Prepping Your Kids for College Dorm Life
As summer winds down, you’re getting things ready for your son or daughter to go off to school on their own. This can be a dreadful and overwhelming time for some parents, but it doesn’t have to. We’ve put together some simple tips to help you save money and keep things manageable so you can enjoy the time with your family instead of stressing.
DON’T BUY NEW. Let’s face it, dorm rooms are small and usually ill-equipped, but that doesn’t mean you need to go buy everything new for your new college student. After 4 years and likely a lot of moving around, good furniture won’t be in good condition anyways, so save yourself the expense and go for some less expensive options.Start looking for items at the end of spring. Oftentimes students who are moving out of their dorms sell their furnishings cheap! If that doesn’t work, try resale shops and second hand stores to get household, storage, and organizing items. You can often find really good deals on barely-used items! If you can’t find something used, look to discount or less expensive options like Ikea, Walmart, or Target.
Teach Them to Budget. Your student is going to be on their own, likely far away from family, for at least 4 months at a time. They’re going to need to know how to handle money – responsibly! If they have a job while they’re going to school, then it’s even more important. It’s also important for you as the parent. If you and your student have credit cards in both your names, which are great for emergencies, you want to trust that they know what they are doing and will behave responsibly.Set aside time every week during the summer to teach them about budgeting, why it’s important, and what your expectations are. This is invaluable. You’re giving them a life tool that they will be able to use over and over and over again… and it may just save your pocketbook a time or two.
Time Management. If you haven’t already talked about managing time, this is something that needs to be discussed before your student goes off to school. It’s easy to get distracted by sports, events, parties, and general campus activities, but it’s important that your student knows to plan time for studying and homework. There are a lot of digital apps on the marketplace that can help keep your student on track.
