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Class rings - high school or college


momofkhm
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I offered my girls the opportunity to buy a class ring.  Neither of them took me up on it.  Now State girl is getting info from her college to buy one.  She still doesn't want one.  :-)  But it got me to thinking, did you buy one?  And if so do you still wear it?

 

I bought a high school ring and a college ring.  So did dh.  I wore my high school ring until I got my college ring.  I don't know how long I wore my college ring.  But I haven't worn it in years!

 

DH's parents even spent big bucks on his college ring - I think its 24 K gold.  He hasn't worn it in years.

 

So how about you?

 

 

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My mom bought me my high school ring; I wear it from time to time but not often.

 

My dd asked me about getting one, and I told her no after the two of us reasearched the cost. I told her that I would be glad to buy her a lovely ring, but not a class ring. I wanted to buy her something beautiful she would wear for the rest of her life. After looking at class rings and then looking at other rings, she saw the logic and helped me pick out a gorgeous birthstone ring that she loves and is happy to wear.

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Sorry to those who like them, I always thought the traditional style were ugly.  I never wanted one.  

 

DD16 says she does want one, but she is a cheerleader, so I think part of it is a sense of belonging in the school hierarchy.

 

I think I will give her a few hundred dollars and tell her to decide on what she wants for her mementos from high school.  She is a Junior and that way she can order what she wants and if she wants to upgrade from there, it will be on her.  I would rather see her order now and have it for a couple of years, than for her to wait and only have it for her senior year.  But if she just pockets the cash, or uses it for fun experiences in high school, she can do that too.

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I have a high school class ring, but I really don't know why. I hated high school, don't look back on it with fond memories, and have no friends from that time. I think the last time I wore it was....I don't even know if it made it to college with me! As a matter of fact, I think it's still at my mother's house somewhere, 300 miles away. I have no use for it.

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I had one, and so did DH.  They're in a box in a drawer somewhere, and have been since . . . before we got married over 26 years ago.

 

Neither of the boys want one.  I think class rings aren't nearly as "in" as they were long ago, and the students who get them are in the minority.  But that could be just around here, I don't know about other places.

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I didn't get a class ring in either high school or college.  I hated high school.  And in college I was a "nontraditional" student, graduating at age 32 while a working adult, so... it would have been weird.

 

I know homeschoolers get class rings sometimes but I really don't understand that point of that (not to be offensive to those who like them - I don't object to it, I simply don't understand the desire for it).  If my kids have an opinion on the topic they've never mentioned it.  I don't know if they even know class rings exist.  I would rather put the money toward something more useful and lasting.  In my experience, the only people I've known who wear their class rings more than a few years after graduation are those who peaked in school and are looking back on that time as their glory days.

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I bought both. Wore my high school ring until I got my college ring. I'm ashamed to say I don't even know where the high school ring is now.

 

I still wear my college ring, but I don't have the traditional style with the big stone and the engraved sides. I opted for a signet ring with the school seal. My name and year of graduation are engraved inside. I love my alma mater and met my dh there so still feel very attached to the place.

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I bought both. Wore my high school ring until I got my college ring. I'm ashamed to say I don't even know where the high school ring is now.

 

I still wear my college ring, but I don't have the traditional style with the big stone and the engraved sides. I opted for a signet ring with the school seal. My name and year of graduation are engraved inside. I love my alma mater and met my dh there so still feel very attached to the place.

 

Now this makes sense to me.    You would be the exception to what I stated in my post above yours.  :-)

 

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I did not buy one for HS.  I think that is absurd - I expect/ed my kids to go on to college.   it feels like putting the cart before the horse.

 

1dd did want a class ring for her uni (engraved school crest.  no stone. the only kind offered) - but it was far more symbolic than "a college ring" (there were other things too.)  she wears it. (she never wears her PBK jewelry)

no one else has wanted one, not even 2dd with a doc. (but then, she'd have been happy with just a wedding band and no engagement ring.)

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I didn't really consider a high school ring because they were so expensive, and because I didn't exactly love high school. Also, my birthstone is a diamond, and I didn't want a fake one, nor did I want a real diamond that wasn't an engagement ring. And by the time I went to college, it was pretty apparent that said engagement ring was likely to be coming along shortly (and it did, 2.5 years into college). I didn't have money for a college ring and didn't feel the need to have one, although I loved college and love my alma mater. I don't miss having the school rings at all, although I wear my college alumni sweatshirt frequently and have many pictures of my children at the major campus landmark. I can't imagine I'd wear a high school or college ring now; I don't even wear my PBK jewelry.

