So what kind of stuff does my kid need for college?

[RandomFool]

Fridge (with magnets so she can hang up her A+ exams!)
Flash Drive - wicked handy
I liked having my own printer/scanner it was way more convenient.
I brought my TV it was nice for just hanging out in the room and playing games.
Microwaveable bowl and some utensils (or she could just steal them from the cafeteria)
Some nice computer speakers and headphones.

Oh and plenty of cash so she can buy books(beer).

 

[Ballatician]

umbrella

 

[sdifox]

Toaster oven is very useful

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: sdifox
Toaster oven is very useful

true many schools dont allow them in the dorms however

 

[Q]

Originally posted by: moshquerade
pencil sharpener been mentioned? electric please.

Someone is stuck in the 80's

 

[alkemyst]

college should really be about them figuring the stuff out and the most you just helping procure it.

Too many adults with no clue on how to do the basics out there. I know a lot of 20 somethings that still have their parents doing their insurance, car tags, taxes, etc.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Make sure she knows how to read a map. A large paper calendar is helpful to mark critical due dates and info on in addition to the computer. A portable scanner is handy for the library. A laundry basket or duffle. Oh, and never ever allow her to sell books back to the campus bookstore at the end of the semester. Stop feeding the vampires.

 

[imported_Imp]

A reminder to lock the damn door. I couldn't believe the large number of 'bad' stories (at least 2 so far this year) at my local colleges that all started with '... left the door unlocked while going to bed...'.

 

[skace]

Alarm Clock!!! A loud one.

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: alkemyst
college should really be about them figuring the stuff out and the most you just helping procure it.

Too many adults with no clue on how to do the basics out there. I know a lot of 20 somethings that still have their parents doing their insurance, car tags, taxes, etc.

alot as in most? because thats normal at least with everyon i know, not a single person i know paid for their own health or car insurance or worried about their own taxes till well after they were out of college and had a job

 

[Feldenak]

Originally posted by: cubeless
earplugs and eyemask so u can sleep when drunken roomate is screwing all night...
mace
birth control pills
condoms for std's
a refresher course in not being a tart...

i couldn't believe the crap i sat through at uf when i took my kid there for orientation...

good luck...

It's FU...the whole place is full of shit, why would orientation be any different.

 

[IEC]

Originally posted by: waggy
damn when i went to college i took

clothes
supplies
car (had to drive from IL to Rochester)
dorm fridge
and thats it.

how times change lol

Freshman year I took literally 95% of my worldly possessions to school in 2 large luggages. This included a computer, monitor, and speakers which took up 1/2 of one luggage. SFF FTW. Clothes, supplies, and books filled up the rest. I bought a mini fridge at a Home Depot when I got here and have used it for 3 years now. Fixed the eventual rattling of the compressor/pipes with zip ties.

I've accumulated way too much (occasionally useful) crap over the past three years... Craigslist, here I come. Going to ship my desktop parts back home this summer/take em back in carry-on. I need a working computer this summer...

Besides some generous help from my parents freshman year and a little monetary help every now and then which I greatly appreciate, I pay for everything out of my work earnings.

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: sdifox
Toaster oven is very useful

true many schools dont allow them in the dorms however

why? fire hazard?

 

[meltdown75]

bong
papers

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: sdifox
Toaster oven is very useful

true many schools dont allow them in the dorms however

why? fire hazard?

yep

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: sdifox
Toaster oven is very useful

true many schools dont allow them in the dorms however

why? fire hazard?

yep

lol, everything within a college kid's reach is a fire hazard... so no george foreman grill either?

 

[slsmnaz]

this may sound stupid but we had tile floors in our dorm rooms. One of the best things we did was go pick up a large remnant at a carpet place and fit it to our room dimensions (univ. even provided a template). That's all I've got since most of my other ideas were covered.

