Let’s go back in time to high school prom season and play Two Truths and One Lie.
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I attended my high school’s prom, of course.
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I managed to find my prom dress at the Richmond Night Market for only $20 CAD.
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I didn’t have a date, so I went with my friend group, which was just as fun instead.
If you guessed number 1 as the lie, you are actually correct! Despite all of the hype and teachers telling me that prom is a once-in-a-lifetime experience and it’s something you have to experience before you die, I ended up going to another friend’s prom when I graduated from high school back in 2014, and almost four years later, I still do not regret it to this day. Everyone in my friend group had low expectations and we were simply happy to graduate from high school and were ready to move on to the next stage in our lives – whether that would be starting post-secondary in the upcoming Fall, working full-time, or travelling. As for my prom dress… I think I gave it away a year later?
If you happen to meet some new friends or join a club down the road, chances are those friends can invite you to a formal, which is essentially the college version of prom. After attending my first-ever post-secondary formal in late March, I am already raving to my friends and family about one of the best times I’ve had this school year, and what makes this particular event, one of the best in my undergrad career.
1. You can attend formal every year
So I mentioned earlier how my teachers from high school kept blabbering about how prom is this magical event that every student needs to attend before they graduate. I have never looked back at the fact that I never went to my high school prom because later on in your life, you will get invited to so many other events in which you get the opportunity to dress up, such as weddings, parties, and formals. For many school clubs, organizations, as well as Greek life organizations (GLOs), or sororities and frats, it is tradition for them to organize a formal every year. For one of the school clubs I am a part of, which is SFU CAC, our club hosts a formal at the end of every Winter/Spring semester called Member’s Appreciation Night, or MAN for short.
Caption: SFU CAC’s Member’s Appreciation Night, which was held at 100 Braid St Studios in New Westminster.
2. Formals are an inclusive event, and you can get invited to as many formals as you can
Prom is an event for grade 12 students that are graduating high school. I remember when I went to my friend’s prom, everyone who attended were all graduating from high school, and there were no outsiders allowed; if a guest who did not go to my friend’s high school wished to attend (aka me), they had to pick up and sign a form that stated my relationship to the student, as well as two references.
Meanwhile, for college formals, they are open to anyone who wants to attend. You can go to one formal, or ten if you wish! Want to bring your significant other? Perfect! Requested your days off of work because you got invited to four back-to-back formals? Make sure to have a fantastic time!
With the openness and inclusivity of formals, there are also student faculties that hosts these events too. Some of the faculties at SFU that hosts formals for everyone to attend include FCAT (Faculty of Communication, Art, and Technology), and FAS (Faculty of Applied Sciences).
Caption: FCAT’s 2018 formal, Luminescence
Caption: FAS’s 2018 formal held at the Waterview in downtown Vancouver
3. You can wear any type of dress, as long as you look and feel good wearing it
I never understood why it was necessary to spend over $500 on a prom dress you will probably wear once in your entire life. However, that doesn’t mean that if you still have your prom dress tucked away in your closet, that you cannot wear it to formal! The dress code is self-explanatory – formal. As long as you love your dress and wearing it makes you look amazing, then definitely go all out at the big night! This year for MAN, I decided to wear a red bandage dress from Forever 21.
4. You are not obligated to have a date
Promposals gave me so much second-hand embarrassment, to be honest. Instead of asking someone to be your date for prom, students now are spending money on arts & crafts supplies and other materials to create the most elaborate and original promposal ever, which 90% of the time, ends up being a huge disturbance during school hours. This also subtly pressures other students to find a date for prom themselves, which I think ruins the overall point of attending – to celebrate the end of the year and to have the best night before/after high school graduation with your grad class, not just one person who you may or may not talk to ever again after you both walk up the graduation stage to receive your high school diploma.
Formals are way relaxed and casual when it comes to who you want to go with. For me, all I really cared about was going with my friends in CAC and mingling with other members of the club. It’s fine if you bring your S/O, but at this point, dates are completely optional.
5. The bar is set lower for formals
And with that being said on the openness and laid-back approach on formals, no one really has any high expectations for the big event. You may spend all day doing your hair, makeup, and nails, but there is no need to rent out a party limo and take fancy pictures with your family. Speaking of pictures, the only picture-taking you may get might last for only twenty minutes before dinner and speeches start. Prom was a family event, but formals can last for the whole night, with the after-party being held at a nearby club.