college graduation).

 

Give what you feel is right and what you can afford. If everyone knows there are a zillion nieces and nephews, they cannot expect you to give them each $100.

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Nada.

 

Kid accomplished something - great! Fabulous! Wonderful! Congratulations! Don't really see need for a gift though.

 

Maybe it's a regional/cultural thing? My dh & I didn't get gifts when we finished highschool, graduated from university, got professional certificates/licencing etc etc etc.

 

For hs & university, our parents did take us out to a nice restaurant to celebrate.

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Maybe it's a regional/cultural thing?

Maybe it's regional. It definitely wasn't like this when I was a kid.

 

High school graduation parties are a BIG DEAL here. Parents spend months preparing. I know a family that completely re-landscaped their backyard (in a major way) in preparation for the party. They gather years of photos, report cards, sports memorabilia and put together collages, PowerPoint presentations, soundtracks and large shrines for the graduate. They are catered affairs for hundreds of guests.

 

We have invitations to about 10 of these things this year, and it will be more than that steadily for the next few years.

 

We had been giving $50 to good friends, $100 for relatives. But it could quickly get out of hand.

 

 

My children know that they will not be having a party. They will get dinner at a restaurant of their choice. :D

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Maybe it's regional. It definitely wasn't like this when I was a kid.

 

High school graduation parties are a BIG DEAL here. Parents spend months preparing.

 

Good grief. I had no idea.

 

The only people I can think of offhand who got significant $ when they graduated were those who got help getting equipped for going backpacking in Europe - parents bought them a backpack, or a Eurorail pass etc.

 

Wow.

 

(Making mental note to distance self from relatives & close friends with hs age kids :lol:)

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Nada.

 

Kid accomplished something - great! Fabulous! Wonderful! Congratulations! Don't really see need for a gift though.

 

Maybe it's a regional/cultural thing? My dh & I didn't get gifts when we finished highschool, graduated from university, got professional certificates/licencing etc etc etc.

 

For hs & university, our parents did take us out to a nice restaurant to celebrate.

 

I'm in this camp, also. . .it also isn't really in our budget to give out money for stuff like that.

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$20-25 for acquaintances

$50-100 for close friends or family

 

The best graduation gift I ever saw was one my hs boyfriend received. His aunt gave him a huge box of Tide and taped a bunch of quarters all over the whole box.

 

That's awesome!!!!

 

My uncle and aunt used to give a toolbox with all the basic tools in it to high school graduates.

 

We've given gift cards in the amount of the year - $20.10 for this year to acquaintances. In our church, we get invited to a LOT of these! I don't know what I'd give to a niece or nephew. Haven't gotten there yet.

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Maybe it's regional. It definitely wasn't like this when I was a kid.

 

High school graduation parties are a BIG DEAL here. Parents spend months preparing. I know a family that completely re-landscaped their backyard (in a major way) in preparation for the party. They gather years of photos, report cards, sports memorabilia and put together collages, PowerPoint presentations, soundtracks and large shrines for the graduate. They are catered affairs for hundreds of guests.

 

 

Perry, you exaggerate not! This is a phenomenon we have encountered since moving to the midwest a few years back. We didn't do it like this down south! What is typical in other regions?

 

That said, it has been fun to celebrate with friends. We give $20, with a nice note/letter, but I wish we had budgeted for it earlier. It's not easy, now that we have three teens with friends graduating every year, to give even this amount to all. When my nieces and nephews get there, I hope to be able to be more generous.

 

I do have to admit, though, that with one of these things we were invited to, a monetary gift seemed kind of pointless. The kid had so much scholarship money that he was going to actually have a monthly cash income from awards, he had just paid for a new vehicle, and his financial aid package included room and board (read: meal ticket) in the honors dorm even though this is his home town and his family resides 15 minutes from campus. Yes, I wanted to congratulate his achievements, but my cash gift seemed quite insignificant!

 

I suppose we will follow the open house trend, after all that we will have attended by the time ours graduate. But I don't think I'll be redecorating, remodeling or relandscaping in preparation for it!

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We give $20 to friends, $50-100 to family.

 

Do you give more to those who are going to college? That is what we are debating at the moment with two grads this year (one niece attending college, one nephew with no plans).

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Do you give more to those who are going to college? That is what we are debating at the moment with two grads this year (one niece attending college, one nephew with no plans).

 

I'd separate the gifts to the niece into 2 gifts: graduation, and welcome to college life. That might avoid any hard feelings that could crop up if they didn't get an identical amount of cash upon graduation.

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and I was stumped. My ds' drum instructor is graduating, and since he and his family are fairly close to us, we had planned to get him something.... two years of drum lessons, our daughters hung out here & there, and the mom and I went out for coffee, etc. For us, it was a no-brainer to get him something.

 

Then comes an invite to someone's home for a grad party/cookout. OK, I RVSP'd and ran into someone else who was going. She asked "what are you getting him" This was my response: :001_huh: I had NO CLUE this was normal! When I graduated, it was just the next step of life... my grandmother & great aunt & great uncle happened to be here, so my mom made a cake and bought some sparkling grape juice. That was my 'party'. Dh is from France and said there are no parties there, so he was caught off guard, too. We had no clue what to do, so I had to hit the 'net for help.

 

We ended up giving a $20 gift card to Barnes & Noble. For my son's drum instructor, because of the closer ties, we have ordered a stainless steel coffee mug from the bookstore of the college he will be attending (geez, I hope his mom doesn't hang out here, as it will spoil the surprise!), and will be getting a gift card that is, as of now, of unknown amount for an unknown store.

 

I have told my kids not to expect anything major. They know me, and know how I feel about excess, so they understand. I figure I have three more years (GULP!) until I have to cross that bridge.

 

When I read my post, suddenly, that bridge seems too close. :lol:

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Our nephew will be a homeschool graduate this year and I think we will give him $100.

 

For other people we know, we only give $10. (And if we don't get an acknowledgement/thank you, siblings who graduate after them usually just get a card.) I've never given money for college grads because I figure they can now get a good job.

 

I remember when we got married, the people who gave us cash/check would give about $20-25. I was so thankful and shocked that people would honor us with that much money just because we got married.

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Are you Italian? :D What's your budget?

 

As a HS graduation gift (for a close family member or VERY close friend) I could totally see a 500 gift. But, like I said, we're Italian and those envelopes are serious stuff.

 

Weddings? Fugheddaboutit.

 

My cuz got 5K from his Italian bachelor uncles when cuz grauated fr. an Ivy.

 

(they weren't related to me, darn it!)

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  • 1 year later...
Never mind. Just saw that I already responded to this post in May of 2010. Didn't realize it was an old one! :P

 

I recognized it as an old one but I'm glad it came up. We know about a gazillion kids graduating next May and if I don't start planning now I will be in trouble then!

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