Admitted - other expenses

Parents Forum
1

<p>My DD has been admitted to the school of her choice with some merit aid. Now, it is time to start planning everything else. I know what the school tuition, fees and room and board are. I am trying to identify the OTHER expenses not included in these. In addition to the obvious ones such as travel and books, there will be other items. For instance:</p>

<p>Insurance for her laptop and other personal property
Storage for her stuff during summer as she is going to the opposite end of the country
The fee for the tuition plan so we can pay monthly</p>

<p>All these will add up quickly so I would like to have a list as comprehensive as possible. What else do I need to budget for? Parents with other kids in college, what is your experience? Is there a list in CC?</p>

<p>Thanks everybody</p>

2

<p>XL sheets that you can’t use on any other bed you own</p>

<p>Different wardrobe if you are moving to a different climate</p>

3

<p>You don’t have to budget for all the other stuff, because your dd can take care of these out of school year and summer earnings! :wink: Yeah!!!</p>

4

<p>Some schools ask you pay for medical insurance. Look at the school’s website to see if she is insured under your policy, if you need to pay for this.</p>

<p>Cell phone, start up fees (things you need or might want at college: fridge purchase or rental, TV, printer with ink…there is a list on cc about what to bring to college. Fridge, TV etc. expenses might be shared with roommate).</p>

<p>Pocket money-she should be able to cover this with summer employment and/or small job at school.</p>

<p>Oh, some schools charge orientation fees for freshmen.</p>

5

<p>Take a look at your own homeowner’s policy if your child is going to be living in a dorm. There might already be coverage in place.</p>

<p>I called our insurance company a few weeks before our daughter left for school to ask about a renter’s policy to cover her things. I was told that my policy extended coverage to her belongings up to 10% of the value of our personal property coverage for our house. That 10% was pretty substantial, and more than enough to cover what she was bringing. The one thing we DID add was a computer rider to specifically cover her new laptop, which included even accidental damage. Total cost: $8/year.</p>

6

<p>All the things she can’t/won’t want to take with her that she’ll have to buy there. I went to college across the country and I basically had to start over because I couldn’t bring things my local friends brought. Things like:
Shampoo, Conditioner, soap, all in large bottels
Pens, notebooks, scissors, tape, printer paper, printer ink, a printer (ha!)
Decorative dorm items like posters, then there’s tacks or sticky tack to hang them up with
sheets, pillowcases, pillows, comforter
I bought new towels, but I guess you can bring them
alarm clock
laundry basket
lamp or lamps
hangers, lots and lots of hangers
curtains
Several power strips (students have many electrical appliances and dorm rooms have few outlets).
All the clothes for a cold weather climate so: heavy duty coat, hats, gloves, warm socks, boots. But ALSO clothes for the inbetween times: rain boots, umbrellas, fall-weight coat.
Iron, Ironing board
Laundry detergent </p>

<p>And so many more things. THe first year was the worst, after that I could store stuff out there, but in the beginning I spent the most on the hundreds and hundreds of little daily life things that at home, you just have (like tape, or glue or whatever) but when you move across the country you can’t bring with you. Once I packed up my clothes and my computer, I had reached my two suitcase limit and the ones I had were heavier than was allowed (this was when you could bring two free suitcases, so the overweight fee wasn’t such a big deal. Now I would really push for keeping your cases under weight or else). It’s expensive, but it will proabbly cost more to bring all those little things by plane or ship them, so you just have to bite in and deal with it. And all those little things add up big time.</p>

7

<p>If her school has a Division I sports program (football, basketball) and she is interested in attending the games, that’s extra.</p>

8

<p>^^^^</p>

<p>Yes, and if the school has a popular team, tickets might sell out fast, so pay attention to when student tix go on sale. However, usually student tickets are much cheaper than regular tickets.</p>

<p>Parents Weekend - (Often held over a weekend in Sept or Oct) airfare for parents, hotel for parents, rental car, etc. If the school has a football team, you may want to buy tickets to the game.</p>

