Trying to make a budget for shopping for college

[MrEVILdrPorkchop2u]

To those of you that have sent a child off to college, we need your help. We will be sending our first child off to college summer. We started looking yesterday at things at the store and online trying to get an idea of what he will want/need. He got very lucky and will be staying in an almost brand new suite with 3 other guys. They will have a living room, full kitchen minis a stove, 2 full bathrooms and their own private bedrooms. Furniture is provided as is a full size fridge and microwave. We don't want to over buy on things he won't use. We live out of state so we are thinking maybe it would be better to get some stuff down there since we will be making such a long trip. The nearest Bed Bath Beyond is 57 miles away. (Checked that out last night) There is a Super Target in the town he will be in.

 

[Patience]

I would buy sheets, pillows, and comforter at home as long as you know the size of his bed at school, as well as towels. Here are a few other things you might want to get him before he gets there:

Small TV
computer printer (I assume he has a laptop already)
desk lamp
Good quality rain gear for walking to class in the rain
Water proof or at least water resistant back pack (Patagonia and North Face make some good ones)
toiletries
laundry supplies
school supplies (stapler, paper clips, highlighters, pens, computer paper, spiral notebooks)
kitchen supplies (if he will be cooking but at least get him some paper plates, plastic silverware, paper towels and solo cups)
extension cords and extra cable and computer cords in case he needs longer ones than you are expecting)
alarm clock


A lot of people will tell you to wait until you get to his school and buy everything there so you don't have to travel with a lot of stuff. If he's going out of state and you are flying to move him in, you will need to do that. Our daughter, however, attends a university 2.5 hours from home and we drove her to school. I am glad we did not wait until move in day to buy her stuff. The local Walmart was an absolute madhouse on move in day! If you buy the dorm room essentials before you get there, you can just scoot over to a grocery store to pick up snacks, bottled water, etc. and avoid the huge crowds.

 

[SC Minnie]

To those of you that have sent a child off to college, we need your help. We will be sending our first child off to college summer. We started looking yesterday at things at the store and online trying to get an idea of what he will want/need. He got very lucky and will be staying in an almost brand new suite with 3 other guys. They will have a living room, full kitchen minis a stove, 2 full bathrooms and their own private bedrooms. Furniture is provided as is a full size fridge and microwave. We don't want to over buy on things he won't use. We live out of state so we are thinking maybe it would be better to get some stuff down there since we will be making such a long trip. The nearest Bed Bath Beyond is 57 miles away. (Checked that out last night) There is a Super Target in the town he will be in.

DD is in this same type set up. Have him coordinate all the kitchen needs like pots, pans, etc with his suite mates. Some may already have these things. DD did take her own plates, bowls, and cups (4 of each). Remember there is limited space in the kitchen area. The room should come with a microwave so he doesn't need that either.

For the bathroom DD also shared with 1 girl. They got together and split up bringing the shower curtain, bath mat, etc. One thing we did buy the day of move in was a 3 drawer thing to put in the bathroom for all their girl things. Boys probably don't have as much 'stuff'.

Also, check on the cable needs. DD's room came with cable hook up but the TV we bought her for the living area (again coordinated with the other girls) was new and we didn't think to bring a cable.

They may be able to do all of this move in day or the week after depending on if the boys will have transportation. The WalMart across the street from campus was stripped bare of some things the evening of Freshman move in day. Be prepared for him to have the necessities. Everything else he can get as time goes by and he feels like he needs it.

 

[CyndiLooWho]

My boys are a ways off, so this is coming from my own days:

Definitely, he needs sheets, pillows, towels, blanket/comforter. Call ahead to see if he needs "basketball" sheets (extra long twins - readily available at BB&B).

For the kitchen, I would buy him his own set of microwave dishes and storage containers. If he doesn't need matching ones, Salvation Army and Goodwill are good sources for these items, esp Sun and Mon after garage sale drop-offs. Get twice as much drinkware as dinnerware.

You can try to coordinate purchases for the common rooms with other students, but beware! My assigned roomie pledged a sorority and moved in with a sorority sister about 4 wks into school. Had we split anything besides the $50 fridge rental, this could have been a big issue. As it was, the girl I moved in with paid the $25 to the girl that moved out.

Based on the above, I would have him take a plain shower curtain liner and bathmat. You can always use an extra of each anyway.

