^^definitely need lots of underwear. It, more than anything, seems to determine how often they do laundry. OP, I would check the top contender schools and look at their move-in guides. You’ll likely be looking at last years but they don’t change much and you can get a feel for what’s allowed but it really varies by school. Some provide a microfridge, some you have to rent or bring individual fridge, micro, etc. My youngest didn’t care about details but did pick out an expensive comforter for her summer birthday and then we bought everything else later. So much more X-twin stuff is available in summer if you need it although we got a full size comforter - was wide but since bed lofted it works ok. You may not know your bed size until you’re assigned a dorm - D’s school still has a few dorms with regular twins.
Also, depending on how far the school is and when parents weekend is you can always add more storage later. Agree with less is more
OP, I started this thread back in ‘09 and addressed it not to parents, but to students living in dorms. So this is not a comprehensive list, but it gives the kids’ perspective on what’s important to have:
If you want to see what potential dorm rooms look open a google page in your browser and search " (School’s Name) Dorm Room" and hit the image button. It should return a few pictures. The “Student Life” or “Residential Life” tabs of your university’s site should have a “what to bring” list. There are a ton of blogs where students send in pictures of their rooms. We can’t link blogs here. I’ve really enjoyed one I found that was dorm rooms in England. They all have “Keep Calm And Carry On” posters too. There are also some great pages on Pinterest made by actual students. The HGTV website has some nicely decorated dorms too in the “Rate My Space” section.
Also remember that while your student is at college she will likely accumulate more. My son drove himself to school this year, with his car FULL. He has since bought additional stuff, including a fairly nice desk chair, and we have no idea how it will get home. (Actually, we will likely need to go get him since he totalled his car in the snow this week, but that’s another issue. No harm to anyone.) He also seems to have “lost” the fridge he used when he lived in the dorms. Don’t grow too attached to anything sent to college. Regarding clothes, my kid had his nice sweatshirts taken from the laundry, and others have reported jackets being misplaced, taken at parties, etc.
You can’t begin to figure out the logistics unless you know whether you are a car ride or a plane ride. I think my D’s move (plane ride) was more compact and organized than my her twin brother’s move (45 min car ride) because you could always shove more stuff into a car or figure - I can bring that up in a few weeks,
We did the BBB preorder for D and pick up and it worked perfectly.
If you’re going 1500 miles away, yes, definitely consider how you will get dorm stuff to school and where and how you will store it over the summers. Do this before you go shopping, and start with a minimalist approach. We also shopped for towels from our closet. D got new bedding with a gift card once we arrived in town. One big Target run took care of the rest. Ahead of time we bought small packable things, gift cards, clothing for a different climate at seasonal clearance sales. If there’s shopping near the school, student will be able to pick up anything you miss, and sending other things in care packages later is great fun as well.
OP, I have a ton of shipping tips; ask about that this summer.
BB&B really is the best way to go, especially for large & bulky items which you need to purchase (as opposed to taking from home). I’d advise that you pre-order only what you know are essentials. When you get to the dorm on move-in day, you can assess what else is needed, as well as taking measurements. Then when you go to the college-town BB&B to pick up your order, you can add whatever items you want, and leave the store with everything.
Amazon Prime! If you are not already a member, your D will get 6 months free as a college student and you can also use her account. I found it was great for those things my S forgot and for things like cases of beverages, snacks, detergent, etc. Heavy things that would otherwise cost and arm and a leg to ship or might be too heavy for S to lug from the store.
@LasMa - I’d love to hear your shipping tips… We will be moving our D across the country and will need to ship a bunch of stuff to her college. We bought certain things she wanted on clearance sales (we saved a lot of money so I don’t mind having to ship them) and will pick up the rest of what she will need locally.
We found that the Medium packing boxes from U-Haul, Home Depot, etc. exactly conform to Southwest Airlines maximum luggage size. Using the vacuum bags (you can get them at BB & B: fill them up and suck out all air with a vacuum cleaner), we were able to compress stuffed animals, comforters, and linens. Four of those (plus carry-ons) seemed to do the trick- remember that there is limited storage over the summer, and once the student’s belongings are there, you really don’t want to ship them back and forth again. Watch the weight to stay within the airline limits (50#) per box.
If you must ship more, Amtrak works, or Greyhound if they are having a sale (at student rates). USPS is also a surprisingly cost-effective option. Here are links on those options:
Both kids were car-ride distances (2 hours or under). DS started packing the morning we were to leave and asked how to fold a t-shirt. Sigh. At that point I figured I failed as a parent only to be confirmed when he threw his meager belongings in the dorm and ran off to a new student event (contrasted by his new roomie who had lofted his bed, had two mattress toppers under designer beddings, and an immaculately color-coordinated organized closet). Spoiler alert – DS graduated with two degrees, honors and a terrific job. And knows how to fold a t-shirt.
Younger DD was/is all about the planning, always takes too much and feels a need to change bedding each move to match her room/roommate’s taste. At this point, that comes out of her discretionary funds (meaning from her earned money) which helps her prioritize.
One thing we learned is to buy a larger comforter (step up from twin xl is full/queen) because they all use under-bed storage and most loft the bed… the larger comforter covers at least some of the storage and will likely work in new rooms moving forward.