9

<p>Congratulations there must be a lot of joy in your home about now :)</p>

<p>Most of the college websites I have visited have a list of the Total Cost of Attendance. Visit the site and do a search for “Cost of Attendance” Your costs will vary but it usually gives you an estimate and the sorts of perhaps unforeseen costs that may materialize. As for your own specifics you can find out the cost of insuring a laptop by contacting your agent and the price of storage by contacting a storage company though you may want to start by contacting the school and asking them for a referral.</p>

<p>Check the school’s website for the “What to bring” section and start buying things now if it’s an ED acceptance. I know that dorm room supplies can run anywhere between 150.00 for a low maintenance type to over 1000.00 for someone who is welll…not. My daughters fell somewhere in the middle. But on the bright side I won’t be having to shell out that same amount of cash again. Some things will have to be replaced but not all of it. On the even brighter side you can take advantage of the “White Sales” that pepper the newspaper circulars in january. JC Penney has XL sheets year round and right now they are on sale on their website.</p>

<p>Best of Luck!</p>

10

<p>Congrats to your daughter!</p>

<p>When making a budget with your daughter, don’t forget things like:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>**The cost of traveling between the school and your home <a href=“especially%20if%20your%20child%20comes%20home%20for%20holidays%20like%20Thanksgiving%20-%20airfare%20can%20be%20very%20pricy!%20Consider%20move-in,%20winter%20break,%20and%20so%20on;%20these%20trips%20add%20up%20-%20if%20air%20fare%20is%20an%20average%20$300%20per%20roundtrip%20%5Bthis%20may%20be%20a%20low%20estimation%20if%20you%20truly%20live%20on%20the%20other%20side%20of%20the%20country%5D%20and%20your%20daughter%20%20travels%20just%204%20times%20between%20home%20and%20school%20a%20year,%20that’s%20a%20cool%20$1200/year%20or%20a%20low-balled%20$4800%20during%204%20years%20of%20college”>/b</a></p></li>
<li><p>Local transportation costs <a href=“will%20your%20daughter%20have%20a%20car%20on%20campus?%20count%20on%20parking%20fees,%20depending%20on%20the%20institution,%20ranging%20from%20free%20to%20$300/year;%20if%20not,%20will%20your%20child%20need%20$$%20for%20the%20subway%20or%20bus%20system%20or%20some%20other%20transportation?%20taxis%20from%20the%20airport%20if%20there%20is%20no%20campus%20shuttle/no%20friends%20w/%20cars?%20Does%20the%20school%20have%20a%20van%20that%20goes%20to%20the%20local%20shopping%20center%20but%20charges%20$4%20each%20way?”>/b</a></p></li>
<li><p>The cost of spring break. ** I’ not advocating that you as a parent should pay for it, but is your daughter prepared to save up some $$ (or has she already) if she and some friends want to go someplace? (Cancun, a cruise, Disney World, whatever it may be)</p></li>
<li><p>The cost of any “special terms” This could include if your daughter studies abroad for a semester (some merit scholarships do not cover the cost of education away from their institution, even a regular study abroad program); a summer internship in another city (even if a paid internship there are immense costs - transportation, rent, food, utilities costs, business wardrobe) other than school or home; summer school; the costs of “Winter Term” / “January Term” / “J-Term” (many institutions, especially LACs, have special winter periods where they offer unusual courses, internships, special non-credit programs, mini study abroad programs, or students can spend them at home/in another place doing similar) - including housing/food/and transportation costs</p></li>
<li><p> Supplies ** This could include everything from a bicycle (if needed for her campus) to a heavy-duty snow-proof winter coat (which can run into the hundreds of dollars, although you can find a good deal sometimes :D), depending on her institution. Also things like rugs (a personal preference, but certainly welcome if your daughter’s dorm room has hardwood floors), towels (less personal preference, more necessity ;)), school supplies she likes/uses, etc. </p></li>
<li><p> Institution-Specific Costs ** For example, if your daughter likes to ski and is going to Middlebury, a student season pass to their campus ski hill runs $280; if your daughter is hoping to major in athletic training at Ithaca College, athletic training majors there must pay for malpractice liability insurance as juniors and seniors; if your daughter wants to do a First Year Trip at Dartmouth, she’ll need to purchase/scrounge up a backpack, outdoor-worthy sleeping bag, hiking boots, plus the $180 fee, et cetera. Some of these (these were examples, not sure where your daughter is headed) costs may be covered by her scholarship, but some may not. The first-year pre-orientation programs (which are optional at some schools, required at others, nonexistent at some) often carry a fee between $100-$350.</p></li>
</ul>

