There is at least one person who has had the thought, “How much do you think _____ would cost if you could put a price on it?” Well, the price tag for a senior high school student is much higher than you’d think- unless you’re smart about it.

The first obvious thing that a senior student would need that would be a cap and gown, the staple of graduation and moving onto a new life after high school. According to Jostens, both the cap and gown together for a Dallastown High School senior would run for about $30.

Cap and gown are a set cost, but many other senior “requirements” come with options that can be scaled back to save money on the entire senior experience.

The next important thing is the ACT or the SAT, which can be taken earlier than senior year, but not everyone takes it earlier. Taking the SAT or the ACT once would cost from $50 to $65 but taking it multiple times will run for the same amount each time, and if you sign up late, there will be an added fee to compensate for tardiness.

Former Senior Jarrett Feeney had this to say about the SAT, “Yeah, it doesn’t really help that they really pressure us to take the SAT before senior year. It doesn’t help either that every time we take the SAT, that it costs us like $60 to take over and over if we don’t get a good enough grade.”

Prom is up next and is also a major part of most seniors’ last year at high school, forging memories with friends and loved ones while dancing to music for several hours. A single prom ticket would cost exactly $60 according the Dallastown High School website, but if you bring a plus one, then the cost will be raised $120.

Senior pictures can be a big part of some people’s lives, the recognition that a new realization that they are on a path to a new life and may have possibly for college in the near future. These memorable photos would cost a $14 minimum as of 2019. This is for the picture that goes into the yearbook only.

Senior “bling” is a good way to keep senior memories intact, by having a souvenir to remember the years you spent at this school, it is very much an option to have. Now the prices can vary, whether your buying a sweater or shirt that is $14, or buying some bedazzled jewelry like a necklace, ring or even a bracelet which could cost a staggering $1400 at its highest price. But all of them are only optional.

And lastly, college applications are undoubtedly one of the biggest parts of a seniors, that is if you are going to college, and are the very thing that allow people to be considered into the college in the first place. According to edmit.me, it really depends on where exactly you apply to, sometimes it will be $45, others around $50 and then even about $75 to $90 for some of the higher end colleges per application.

Adding up all the lowest prices to each and every single one of these items would get you a final cost of $213. Although this price doesn’t include costs of sports equipment, the yearbook, or even the cost of dual enrollment, those are choices individual students make that are separate from high school itself. 

Taking a moment to think about the cost of this, is it really all that bad compared to things such college? 

It is still pretty pricey, but what do you think?