I would have him take a small tv for his own room and they can wrangle about what to do for the main room later. I would imagine they can get a decent set off Craig's List once they know what everyone did(n't) bring. Even Walmart carries 32" tvs for under $200. Just know how they are going to split the tv when they leave in the summer.

His own computer stuff - including a printer - is a must. A good desk lamp and a surge protector should round out his office needs (ok, plus a small amount of office supplies to start).

You might consider buying him a dorm fridge for his own room (try used) even though there is a full sized one. You never know what kind of a mooch will be living with you. Sometimes it's better to keep stuff you don't want to share (or don't mind sharing but want to have some of yourself) separate.

A fan for his room will move air and also give him some white noise when the roomies are partying later than he wants to stay up.

I would also spring for the best backpack / messenger bag / carrier you can find. A good one will last his whole college time.

A good raincoat and waterproof shoes are also good investments. For certain climates, an insulated raincoat is also a good bet. You can find Lands' End ones on ebay. www.geartrade.com is a good bet for high quality, barely used raincoats and boots (www.backcountry.com lists their returns here).

 

[ssawka]

If he's been assigned a .edu email address from the school, have him sign up for Amazon Student. He will get Prime for half price (I believe the first 30 days are free). Then, once he has an address at the school, just order what he needs from Amazon and have it sent directly to his school address. This way you won't have to pack a lot and you can avoid the crowds at the local stores.

Since this is a budget board, one key piece of advice: Tell him to never, ever buy books from the on-campus bookstore, unless it is some special book that is only available from the school. Have him go to the bookstore and write down the ISBN numbers and then order the books on Amazon.

I know I sound like an Amazon commercial, but Amazon Prime is just so convenient, especially when you are away from home.

 

[Arielle22]

DD19 just finished her freshman year. The one thing we learned from her is to buy an egg crate cushion for the bed. DD's mattress had cracks in the plastic and was very uncomfortable.

DD19 will be in a townhouse next year so we are buying some kitchen items for her. DD18 is going into a dorm as a freshman so we also have to buy for her.

Check the weather for college as well. My daughters' college is in the mountains so they need warm clothing, flannel sheets and insulated drapes.

DD19 is sharing the townhouse with a friend and 3 transfer students. So DD and her friend are splitting what they will bring.

Things to remember:
broom or vaccum
shower shoes
small shower basket to carry personal items in
microwavable food
snacks
first aid kit
laundry detergent (I find the individual tablets the easiest to carry)
dryer sheets
laundry basket or bag
bed lifters: not sure of actual name but the small towers that lift the bed up to give you more room for storage underneath. DD19 scoffed at me when I bought them but she loved them.

 

[JessM]

I wouldn't wait to buy everything until you get him to school. The Wal Mart, Target and BBB near my college were busy and everything was gone after freshman move in day. For the best selection buy most things at home.

I'd get him two sets of sheets, a comforter and pillows. Desk lamp, power strip, school supplies, organizational bins for his closet (if he has one) or under the bed. Plastic drawers were a life saver in college for me. He'll need a hamper, towels and laundry supplies. I'd get him a wastebasket for his room and the kitchen and some cleaning supplies. Most parents also set their kids up with their first round of groceries, snacks and drinks.

I'd also get him a white board or bulletin board if the rooms don't already have one!

I would honestly skip the printer. Most kids at my school hauled a brand new printer to school, used it til the ink ran out and then were too cheap to buy a new one. All colleges have printers in the library and I found it cheaper to pay per print at the library then stock ink and paper in my dorm room.

 

[Arielle22]

JessM had a good idea with desk lamp. We got our daughter one with outlets and an IPod charging station in it.

Printing varies by college. My daughters' college has unlimited printing. Only downside is the printers are in a main building and not the dorm.

 

[powellrj]

I have a DS that is still in college and I kind of disagree with a lot of the list.

I would skip the TVs and the printer. We got a free printer when DS got his computer and I have no idea where it even is. His school offers free printing and he has never needed a printer. I would also skip the TV, they all watch TV from their laptops. The only reason I would get him a TV would be if he was a gamer, DS lives in a frat house and they only time they use the TV is for sports, games and Dexter night! I agree with the fridge for his room. Everyplace DS lived had a main fridge, but he always liked his own so he didn't have to leave his room for a cold drink or a snack.