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I didn't really consider a high school ring because they were so expensive, and because I didn't exactly love high school. Also, my birthstone is a diamond, and I didn't want a fake one, nor did I want a real diamond that wasn't an engagement ring. And by the time I went to college, it was pretty apparent that said engagement ring was likely to be coming along shortly (and it did, 2.5 years into college). I didn't have money for a college ring and didn't feel the need to have one, although I loved college and love my alma mater. I don't miss having the school rings at all, although I wear my college alumni sweatshirt frequently and have many pictures of my children at the major campus landmark. I can't imagine I'd wear a high school or college ring now; I don't even wear my PBK jewelry.

 

 

yeah.  dd's whining about her dept t-shirt falling apart.

I also gave them alumni license plate holders. they get used.

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I did not have one and neither did dh. They were absurdly expensive.

 

We have not purchased any for our kids either and likely if they want one for college will need to save their own pennies to get one.

 

$300-400 is common and that is a nice chunk of change towards college books or professional licensing and certifications.

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I have a high school ring that I never wear. I wasn't going to get one, but my father insisted. He said I would regret not having it so since he offered, I have one.

 

I also have a college ring. Almost everyone gets my college's ring. It's heavily subsidized by the alumni association. At the time, I paid less than $100 for a solid gold ring and men paid a little bit less than $200. I wore it every day for several years after I graduated. Pregnancy combined with hours typing daily made wearing the ring impossible. After my son's birth, I wore the ring occasionally, but by that time, we had moved to the Northeast and few people from my school lived there so I stopped wearing it.

 

I still have it. I should probably start wearing it again now that I'm in the same state as my school. I'm just used to typing without the heavy weight on my finger.

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I had a high school ring. I spent half on it and my parents spent half. It had my birthstone, a clarinet, a cross, and a remembrance of the lit mag I was on. I wore it for years and years -- until my sister gave me an emerald ring I enjoyed and wore until IT lost its jewel.. It is still in my jewelry box, though I do not know if it fits my finger anymore.

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I have a beautiful high school ring, which my mother and her then-husband insisted I order in a size too large--and it is still too large, so I seldom wear it (very occasionally as a pendant on a necklace). :cursing:

 

I don't even know if rings were offered at my college, but there's no way I could've afforded one.

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I had a high school ring but lost it when I was in my mid-20s. Dh never got one. Neither of us got a college ring. I suppose they were offered but I have no memory of that. Ds1 went to a small private school; they didn't offer a ring and we never thought of getting him one from somewhere else. (A friend bought her homeschoolers rings from Walmart.) Ds2 attends the same school which now offers class rings, but ds2 had no interest. He has no interest in jewelry so he thought it would be a big waste of money to purchase one just to say he had one. Smart guy!

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I never got either. I feel no connection to either my highschool or college so I didn't see the point. Dh has his body school ring still. It can usually be found on the floor somewhere in the house because the kids play with it often. I don't think he cares about it at all and certainly wouldn't miss it.

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I didn't get either. I wore boyfriend's class ring in high school. Good thing his mama bought it for him! Dh only got a high school ring. I think he wore it until he graduated high school (I wasn't around then...). I've never missed not having either. Of course, I don't wear any jewelry on a normal basis, so I may not be the best one to answer.

 

None of my kids have gotten high school rings. My college senior has no interest in a college ring. I did get each of the girls a nice ring and necklace as a graduation gift. They are among their most prized/loved possessions and worn regularly.

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I did not want either a high school or college class ring. My mom did give me a nice ring instead in high school. Dh has both, high school and college. He wore his high school one until he went away to college & stored it since then. He still wears his college ring.

 

Oldest ds changed high schools his junior year. (from NY to IL) New high school has a ring ceremony, very loosely based on West Point's ring ceremony. Few weeks into new school and he needed a ring or something to be presented at the ceremony. Quickly resized and cleaned dh's high school ring & he wore that ring. (the nice thing is that Dh graduated from the school that kids' high school based a lot of their organization from, so a little bit of a tie in, or so I told my oldest ds. previous high school does not make a big deal about class rings. we would not have done rings if we stayed there.)

 

Dd will be given a nice ring at her ring ceremony.

 

Youngest ds, don't know. He does not want his dad's high school ring, especially since his oldest brother wore it. Dh is not about to give up his West Point/college ring (which youngest ds would like to have.)

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Both dh and I had them from high school and sold them (happily) for the gold a couple of years ago. 

 

Schools in this area are rife with ring ceremonies and traditions. I'm sure my kids might want them if they were in school. Luckily they are not, and they know that money spent on a school ring is money not spent elsewhere. They rarely wear rings as it is, and they each have at least one nice one passed down from my mom (who has given them pieces here and there, as she owns more than she can reasonably wear, lol). 