 

[Anubis]

george might be fine as it pulls much less power and does not have any large glowing red elements in it

at mmy school we were only allowed to have a hotplate many had other stuff but that was the "rule"

this was 2000-2004


i will suggest that one of the instant hot water heaters is a GREAT thing to have and or a small coffee pot

 

[Randum]

Yeah minifridge is clutch. just dont bring too much shiz.

and my opinion on the laptop vs desktop. This might be excessive, i dont know how she is with computers, but i would get both cause if your laptop bites it at college you are SOL if you have all your stuff saved on it. I would get her a cheap desktop for the room, laptop for on the go. Just from experience, that would be best.

And yeah flash drive depending on classes.

textbooks, i would buy from half.com

printer, forget it, use the library's. I brought one and used it my frosh year and realized ink was too much.

and, since she is a girl, i dont know what school but give her like some pepper spray or something, you hear shitty stories all the time, my gf carried with her. and also be sure she understands the rules of drinking....liquer before beer....and how to do a beer bong etc ; )

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: Randum
Yeah minifridge is clutch. just dont bring too much shiz.

and my opinion on the laptop vs desktop. This might be excessive, i dont know how she is with computers, but i would get both cause if your laptop bites it at college you are SOL if you have all your stuff saved on it. I would get her a cheap desktop for the room, laptop for on the go. Just from experience, that would be best.

And yeah flash drive depending on classes.

textbooks, i would buy from half.com

printer, forget it, use the library's. I brought one and used it my frosh year and realized ink was too much.

and, since she is a girl, i dont know what school but give her like some pepper spray or something, you hear shitty stories all the time, my gf carried with her. and also be sure she understands the rules of drinking....liquer before beer....and how to do a beer bong etc ; )

most girls prefer flip cup and a being good at it is awsome

 

[AmpedSilence]

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: sdifox
Toaster oven is very useful

true many schools dont allow them in the dorms however

why? fire hazard?

The rule that I have usually seen is anything with exposed heating coils is not allowed. So, a george foreman is allowed, but a toaster oven is not. Along similar lines, a coffee maker is not allowed but a expresso maker is (my roommate had one).

My suggestions....

- two weeks of underwear
- two weeks of clothes
- Sheets, extra long twin sized
- mini-fridge
- microwave (probably under 700W)
- and cash

She has a car, she will get what she needs after that.

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: AmpedSilence

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: sdifox
Toaster oven is very useful

true many schools dont allow them in the dorms however

why? fire hazard?

The rule that I have usually seen is anything with exposed heating coils is not allowed. So, a george foreman is allowed, but a toaster oven is not. Along similar lines, a coffee maker is not allowed but a expresso maker is (my roommate had one).

My suggestions....

- two weeks of underwear
- two weeks of clothes
- Sheets, extra long twin sized
- mini-fridge
- microwave (probably under 700W)
- and cash

She has a car, she will get what she needs after that.

That doesn't make sense... foreman is a lot hotter than the coffee pot warmer... and toaster oven has a door, so if they say you can close foreman grill it doesn't work either...

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: AmpedSilence

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: sdifox
Toaster oven is very useful

true many schools dont allow them in the dorms however

why? fire hazard?

The rule that I have usually seen is anything with exposed heating coils is not allowed. So, a george foreman is allowed, but a toaster oven is not. Along similar lines, a coffee maker is not allowed but a expresso maker is (my roommate had one).

My suggestions....

- two weeks of underwear
- two weeks of clothes
- Sheets, extra long twin sized
- mini-fridge
- microwave (probably under 700W)
- and cash

She has a car, she will get what she needs after that.

shes a girl shes def gonna have more then 2 weeks worth of clothes

i moved in early because of preseason, it was really funny watching everyone else move in 2 weeks later, like 80% of what some girls moved in was clothing

 

[Excelsior]

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: sdifox
Toaster oven is very useful

true many schools dont allow them in the dorms however

why? fire hazard?

yep

So many kids at my school thought they weren't allowed, but I had to keep showing them the official university list for appliances not allowed. Toaster oven wasn't one of them. I had one for two years and it was never a problem. So basically...one just needs to check the college's official position on then.

 

[ja1484]

Originally posted by: ja1484
Enough of your thread crapping BS. Seriously, stop it!

Anandtech Senior Moderator
Red Dawn

My bad for trying to educate.