Etiquette School of Ohio

Graduation Announcements

Unless an educational institution has an extremely large venue to hold its graduation ceremonies in, it is common to see the institutions limit the number of attendees each graduate can invite to the ceremony.

When invitations to the ceremony are limited, graduation announcements may be sent to close family members and friends who could not be invited to the ceremony.  Graduation announcements are intended to be a means to share the exciting news. They carry no obligation to send a gift.

Announcements are only sent at the time of graduation. If a student cannot walk with their class for academic reasons, they must wait until they receive their diploma before sending announcements.

Graduation Party Invitations

If you are planning a graduation party, invitations should be sent at least three weeks prior to the party. Since most graduation parties are informal, these invitations can be found at any store specializing in stationery.

Be sure to write who the party is in honor of on the invitation if a space is not provided for this information.

You may also want to write R.S.V.P. along with your telephone number at the bottom of the invitation to make it easy for guests to respond. Another option is to write regrets only rather than ask everyone to respond.

There are very few rules for graduation parties. Make the event whatever you want it to be. It can be as informal as a picnic in the park or as formal as renting a banquet hall for a dinner dance.

One rule you must follow - never send your invitations before you are 100 percent certain you will graduate.

Graduation Gifts

If you are invited to a graduation ceremony or party, you should bring or send a gift to the graduate. It is most appropriate to give the gift on the day of the graduation or party or shortly before or after.

If you cannot attend either event, a floral or balloon arrangement, or greeting card sent to the graduate lets them know you are thinking of them.

A graduation announcement is not the same as an invitation and does not require a gift.