One thing that DS found he needed was a suit and tie! I ended up getting him a couple of suits and an overcoat and was surprised how often he needed them. I would also get him an umbrella, a couple of extra phone charger cords, a flashlight, a small first-aid kit and a small tool kit. I would wait and see or text his bathroom mate to see what is needed there and maybe split those items. A few basic kitchen items are good even if other already have them.

 

[SC Minnie]

I would honestly skip the printer. Most kids at my school hauled a brand new printer to school, used it til the ink ran out and then were too cheap to buy a new one. All colleges have printers in the library and I found it cheaper to pay per print at the library then stock ink and paper in my dorm room.

I agree. At DD's school they are given a number of free prints in the library every semester. A lot of professors have them email in reports/papers but anytime she needed to print she went to the library and still had print credits at the end of the year.

We had bought her a new printer at the end of HS which she ended up bringing home in the middle of spring semester.

 

[eliza61]

Don't automatically think it would be cheaper to buy stuff in the state he's in. I live in NJ and work in DE. Delaware has no sales tax so I made it appoint to buy his computer, his tv and any other big ticket item when I was at work. My son goes to school in Ohio so if I had brought his MAC at school I would have paid almost $140 bucks extra in state sales tax. picking it up in the apple store in de (and I still got the student discount) saved me that.
Same thing with sheets, towels etc.

Agree that printing varies by school. My sons school does have free printing but very limited places and he says there is always a wait. He uses his room printer and him and his roommate chip in for ink.

Now, no way does my son do rain gear. LOL. even at home he's not doing it.

I'm the type of mom that I like to know my son has "his own" even though he shares a house with 4 other guys. so I picked him up a few pots, some dishes (plates, bowls and glasses) and cutlery.

They didn't have a lot of drawer space in his dorm so I picked up hangers for his clothes.
I also picked him up a mirror that goes on the back of his dorm door. His dorm had no mirrors any where

The one thing I probably could have skipped was an iron and iron board. LOL. didn't even come out of hte box.

 

[MrEVILdrPorkchop2u]

Thank you everyone for your amazing feedback! We were making up lists last night of what we thought he would need/actually use. We never thought about the printer at all. By responses here, I'm kinda on the fence with it. There were other things people mentioned that we never came up with....flashlight, medical kit....and a few others. They will now be added too. DS will be taking a mini fridge for his actual room. We were lucky enough to get it a few months back for 15.00 of of Craigslist. It looks brand new. DS has it in his room now and keeps it stocked with his own personal water and soda for when his friends come over. By the sounds of it, I think we will be better cramming the car with everything but maybe hitting the local grocery store for the personal items and snacks once we get there. What help you all have been, thank you!

 

[ssawka]

I would skip the printer as well, if he has access to a shared printer. I am a a PhD student and can't even tell you the last time I had to print something. Pretty much all professors now request assignment submissions electronically.

As for the TV, I would get a flat screen that can double as a monitor and can connect to his laptop.

 

[Bob NC]

No matter what you get, or where you get it I do have one suggestion: Take a small toolbox with you.

You may have to put stuff together or take stuff apart.

Take a hammer, some wrenches, screwdrivers, duct tape, etc.

 

[MickeyManiac]

My DS had a similar room last year but did have a stove. Because they had a full kitchen he had no meal plan so cooking was up to them. His building was brand new and not completed until the week before move in so we couldn't take a tour before hand. We had NO idea what to expect. We had bought the basics before hand

Bedding
Towels
Toiletries
Laptop
Lamp
Long mirror for the door
School supplies
Dry erase board

But when move in day arrived we found out what he really needed

Toilet paper
Paper towels
Dishes
Food storage containers
Pans
Bowls
Silverware
Dish rags/towels
Dishwasher soap
(I'm sure there's more that I'm forgetting)

Everyone pitched in with these things over the year so we really only bought some of them one or twice.

We went to the dollar store for most of the kitchen supplies. Most of it is salvagable for this year but some of it had to be thrown away. For a dollar it's not a big deal.

I DO recommend a printer though it looks like that may vary by instituion. We tried not buying one but ended up getting one before midterms. I would NOT get a mini fridge if they have a full fridge. DS roomies were all very respectful of each others things/food.

Last August was VERY expensive, but this year is looking MUCH better since he needs very little. Good luck...such an exciting time.

 

[jrmasm]

While bed risers are a great suggestion, they are another item that are not allowed at all schools. Double check before you buy!

 

[goodfood4ursoul]

My youngest will start his last year of college in August, so we've been through this a few times

Honestly, the best time to be thinking about this is at the beginning of their senior year of HS.

