How much do you give to your college/grad school in donations?

[Anonymous]

It is that time of year and we are getting the calls from our undergrad/grad schools for donations. I fear that we may give a laughably low amount. I recently saw that my grad school class giving was almost $100k this year and we had a pretty small class. That means some people are giving thousands each. Do people really give hundreds/thousands of dollars each year? I liked my schools, but frankly they are not high on my charitable giving list. I am curious how much others give.

[Anonymous]

My husband gives $10-$30 per year. I gave $50 one year; now I volunteer, so I am giving via my time. We graduated in the mid 1990s.

[Anonymous]

$0.

[Anonymous]

$0. It's a public institution and I pay taxes.

[Anonymous]

$0. I'm in my 30s with small kids/mortgage/car payments/expenses. I'll donate when I'm older....

[Anonymous]

I give $1000 to undergrad, DH gives nothing to his undergrad or graduate school - although I wish he would establish a giving relationship with his undergrad Ivy where his parents are active alums.

I don't think it will necessarily get our kids in if they want to go and are on the bubble, but I find that once you give at the $1000 or higher level, you get invited to better networking events.

[Anonymous]

Once DH gave $100. Next time when he wrote the check, I "forgot" to mail it.

F****** A******* private college! Its not as if they did not bleed us dry when he was a student.

[Anonymous]

I sometimes give $100. But really, I can't imagine it will have any bearing on my kids getting in unless I gave many hundreds/thousands each year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is that time of year and we are getting the calls from our undergrad/grad schools for donations. I fear that we may give a laughably low amount. I recently saw that my grad school class giving was almost $100k this year and we had a pretty small class. That means some people are giving thousands each. Do people really give hundreds/thousands of dollars each year? I liked my schools, but frankly they are not high on my charitable giving list. I am curious how much others give.

$1000 a year to my undergrad college (SLAC). I got a lot of financial aid, including grants, when I was a student. When I was in my 20's I would donate $50-100 a year but now I try not to give such small amounts to any charity--I think it just creates more paperwork for them and doesn't do a lot to actually help--I try to give at least $250, even though it means I support fewer organizations. (Except, I guess with colleges the % of alums who donate factors into some of the college rankings, so maybe its worth it to give small amounts for that reason.)

Nothing to my grad school, AKA The Extremely Wealthy University That Ate Washington DC And Doesn't Need Any More Money.

[Anonymous]

$0. Wouldn't even consider it until I get these student loans off my back. So, it's pretty much never gonna happen.

[Anonymous]

$5K

[Anonymous]

$100 a year to my law school.
$500 a year to our undergrad between the two of us. I also volunteer a considerable amount of time as an interviewer and a fundraising agent.

[Anonymous]

$0

I am still paying back loans. GWU can get their money elsewhere

[Anonymous]

$200/yr to my state school and DH's undergrad. We attended the same university for grad school so $200 there as well.

DH and I both got full scholarships and believe it's important to support them.

[Anonymous]

We give each year to our alma maters: min. $250 the most was $1000.