<p>Oops - just saw that you included travel already - oh well I’ll just leave it above ;)</p>

11

<p>Agree that you should budget now for move in weekend–since parent(s) often go. You’ll have plane tix, hotel costs, car rental costs, restaurant costs, etc. It can get pretty pricey. Plus we parents always plan a little mini vacation after the drop off–helps with the separation. I heartily recommend it.</p>

<p>Some parents don’t mind sending their kids off without an escort that first time, but we always went. I don’t make it to campus much, so I like to see the lay of the land where my kid will be spending the next 4 years.</p>

12

<p>Your attending parents weekend during her freshman year.</p>

13

<p>Study Abroad - while the tuition may not be a factor, there are other costs associated with doing a “Study Abroad” semester (or a Study Abroad summer - some are faculty-led).</p>

14

<p>Don’t forget the cost of books and other course specific fees- labs, notes…</p>

15

<p>Check out the meal plans at your daughter’s college, and compare to her eating pattern. </p>

<p>My son took a 200 meal plan with an additional 300 “points” for other eateries on or near campus for first semester…that works out to about 12 meals/week and about 20 points/week for laundry, other food etc. </p>

<p>We ended up adding to his points account…my son used almost all of his meal swipes but needed more points, partly because he was not always able to eat during dining hall hours (for example, several days a week he had classes straight from 10-3, and therefore could not get to the dining hall for lunch, and would grab a bite on the go from a another venue that took points), and also because as a sports-active and still-growing boy, he often needed a “4th meal” at 10:30 or 11:00–sometimes from snacks in his room, sometimes something more substantial–a lot of times, the kids on his intramural and club sports teams would go out for a bite together after practice or a game using points at eateries near campus.</p>

<p>Also consider the cost of living in the area where your daughter will be going to college. The cost of living is often much higher in big cities as compared to more rural areas or college towns–the occaisional slice of pizza or cup of coffee can vary</p>

16

<p>Potential savings:</p>

<p>Discount on your auto insurance because your daughter is going to college more than 250 miles from home (check with your insurance agent – usually, it is still OK for the student to drive the family’s cars when home for breaks).</p>

<p>On the other hand, you may find that there are costs for the short breaks (fall break, if her school has it, Thanksgiving, and Spring Break) that you did not anticipate. Some colleges close their dorms during these breaks, but students from the other side of the country do not necessarily travel home for any break except the long one in December/January. If the student cannot find a friend to stay with, you may have to factor in the cost of a motel room.</p>

17

<p>here are a few cost savings ideas that we have used while S is away to college-
1] used, or even new college text books can be bought online CHEAP from used book sellers found through Amazon and other book sellers. All you need is the ISBN#- something you D can easily get at the bookstore. Often the “international” edition is the cheapest[ as well as lighter weight] option of all- because they are made in paperback versions.
2] If you D has a car at home, notify the insurance company that the car will only be used a few weeks a year, and your insurance costs should drop significantly…</p>

18

<p>quote[Iron, Ironing board]/quote</p>

<p>Well mark this as one thing I know would never get used!!</p>

19

<p>^^ You’d be surprised, actually. While yes, most of the time college students slump about rumpled, but there are many occasions when you need to look neater (and since most student I know don’t plan for these occasions by, for example, folding or hanging up their clothes, it helps to have a quick way to neaten up in a hurry). </p>

<p>For example: dates, special parties, regular parties where you want to wear something other than a t-shirt, interviewing for campus or off campus jobs, workng campus jobs other than the dining hall, interviewing for internships, when your parents come to visit. Seriously, teach your kids to iron. It’s very handy.</p>

20

<p>On your homeowners insurance, you need to take into account what your deductible is. If you have a high deductible, your student’s loss might not meet it. There are a couple of companies that offer property loss insurance geared towards college students with low deductibles. CSI and NSSI are probably the main two used. I believe they also cover accidental damage to computers and will waive the deductible under certain conditions.</p>