Main image courtesy of @photoday.io on Instagram.

You may have heard of gender reveal parties, in which new parents announce if they are having a boy or a girl. But what about college reveal parties? Deciding which college you have accepted an offer from is a huge deal that should be celebrated, even if ongoing pandemic precautions mean that you can't meet up to share the news with friends and fam in person.

Let your family, friends, and the whole world know what the next big step in your life looks like with a big #collegeReveal. We've scoured social media for some of the most creative ways to announce where you'll be going to school in the fall to help you take your reveal to the next level. Check out the inspiration below -- and when you're ready to tell the world your future alma mater, drop us a comment too! 

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1. The Superman Reveal

If you’re holding out till graduation to tell your friends and more distant relatives, there is no better time to make your announcement than right after you receive that high school diploma! One of our favorite ways is wearing your college’s shirt underneath your cap and gown. When you have graduated, dramatically open your robe to reveal the name of your new school! It’s a great transition point and a way to say you’re ready to conquer the next school on your list.

2. Balloon School Spirit Pop

This one is an idea straight from those uber popular gender reveal parties. If you’re between two different schools with distinct school colors, purchase some neutral colored balloons (such as black, white, gold, or silver). Before filling them with helium, have the store stuff them with your college’s colors. When you’re ready to make your big announcement, gather the family and pop the balloons. Seeing that green and white for Michigan or the blue and gold for UCLA may just make their day!

3. The Vintage Pennants Hang

We love all things vintage and antique, especially when they’re college related. One of our favorite must-haves are vintage college pennants hung up in our room. As you apply to colleges, purchase a pendant at each school and hang them in a row. When it’s time to tell your parents or friends which school you’ve decided on, one-by-one take away each pennant until you’re left with a winner. The alternative if you cannot find pennants for the schools you have applied to is to create your own pennants with letters spelling out your winning school.

4. The Parent Swag Gift

The first people you should tell about your college choice has to be your parents. However, it doesn’t have to be just a rush to agree on the right school for you. This is a special moment for them too! Take a day or two to purchase a parent swag item such as a shirt that says “X University Mom” and wrap it up nicely so you can get a video of their surprise and shock when they unwrap their unexpected new gifts.‍

5. The Sorting Hat

Are you a Harry Potter nerd like us? Then you will love incorporating your favorite books and movies into your college decision! Have a crafty friend create a sorting hat and then act as its “voice.” At your graduation party, have the voice hide and recite a creative poem or few lines that talk about your personality or qualities and why the school is best for you.

6. The Trivia Challenge

Could your parents guess the school you’re going to based on its famous alumni? Could your friends name your college based on its mascot? Doing a round of trivia to give hints and clues leading up to your big announcement can be an absolute blast. They will love sorting it all out while you will love teasing them with super unknown facts about your new home.

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7. The Dessert Reveal

This idea is especially good if you’re revealing your college choice at a graduation party, because what better thing is there for a party than some sweet treats? Bake cupcakes with sprinkles, M&Ms, or other small candies inside sporting your new school colors, and let the first bite speak for itself! Alternately, you can bake a cake, make fortune cookies, or make stuffed rice krispie treats.

8. The Custom Creative Reveal

Got a particular thing you’re really good at that you’d love to show the world (or, at least, your friends and family)? Maybe it’s something you’re majoring in, or maybe it’s just a hobby, but whatever it is, college reveals are the perfect time to bust out those skills. Like history? Compile all the coolest bits of historical trivia from your college of choice! Music more your thing? Find songs about your school’s mascot animal, or songs written by alumni. Really good at makeup and custom designs? Check out the video for inspiration!

9. Elimination with Cupcakes

The idea here is pretty simple: set out a line of cupcakes either frosted with school colors or sporting a little school sign (or both!) and one by one eliminate each cupcake until you get to the school you’re really going to. You can stop at each cupcake and explain why you applied and why you chose not to go, or just line up some confectionary goodness and have a blast revealing your choice. There are plenty of fun variations on the theme.

10. Reality TV Parody

Part of the college application process is narrowing down what you like to what’s your ultimate decision. What’s something else that iconically eliminates choices until a final winner emerges? That’s right: game shows and reality TV. Try theming your college reveal around shows like So You Think You Can Dance, American Idol, Survivor, or Dance Moms. This method has all the built in suspense, drama, and excitement that makes it perfect for a college reveal.

11. The Video

Stuck in quarantine and can’t have the graduation/college reveal party you were looking forward to? Or maybe just don’t like crowds in the first place? Make a college reveal video using platforms like TikTok and Instagram! It’s the perfect chance to get your creative juices pumping, make something fun, and, most importantly, tell the world where you’ll be going come the fall.

12. Let TikTok Decide 

This one is a little different from our video idea above. If you’ve applied to multiple schools, post a TikTok for each school you’ve applied to and caption it, “Letting TikTok decide where I’m going to college.” Then whichever video receives the most likes and comments is your winner! If you’re stuck between schools, are generally free spirited, and up for the surprise -- this could be a great idea for you. 

