Prom is a US tradition that has been followed since the 1930’s. Prom is waited for by upperclassmen all academic year. Is prom the night to make your last high school memories or is it another commercialized scam? Every year schools throw thousands of dollars out with prom to make the only must attend event of the year for only a few kids being able to afford it. In the end, prom isn’t worth it with the endless amount of pressure and stress put on teens.

There are so many movies out there that put prom on display as a magical, romantic night when in reality, it wouldn’t be. Sadly, we don’t live in a movie, so prom would very underwhelming, energetic kids dancing around the venue, others in circles talking out of boredom. Only 24% of Americans had the typical high school prom experience with a date, most didn’t even get asked. Teens are expecting to get the perfect date, perfect dress, and perfect prom, when in reality it’s just going to be another night of your life, nothing extravagant. 

High school students are stressed already, prom puts pressure on them to be the best dressed just by something vain. Prom gives students a more intense urge to judge their appearance even more then they already do. There’s also added pressure on schools to have their prom look and be the best when the kids will group up in the corner when they get there. The pressure of having a date weighs on teens as well, people feel that they would be talked about or stared at if they didn’t have a date. Some statistics show that most teen car accidents related to alcohol happen between April and May. Students will most likely fall into the trend of the “just do it” saying and fall into peer pressure. 

Prom also costs a very high amount of money, especially for teens who need to pay for college. The average cost for someone to attend prom is from $900-$1000, this doesn’t include everything but for an average cost, it’s already pretty high. Prom tickets need to be taken into account as well, usually costing well over $20$ some over $100. The average cost of a “promposal” is around $325, with that and their outfit, shoes, makeup, hair, ticket, and anything else to accessorize, prom can make a deep dent in students bank accounts. Some parents can’t afford to send their son or daughter to prom because of the high prices, some can’t even afford the dress with the cheapest one on Nordstrom being $253. 

Take the $2,000 you were going to spend on prom and go somewhere with your high school friends and you’ll still remember it for the rest of your life.