College Class Rings

Why Buy A College Ring?

Attending and finishing college is a big accomplishment in any society.  A college class ring can be a constant reminder of the accomplishment that you have achieved.  A person that purchases a college class ring is one who wants to not only remember that moment forever, but one that wants to show their own children and grandchildren how proud they are of their achievement.

Types Of College Rings

There are many different types of college rings out there.  When buying a college ring, one must consider the type of finish they want.  Some of the typical finishes are gold, silver, titanium, and platinum.  The greater the quality of the finish of college class rings, the higher the price.  There is also an antique finish and natural finishes, as well as some finishes that are exclusive to the manufacturer of the college ring.

What To Look For In A College Ring?

A college class ring can get very expensive based upon the different options that you choose.  If you are shopping around for a college class ring, it would be wise to try to obtain as many quotes as possible.  The first thing you should look for is the type of finish.  A gold finish would cost more than a silver finish, but a titanium finish would be more expensive than a gold one.  The type of gem you use in your college ring would also be a factor that would determine the final price.  Diamonds can be expensive, but so can rubies, sapphires, etc.  It is best to get an estimate from each retailer to compare the prices.

Where To Look For College Rings?

If you were to conduct a search for “college class rings” on the Yahoo Search Engine (www.yahoo.com), you would get more than 16 million hits.  This doesn’t mean that there are over 16 million places to get them.  This normally means that there are a lot of places that mention college class rings.  One such place that you can find college class rings is at Balfour (ww2.balfour.com/college/rings.aspx).  Balfour allows you to go into their website and choose the state and college that you are currently attending or that you have graduated from.  It then allows you to choose from more than 20 basics styles of college rings that you can then customize to your own preferences.  You can add the graduation year to your class ring as well as any type of extracurricular activities you were involved in.  This can include sports or even clubs. 

Another place that you can buy college class rings from is Jostens (http://www.jostens.com/rings/College/crd_demo.asp).  Jostens is similar to Balfour, but seems to have more selection and variety.  Jostens also has certain types of jewelry that can be specific for alumni and Harley Davidson fans, as well as for children that are homeschooled.  This allows high school kids to also obtain class rings regardless of whether or not they graduate from a traditional high school.  Both places offer different types of payment options as well which is extremely convenient.

Both places offer warranties for your college class ring in case of loss.  There are quite a few others online, but these seem to be the two most widely known companies that sell them to students and parents.  You can also check with your local jeweler for any deals and styles they may carry.  It is important to shop around for your college class ring since there are so many places that sell them both online and in brick and mortar stores.  Jewelers might have considerably different prices for them since they might produce them in house.  Most times when the prices are considerably higher, the retailer is contracting out the labor of creating the class ring.  This is also something to be on the lookout for when shopping for your college class ring.

Balfour and Jostens sell both men’s and women’s college class rings, but some other stores specialize in either one or the other.  This might be a good idea if you are looking for something that neither Jostens nor Balfour offers.  There may also be a chance that one or both of these places don’t sell rings for your area.  It is important to go to their websites and read over the areas in which they cover.  This can also be done for the other stores that are found online.

A last resort for purchasing college class rings would be EBay (www.ebay.com).  As many of us know, there are plenty of things that can be found on EBay that aren’t found in other places.  If you purchase one on Ebay, however, this ring sometimes can’t be customized any further than it already is.  It would be sold as is, and you may have to take it to another jeweler in order to have changes made.

The Best Time To Buy And Best Prices

The best time to buy a college ring is usually when a representative visits the school and shares the specials they have.  During this time, the sales representative would give discounts if you purchased your ring that day, and these discounts would be based upon any features that you choose.  Also, they might give you certain features for free provided you were purchasing a specific type of ring.  These discounts are normally given during this time because there is more volume of sales when it gets closer to graduation time.  They may also offer a payment plan that they normally wouldn’t offer during non peak times.  Ring purchase has a cycle that is slightly different than other companies.  Usually, peak times mean that the prices would increase; however, for college rings this is the opposite.  During peak ring selling time which is a few months before graduations or the springtime, the seller normally reduces prices slightly or gives discounts such as a percentage off or free shipping.  This is usually when they allow payment plans as well because most college students can’t afford to pay for their class ring up front.