13. Simple Mystery 

If you love a casual, yet bold reveal, this is the perfect idea for you. Simply post a photo on your Instagram of your school garb -- say a bracelet, hat, tumbler bottle, etc and make sure it says the school name! Either leave no caption or something short and sweet, like, “Surprise,” or, “Mystery solved.” Watch as the texts, calls, and messages flood in from all of your family and friends. 

14. At Home Signing Day 

This one is extra perfect for the future college athletes out there, but anyone can get in on the fun! Grab some friends and stage a signing day. Print out your school name as well as logos and hang them on the wall, then be sure to dress up in school gear and have a hat on the table. Have your family surrounded by you as you sign your name to commit to your new school -- be sure someone will be able to take a photo. Then share it on social media so everyone can be a part of your signing day. 

15. Timeline Progression 

We think this idea is so cute and simple. You know those graduation invite cards everyone sends out when they’re having a party to celebrate finishing high school? Well instead of announcing your party, announce where you’ll be going to college. Have three photos side by side -- a baby photo (preferably cute or funny), your favorite senior picture or graduation day photo, and last a picture of your school name and logo. Then mail it out to all your friends and family to reveal your big news!

16. Explosion Box 

If you want to do a small announcement for a few friends and family consider getting an explosion box. These are small gift boxes that come with a huge surprise! When you open them, confetti and other festive decorations shoot out, then the box reveals pictures which you can specially select. In the middle you will usually find a sweet treat. For this idea simply pick your future school colors and add some senior and grad photos, then watch as everyone enjoys the surprise explosion!

17. Smoke the Competition

Want your college reveal to be a real show stopper? Then this reveal is for you. Pick up a couple of chalk smoke sticks in your school of choice's colors (you can find them online for relatively cheap), grab a friend with some photography skills, and find an open area where you can let your colors fly. The results? Eye-catching photos that will look great on Instagram, in your dorm room, and on your parents' living room wall at home!

18. The Gateway to Something Great

Most college campuses have an arch, a gate, a stone, or a statue with their name on it somewhere, and those spots become selfie hotspots for a reason! Not only does posing by a school landmark let everyone know where you'll be going to school, it also gives your friends and fam a glimpse of the cool campus you'll be calling home. Plus, walking through the gate to your university feels sort of poetic -- college is supposed to open lots of new doors, after all.

19. Go Gourmet

If baking cupcakes isn't your jam but you still have a sweet tooth, consider picking up a mystery reveal dessert from a local bakery. Whether it's a breakable chocolate creation like this, a cake with a center full of sprinkles and edible glitter that comes cascading out when sliced, or something else entirely, a gourmet dessert reveal will leave you with a) gorgeous pictures to show off on social media and b) a delicious treat for you and your fam.

20. End of the (Clothes) Line

This is a fun take on the classic college t-shirt college reveal. To replicate this fun photo series, you'll need to hang gear from your top choice schools on a clothesline and pose in the middle. Then, grab the shirt for your school and throw it on for the final reveal.

21. Feeling Lucky

Whether it's a couple of lottery tickets as a stocking stuffer or a cool scratch off coloring book, scratch offs are always a fun activity. If you can't announce where you're going to school in person, consider sending friends and family these fun scratch to reveal college announcements. You can even scratch one yourself on social media to let your wider friend group know what's up.

22. Your Future, In Focus

You can give your college announcement some extra flair even if you just plan on sticking to a simple photo shoot for your reveal. Have your photographer remove all the color from your pics except for your school colors for an eye-catching reveal that stands out from the crowd.

23. Sock It To 'Em

If t-shirts and hoodies aren't your go-to gear, you can still show off your school spirit with a slightly more subtle apparel reveal. Grab some socks from your school's spirit gear store, and pick up your pant leg or the hem of a long skirt to reveal where you'll be heading in the fall.

24. College Prep is In The Books

High school is hard work!! Celebrate all the time and energy you spend preparing for college with a cute, classically preppy outfit for your college decision day reveal. Bonus points if you give your devoted followers a sneak peek at your next chapter with some reading material related to your intended major.

25. The Road to College

What better way to show off where you're headed than snapping a quick shot with a road sign pointing the way to your next destination? Lots of colleges have roads named after them, or other signs pointing to campus around town. If you're going to school locally, this is a super easy reveal. If you're going the distance for college, consider snapping this pic on your next road trip to campus!

26. Cover Story

Your college choice is big news for your friends and family. Give it the cover story treatment when you opt for a fun, magazine-inspired college announcement like this one.

27. Burst Onto the Scene

If you want to get your friends and fam as excited about your next step as you are, why not borrow a page from the football team's playbook to get everyone hyped? If you attended a game at any point in your high school career -- especially for big events like homecoming or seniors night -- this one will probably look familiar. Imagine the school band playing, the crowd cheering, and the team bursts through a banner onto the field. That's the energy we're channeling for this college reveal.

No matter how you want to go about making your college announcement to friends and family, there is sure to be a cute and fun idea on our list that fits your personality. If your perfect idea isn’t on this list -- maybe consider a mashup of two or more ideas! Hopefully, one of these reveals will fit your capabilities and budget to make for the announcement you’ve always wanted.  Once you've gotten the hard part of picking your college out of the way, we'll make getting all of your college dorm supplies easy!