 

I don't see them wanting a college ring, either. Anything big enough to be recognizable as a school ring is going to look odd on them, as they are tiny. Maybe a lapel pin? 

 

 

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I had and wore my high school ring until I started working where it wasn't a good idea to wear while working.  Then I got out of the habit.  Never had a college ring.

 

I have asked dss if they want a class ring.  

Ds1 said "no way"  I feel kinda guilty because I haven't looked at them for him.  But he said no and I figured it would be a waste of money.  Same kid also said he doesn't want to do the "whole graduation thing".  Just hand him a diploma and say he graduated.  That is what he wants. 

Ds2 has a ways to go but right now he says he wants the ring.

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I have a high school ring, but I never wear it.  It is sitting in my jewelry box in my room.  Not sure why I got it, it is a small one and I like it okay, but I really never liked high school.  I haven't thought about the ring for years and I doubt it would fit me now even if I wanted to wear it.

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I bought both.  I actually liked my college ring and i think I left it in a hotel room once.  my college one was very feminine, my high school was retro.  

 

My dad used to have a friend that just thought class rings were cool.  In the 70's he collected them and his friends knew he'd pay X amount for one.  X being a small number, but gold wasn't that expensive then.  He'd had quite a collection that he sold off when gold got expensive in the 80's.  He's probably wishing he kept it longer.  

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I wore my mom's class ring until I got my own (we graduated from the same high school 20 years apart) . I don't remember how long I wore mine, but ds wore it when he was age 5-7 or so (when his fingers were the same size as mine) . Dd tried it on from time to time, but it's the traditional "clunky" style, so not her. I would probably still wear it once in a while, but somehow moisture got under the stone and made it cloudy, so it isn't so pretty anymore and I haven't bothered to look into having it repaired. Both my mom's and mine are in our safety deposit box for safe keeping.

 

I wish I had thought to get a college ring, since my school played a huge role in my life and has since closed, so it is impossible to get one now.

 

Ds had no interest in a ring, but dd wanted one. I bought it for her when she entered 9th grade so she would have at least 4 years to enjoy it. She doesn't like the look of gold, so she got silver, and it was only around $100. I'm sure hers will be an heirloom as well.

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I didn't want one. I never understood the point. I didn't even offer to buy DD one...again, never saw the point. She doesn't even want to wear her soccer jacket, now that she has graduated. They always did seem like a waste to me.

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I think it's pretty old school around here. I had a high school ring--it was a "thing" in Ohio back 35 years ago, as it had been for my parents in the 40s and 50s, but not so much now. Mine was probably stolen by a family member for drug money, as some of our jewelry was taken, and I can't find it.

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College ring. My mom bought it for me. I love it. She also gave me her college ring, and my grandmother's. I am not a jewelry girl, but there is something special about three generations of college rings. :)

 

ETA: my college ring is tiny. I have small hands, as did my mom and grandmother.

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I still have my high school ring, but I don't wear it. I didn't get a college ring. In retrospect, I probably would appreciate a college ring more now. 

 

There are a lot of different places that sell class rings, though. You don't have to buy through the university. 

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I never got one.  

 

I did get a signet-style ring for my dh for his MBA...after I got MY MBA because then I realized how much work it was!!!  It's a classy looking ring though; it would not be mistaken for a Class Ring.  He has worn it all along until arthritis has made his knuckles too big.  

 

It's like this one, but the onyx is carved with the university's seal, and the year of his graduation and degree are engraved inside the ring.  http://www.blogofjewels.com/the-meaning-and-story-behind-mens-signet-rings/

 

I think it looks classy.  :0)

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I have a high school ring. That I wore for a year. Then it resided in my jewelry box. Dd liked it when she was younger and used to wear it. I have no idea where it is now. She may have lost it or it may be in her room somewhere.

Never got a college ring. I don't think they were offered.

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I never got one.  

 

I did get a signet-style ring for my dh for his MBA...after I got MY MBA because then I realized how much work it was!!!  It's a classy looking ring though; it would not be mistaken for a Class Ring.  He has worn it all along until arthritis has made his knuckles too big.  

 

It's like this one, but the onyx is carved with the university's seal, and the year of his graduation and degree are engraved inside the ring.  http://www.blogofjewels.com/the-meaning-and-story-behind-mens-signet-rings/

 

I think it looks classy.  :0)

 

Oh, I could perhaps do that when my dh finishes his PhD. Of course, that would require him starting his PhD, which would require more time than he has right now. Well, maybe I'll remember this for that "one day." 

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