mkm56

All 3 of my kids took cars their freshman year. But I do think each case (particularly campuses) is unique. It happened that my kids all went to school that allowed cars on campus for freshmen (one didn't even charge a fee and the others were very reasonable). Also, none of the towns mine were in had much if any in the way of public transportation. Since they were allowed cars, I would rather my kids be driving themselves than riding with others.

MomofWildChild

D went to Rice as a freshman without her car (4 hours from home). She came back for it in October and really enjoyed having it, both for local shopping/food runs and to come home for breaks.
S is at a school in a major city where you should NOT have a car, and he does. There were reasons for it freshman year (some medical appts that required driving) and it came in handy. Parking is expensive unless you find a place on the street and think hard about moving your car! After 2 years, he really is on the fence about whether he still wants to have it. It certainly comes in handy (he is not eligible for the car-sharing services that are available due to (a-hem) some blips on his driving record) for getting out of the city, visiting relatives and other things I probably don't want to know about. I have mixed feelings about it. He has been very responsible about it, but it seems like a huge hassle.

VectorWega

It's pretty much a necessity at some schools to have a car, so I don't fully understand your concern..it's really not that risky, especially if your daughter is half-way responsible. If the school was in NYC I would say sell the car, and save a ton of money. However, in upstate NY it's sort of a toss-up. You certainly don't NEED a car at a school like Cornell but it could still come in handy.

Houston...now that's a city where the kid should have a car.

Lafalum84

Most colleges I have visited do not allow freshmen to have cars on campus, so your D needs to check that out. Besides limited parking, I think a reason for this rule is to encourage frosh to stay on campus and explore the school's offerings, instead of wandering off to hang out in the mall or movie theater or (heaven forbid) find bars, etc. Most campuses try to have plenty of activities to keep kids involved right on campus.

My son is a frosh at college 5 hours away. He did not have a car this year but one of his friends did (paid to house it in a garage a few blocks from campus). The friend ended up giving a lot of rides to stores, etc. DS wasn't going to bring a car until junior year but is now talking about bringing it next year as we have several family events he may attend in the fall and getting him to/from campus has been a pain this year. Also he is on the ski team (club sport) and they used cars this year, I'm not sure if the college didn't provide vans or the kids just didn't want to use them. Anyway, he thinks he could use his car for ski club next year. But I, like you, am nervous about him driving from home to campus and vice versa, the drive involves skirting NYC and the traffic can be very nasty. The issue of the car for sophomore year is still up in the air at our house.

PackMom

S2's college has an off campus parking lot for freshman 1.5 miles from campus. It is lighted, fenced, gated. The university has a large bus system. There is one bus totally dedicated to running back forth between the campus and freshman lot every hour.

I'm thinking that taking the bus to get to his truck and then having to take the bus back to campus after using the truck will be enough of a pain that he won't have time to do that too often during the week. Freshman at his school who have stickers for the off campus lot are allowed to park on campus on weekends which is when I think he will use it the most and of course for trips home.

rutgersmamma

Why not try a compromise? Explain your concerns and allow her to take the car back to school after one year or one semester of successful college--
My neighbor set a target GPA for his daughter....If you maintain this gpa, you can keep the car on campus. If not, it stays at home.... We were glad that our kids went to schools with rules against freshmen having a car. It forced them to stay on campus and get to know other kids--both good things for them in the end.

northeastmom

We toured a small private school on the east coast, and our tour guide's family was from the west coast. Our tour guide told us that she has a car, but she had to have a certain gpa, which was set by her parents, to bring the car to campus. She met that goal, and her parents allowed her to drive it across country to get it to her college. She was very independant before college, because her parents sent her to a private boarding school for high school, and that school was in New England.

sunnyflorida

I agree, try to compromise. Maybe if she meets certain criteria for Fall she can bring for Spring term.

And do tell her that even most NY state residents don't drive their car into the city!!! They use public transportation. NYC is no place to be driving, and there is no place to park. NYC is beter anyway without a car.

momsworried

D1 is a sophmore with junior status (because of AP credits) who is allowed to have a car on campus. While it is not necessary to have a car, she loves the freedom it gives her. She also feels she can come home whenever she wanted. Funny though, she's 3 1/2 hours away and we still haven't had a surprise visit.

S1 will be attending school this August about 1300 miles from home and is planning on taking his car. He will only be driving to school in August and home in May. He feels he needs his car to get to all the great activities in the areas around his school.

I will have many sleepless nights next year.