<p>For all of you that have kiddos currently at college, what have you found are important school supplies? We have been told that a stapler is critical, etc. I wanted to start a box, gathering stuff, so our dramic “going to college costs” aren’t so dramatic come July…lol.</p>
<p>S didn’t use much of anything I bought except pens, pencils, and notebooks. But he has found a dry erase calendar to be very useful to note upcoming projects and tests.</p>
<p>Things I have found to be surprisingly useful - </p>
<p>a dry-erase board
duct tape
noise-reducing headphones (which I use when studying, so I’m counting that)
a printer (if you’re driving, just bring one. it’s a lot easier than having to run to the library every few nights)</p>
<p>S’s favorite purchase is a really good stand up reading lamp. He researched what the other kids had and bought one online and had it shipped to his college. Probably the other key item he purchased is one of those fold up laundry bins.</p>
<p>collegeshopping, you might want to wait for sales on the acutal “school supplies” and purchase the sheets, blankets, and other dorm necessities now. For example, we picked up a white board (with pen) over the summer during the back to school sales for $1. </p>
<p>Also, you might want to stop into Dollar Stores. I saved money by purchasing a waste basket, cleaning items, shower caddy, etc. in these stores. This won’t help if you want to purchase in the city where your child will be going to school. I bought these things near our home and we managed to get them into the car.</p>
<p>My son loves his folding camp chair - the kind that folds up and goes into a matching bag. It can be out of the way in the small dorm room, but then is useful when friends are hanging out in the room. It’s also a comfortable chair to read in.</p>
<p>The one thing my son wanted and uses everyday was a real desk chair rather than the standard issue wooden one. Also, I sent him to school without any raingear and of course it rained everyday for the first week. In my defense, until that point, he had never carried an umbrella or worn a rain jacket - but when you have to walk everywhere it’s a different story.</p>
<p>Son loves a small tilt-top rolling table from Staples (or one of its brethren). The dorm desk is small–it accomodates the book-paper-lap top overflow. He rolls it next to his bed if he’s studying there. He takes it outside when he wants to work in the fresh air. (he’s in So Cal.) It cost between $40 and $50.</p>
<p>Do you know that the student will be within driving distance from home? It doesn’t make sense to fly a suitcase full of office supplies with pay per bag policies.</p>
<p>I use a stapler, hole puncher, sticky notes, sticky tabs, pens, pencils, highlighters, tape, binder clips, and paper clips pretty much every day. I also use several dry erase boards and cork boards.</p>
<p>Notecards with envelopes stamped with forever stamps and addressed to parents. Hey, you can hope…</p>
<p>Eggson found that he wanted a stapler, a LOUD alarm clock, Target gift cards and more hair products. Oh and a large bottle of mouthwash.</p>
<p>That’s about it.</p>
<p>Microwave, Refridgerator (we got one that had a separate freezer section…the freezer section is a lot larger than the std mini fridge/freezer…it’s large enough to store frozen dinners, etc), Stapler, Pens, Highlighters in different colors, post its, removable page tabs Mechanical Pencils/with lots of lead (or regular #2 pencils and buy an electric sharpener), computer/laptop, printer with extra ink, thumb drive, notebook and printer paper, folders, desk organizer, some decorations for the walls to cozy up the dorm room, 3m removable hooks, folding chair, a fan, bath mat, shower curtain (might want to get with the roommates/suitemates who will bring what for the bathroom), shower caddy, bathroom cleaning supplies, duster, small vacuum, if the dorm is not carpeted…a throw rug or room sized rug, some paper plates, plastic forks, paper cups, microwaveable cups and plates, a small microwaveable pot, paper towels, a couple of pieces of tupperware, towels, bathrobe, slippers, hangers, lysol, a wind-proof umbrella, rain boots, 2 sets of sheets, mattress pad, egg-crate or mattress topper. These items were all essential for our college student. </p>
<p>Alot of the dorm and college type stuff this time of the year is hard to find or pricier than around July when the kids are going back to school. </p>
<p>I agree with Northeastmom that the Dollar Stores are great places to find items for college. </p>
<p>Good Luck shopping!</p>
<p>I’ll just go with the perennial “less is more” advice. Different kids use different things (probably somewhat gender- and school-specific). DS is a junior at a LAC and has never had or needed a printer (or stapler). All papers are e-mailed to professors. He’s also never had a tool kit, fan, chair, rug, duct tape, or any kind of kitchen supplies/utensils. We’ve been fortunate that his other roommate(s) provided the fridge. Microwaves are not allowed in his dorms. It’s fun thinking about outfitting that freshman dorm room, particularly if it’s your oldest, but I’d go very minimal and let your kiddo fill in what he actually needs the first few weeks of class.</p>
<p>lmnop–I couldn’t even get DS to write his grandmother after she provided her own SASE envelopes. Rotten kid.</p>
<p>My kids like me to pick up the spiral bound notebooks, pencils and pens etc. in August when stores have those things pennies on the dollar. They both tell me the bookstore is super expensive for staple items and they are both in a rural area without big box stores. I ship them parcel post and it’s all still less expensive then if they purchase at the bookstore.</p>
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A word of caution here…my son is a freshman at a LAC and he uses his printer every day…ditto the stapler, post its, paper clips and stapler. Each kid is different. (My son is a performing arts major, so he deals with a lot of printed music, etc. so I would add hole punch, page protectors and binders to this list). I think kids will need most office supplies that we have on our desks, plus a good cork/dry erase board.</p>
<p>OTOH, I went way overboard buying “things” for him, and some of them came back home at Christmas break. I would say (if you can drive them down later) wait to buy things that actually take up room in those small dorms (chairs, dishes, etc.) until they get settled in for a couple of weeks. You (and they) will be surprised what they can live without if it means a little more floor space, and less to pick up. Esp. true of boys.</p>
<p>I think starting your office supply box now is a good idea (and fun). There are lots of comprehensive threads that give great checklists. But just take a look at what your desk has in it…</p>
<p>I stuffed a standard size Amazon box (approx. 12x9x3) with mostly extras from around the house. I put small amounts of paperclips, rubber bands, binder clips, etc. in zip lock sandwich bags. I packed scissors, a stapler, a hole punch, a box cutter, post-it notes… almost everything you would have in a desk drawer at home or the office. When I had the conversation with my son over Christmas about what he took that he wish he hadn’t, office supplies didn’t make the list. They take up little room and it’s so much easier to have things on hand than to have to run out to buy them or knock on doors to borrow. I agree, this generation does more with computers than paper, but when they buy something, think of what they need to break into the theft proof packaging.</p>
<p>I print close to 500 pages a week. My free printing allowance is 400 pages per semester, so I am really glad to have that printer. Not to mention that last year I lived in a MASSIVE dorm with 800+ people in it, and our computer lab was in some secluded corner of the basement a good 15 minutes walk from my dorm room-- I hated having to go down there at 3am to print a last minute assignment, it just didn’t seem safe-- heaven forbid I had to actually walk across campus to the library at that hour. Not everybody needs a printer but it is certainly convenient if your student would use it.</p>
<p>Good grief, Emaheevu107 – I hope you have a duplexing printer and cheap ink refills!</p>
<p>Laptop, printer/paper, a couple of pads of paper, pens/pencils and a stapler. (unless their major requires specialty items) When my son first went away I made sure he had EVERYTHING! Most was never used.</p>