Original URL: http://school.familyeducation.com/college-prep/planning/29716.html

Items to Pack for College

by Barbara Cooke

Supply Checklist
Your favorite home furnishings and department stores may have handy college packing lists — and sales — to help you remember things your child needs for dorm life. But in the chaos of packing, here are some essentials you may forget:

Answering machine
Hangers
Fan
Cup for bathroom
Rolls of quarters for laundry
Whistle for safety
Second alarm for waking up
Umbrella
Silly Putty to hang posters
Extension cords
Erasable memo board and pens
CD/tape storage unit
Stick-on hooks
Pencil sharpener
Telephone address book
Light bulbs
Beach towel
Sleeping bag
Sewing kit
First-aid kit
Camera
Sports equipment
Bottle and can opener
Pictures of family, friends, pets
Favorite blankets, stuffed animals
Your child's wallet with driver's license and ID
Registration information
Medical insurance card
Social security card
Financial aid forms

Some Tried-and-True Suggestions

Buy school supplies at an office-supply store — they're much cheaper than the campus bookstore.
Stop at the campus bookstore and buy two university day calendars — one for you and one for your child. These contain essential phone numbers and addresses of university buildings, dorms, fraternities and sororities, restaurants, and motels near the campus (for weekend visits).
Find out the date for parents' visiting weekend and make a hotel reservation. Rooms go quickly and it's best to make plans as early as possible.
Call your homeowner's insurance agent and find out how much it costs to insure your teen's computer or other electronics at college. Most companies charge an additional $10 per $1,000 value for theft coverage, so $20 will cover a $2,000 computer.
If it's possible, try to open a checking account for your child at a bank with branches at the college and near your home. That way you can make emergency deposits (what other kind is there?) yourself, instead of sending a check in the mail.

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