This is what senior year Christmas and birthday and HS graduation gifts are for.

One set of Grandparents gave them luggage for graduation, another gave a coffee pot and iron and sandwich maker.

Sheets, towels, blankets, mattress pad- Christmas and birthday.
Laundry cards, laundry detergent, a really nice sturdy laundry bag: http://shop.flylady.net/pages/FlyShop_ls.asp

There are tons of necessary odds and ends that our kids got for gifts.
We did very little shopping on site except for a rug (a split cost) and food for the room at the Wal-Mart near campus.

I agree on not needing a printer- instead invest in a high quality indestructible flash/jump drive with good security features:
http://www.maximumpc.com/article/news/corsair_releases_practically_indestructible_64gb_flash_drive
We bought that one for our son and paid about $60 for it in 2010.
He has kept all his important data, papers, etc on it for years.

Most papers at his university are turned in electronically (over Blackboard or Scholar )and must undergo scrutiny through online plagiarism detection programs before the professor will begin grading, so printing out papers is not done anymore.
And if there is something he wants to print out, he can use his flashdrive from any computer on campus and have it sent to printing at any location he pleases.
How far we've come from when I had to load WordPerfect onto my first gen laptop every time I wanted to work on a paper. That thing didn't have memory to store anything on it- everything from programs to papers was stored on disks- the computer only ran the programs!

Just my opinion on college bedding, but I'd rather do my quality comparison and price comparison months in advance and get the best quality I can for bedding that my kids sleep on for years.
For that matter, the sheets and comforter my folks sent me off to school with in 1984 my kids slept on in 1995- so good quality stuff (not fancy but good quality-sturdy and comfy) lasts a long time.

I never wanted to buy bedding at college beause I want the sheets and comforter washed and soft before they go on the bed.
This is college- if you don't send it along freshly washed the odds are it might be quite a while before they get washed again. Ewww

And as for those dorm fridges, microwaves, etc?
Just go visit campus on move out day in May and you can go dumpster diving and take you pick of many.
DS left for college with one gently used micro and an iron and board.
He came home the next May with 3 micros, a fridge, 2 carpets, and a lazyboy chair- all things that people gave him because they were going to dumpster them instead of carrying them home and bringing them back in August.
Just something to keep it all in perspective.

 

[MrsPete]

The short answer is, Buy as little as possible. His room will be smaller than you expect once you start moving things in.

Real needs, echoing previous posters :

- Everything to make his bed very comfortable. Definitely look into some sort of mattress pad -- my daughter described her bed at orientation as "a Holocaust camp reject", yet once she added a $15 XL twin mattress pad from ebay and two new pillows, she loved it. We only bought one set of bedsheets; dorms are short on storage, and the bed can just be naked for an hour while the sheets are in the wash. A hint I read on this bed last year: When you help him move in, make his bed, and hide a $20 bill under the fitted sheets . . . with a note instructing him to call you when he finds it! You'll be amuzed to learn just how long he can go without changing the sheets.

- Bed risers . . . we bought a set of those years ago, and thus begins the story of how we got a hole in the wall. No, I cannot recommend them.

- I say yes to the printer question. My daughter and her roommate both got a good bit of use out of her printer (most of their professors did not use on-line turn in), as using the school's services would've meant walking to the library. This was one of the things that the two girls coordinated.

- Other things they coordinated: Rug, trash can, TV, kitchen items

- Don't buy a desk lamp yet. When I was in college my desk had a hutch that included a flourescent lamp. My daughter's room did not come with this feature. Depending upon the layout of his room, he may or may not also want a bedside lamp. Sometimes the desk lamp can "swing around" to serve both purposes.

- My daughter needed cables for something -- I honestly can't remember what, but we knew it ahead of time -- and my smarty-pants husband purchased cables in all the standard lengths, kept them new in the packages, all the packages in one big bag with the receipts . . . and after he helped her install the right size in her room, he returned the others to our hometown Best Buy.

- Most of the dorms at my daughter's school include a micro-fridge in every room, so don't buy that 'til you're sure.

- Buy half a dozen "milk crates". Not only are they great for transporting things, they can be closet organizers, book shelves, whatever in his dorm room . . . and one day they can become a coffee table or nightstands in his first apartment. 10-15 years from now he'll still be using those things for something!

- Don't buy a broom or vaccum cleaner just yet. Many dorms offer these things in the downstairs lobby for check-out, which is better than having to store them in the small rooms. When I was in school we just had to leave our ID to take the vaccum upstairs. My daughter says the maid is very willing to let them borrow her vaccum while she's doing the bathrooms.

- Small supply of office needs: Stapler, tape, scissors, post-its, extra printer cartridge, pencils and pens
- Calculator, if he's taking any math or science
- Backpack
- Good walking shoes, including some good for the rain -- my daughter has been very surprised at just how much she walks in college
- Towels -- my daughter has three towels and a dozen washcloths, and that seems to be suiting her fine
- Laundry supplies
- A bathroom bucket to carry to the shower -- my daughter also purchased a small dishwashing tub, in which she sets the wet bucket after her shower -- this allows her to put it inside her closet without making things wet.
- If his room is tiled, some type of floor mat to place beside his bed
- Command stick-on strips
- Power strip -- electrical cords are usually not allowed
- Over-the-door coat holder for his closet door

No matter how well you pack, he's going to end up without something (for example, we never expected that the school wouldn't provide safety goggles in Chemistry class). Help him a little, but let this be HIS PROJECT. This is a learning experience, and you should support him . . . but not excuse him from the effort.

I'll echo what another poster said: Do not count on buying things in his school-town once you've arrived. On move-in day the stores'll be PACKED with parents and students out buying that forgotten item or two. Do take him on a grocery-store run before you leave him, but don't count on buying something essential -- like towels or bedsheets, for example.

The first weeks can be hard. Mail him a little card before you leave home so that the first time he checks his mailbox, he'll find a small pick-me-up.

If you want to send him something later, consider ordering it Amazon and having it mailed directly to him. I did this once or twice for my daughter, and it reached her faster than if I'd purchased it in my hometown, packaged it and mailed it. After you've ordered something for him once, you can have his school address "saved" on the Amazon site, so it's super-easy to do it the second time.

Know what's 100% better than buying books used at Amazon? Choosing a school that includes book rentals in tuition! Really, this is great. My daughter's books cost $10 last semester -- and that was for a chemistry lab manual.

 

[NotUrsula]

First of all, check the rules for what is and is not allowed in dorm rooms; you don't want to spend money on something that he can't have.
Second thing: this is a guy we are speaking of. Girls tend to use all that cool house-mouse stuff, but guys almost universally will not.

Bedding: you can buy two sets of sheets, but the odds are that the second one will never be used. Most college-age guys I've known don't ever bother to wash bedding; they take it home at Christmas and let Mom take care of that. However, do get a good mattress pad to make the bed more comfortable; actually, I recommend two; the egg crate and then a quilted cotton one for on top of it, which keeps away the foam smell. Guys often do best with a European style of bedding: no top sheet, just a duvet in a hides-dirt-colored cover (which eliminates the need to wash something with fill in it, only the cover needs to be washed -- IF it gets washed, that is.)

Guys don't use bath buckets, either. If there is a hall bath, they carry their shampoo/soap in their hands, or sling it in the towel. Make sure the towels you buy are decent-sized and in a color that won't show dirt; again, they seldom get laundered. Also, IME, guys are bad about hanging up towels to dry, so the best sort to get are the quick-dry type; they are less likely to mildew if left in a heap.

The essentials for males are redundant power strips (preferably the bendy kind that can accommodate multiple bricks), good computer headphones, a laptop cooling fan, a TV than can be used as a monitor (because there WILL be a game console present, eventually), an iPOD/iphone alarm dock, some kind of locking trunk for valuables (a small wooden cube trunk is good because you can also sit on it), a good backpack and a good coat, and a meal plan, because IME, only dedicated vegetarians will bother to cook on a regular basis. (A bag of activated charcoal to hang in the closet isn't a bad idea, either, but forget any cutesy room fragrance gadgets.) If your kid is the sort that always prefers to do everything lying down, then a clamp-on gooseneck lamp for the bed will be useful. Also, a small toolbox is very useful, and be sure to include a set of micro-tools for computer maintenance.

Dishes are usually not used much, except for a good water bottle and maybe a coffee mug if he drinks coffee. Hit a warehouse store and buy large packages of disposable plates, bowls and plastic cutlery. My DS sometimes likes peeled fruit, but he uses his penknife for that more often than not.

PS: I agree on the duct tape; but I thought it was obvious that that would be in the toolbox, LOL.

 

[trip]

Powers strips and duct tape.