<p>Curious to know what you recommend for spending money. D will be on her own for spending money and i am curious if what she has saved will get her through the year. Seems like it could vary depending on how much a student takes advantage of Atlanta.</p>
<p>Mom, you answered your own question. Atlanta is fun and she needs to take advantage of its many opportunities. It really depends on D's spending habits. As with every good thing, do it with moderation. There are plenty of fun things to do in Atlanta w/free or minimal costs..exp Stone Moutain Park. Buy a yearly pass. Plenty of picknicking, hiking, camping, or biking to do. My understanding is that there are seasonal free concerts at one of the midtown parks. Of course there is Olympic Park. You will find that cost for dining, concerts and movies are about the same as anywhere. If you are like me, your D and my S will be having the fun while we strugle to pay the tuition bills.
Lots of Luck.</p>
<p>When my son was a freshman he spent about $200/ month; he is a senior now and living in an off-campus apartment.
'
Things he spent money on always seemed to involve food, but then, he's a boy and never gains an ounce. A lot of pizza/wings/chinese food with the kids on the floor when watching sports and/or movies; having a bite to eat with friends before or after a club meeting or study group; going in to Atlanta (sharing a taxi because none of his friends at the time had cars) for a movie or concert or to dance at a club and going to a decent restaurant; going to pro sports events ( he likes hockey).</p>
<p>A big complaint was that the DUC did not stay open late enough for a late meal. Dooley's was open late but got repetitive. My son has always gotten hungry for a "4th meal" at around 11, after an evening of studying and/or meetings.</p>
<p>He and his friends always seem to know the "deal nights" at just about every eatery--they pride themselves on being cheap but like to have a good time.</p>
<p>My son doesn't shop, though--I don't think he's ever bought a single article of clothing for himself in his entire life , and he doesn't buy much of anything else, either.</p>
<p>boysx3, I was curious... what year did your son move off-campus and why didn't he choose the Clairmont campus for jr/sr years? Is it much cheaper, and what kind of meal plan did/does he opt for now?</p>
<p>Hi Norcal dad--</p>
<p>What dorm is your daughter in?</p>
<p>My son lived on campus his first two years--his first year in a traditional dorm and sophomore year he lived in an apartment in Turman, which he really liked. I would have preferred that he stay on campus all 4 years but his friends wanted to move off campus and he wanted to stay with them. </p>
<p>His apartment is in a complex directly across the street from Clairmont Campus--in fact, they can cross the street to ride the shuttle if they choose to do so. He has a 3-bedroom, 2 full bathroom apartment with 2 other boys, with a washer and dryer right in their unit, and parking spots for all 3 of them right in from of their unit as well. </p>
<p>It does come out cheaper than the dorms because he and his friends (not just roommates) cook together a lot as part of their socializing--this weekend they are doing a big mediterranean cooking bash to celebrate the whole gang being back in Atlanta. A bunch of them are gearing up to work orientation--my son will be a FAME advisor again this year.</p>
<p>As far as meal plans--sophomore year I think he took the minimum plan and I put extra $$ on his Emory card--meals are cheaper on the Emory card than on a private debit card directly deducting from a bank account. Once he moved off campus, he did not take any meal plan but always keeps $$ on his Emory card to spend on campus.</p>
<p>This is a very interesting discussion. Thank you everyone for your input. I too am concerned/anxious about spending money for my daughter. But from this thread I see that she will be fine living on the money that she earned this summer and what she will earn next year. We insist that she help with this expense so she has some ownership and so that the onus isn't all on us.</p>
<p>boysx3, your son's apartment sounds ideal -- hardly off-campus, in that it's across from the Clairmont campus. Do they get to use the pool or perhaps they have one in their complex. My daughter is in "The Penthouse", codename for the 4th/top floor (all female) at Longstreet Hall. (You probably know that they're planning on tearing it down next year or so?) I haven't seen it yet, so I don't know much more than what pictures I've seen. She and her roommate have decided that with only one laundry facility in Longstreet, they'll probably aim for doing their laundry very late at night to avoid competing for available washer/dryers.</p>
<p>I'm not happy that all freshmen have to buy into the 21-meal plan -- it's more than what I think my daughter will use, and it doesn't provide for as much flexibility in buying meals off campus (or if you do, you're also "throwing money away" in that you've already paid for 3 meals/day on the plan). I hope the food is good.</p>
<p>NorCalDad, my daughter is in Longstreet too. I'm concerned that it is such an old dorm and that the closets don't have doors. But it may also give her a better taste of the real world. She's on the 3rd floor. I didn't know that the 4th floor was all girls. It's good to hear.</p>
<p>She,</p>
<p>I'm sure Longstreet will be just fine... I'm just hoping that my daughter will be inspired (by what sounds to be a neat and smart rooommate) to keep her side of the room in order! ;)</p>
<p>We were told that a lot of students put up curtains across the closets. I'm planning to use the couple of days after my daughter heads off to her rafting trip to get her room into living shape. Since we're flying out from SFO, I was planning to purchase many items out there. We'll pick up sheets out here, but I think I'll just buy the pillows, comforter, lamp, shower caddy, etc. out in Atlanta -- less to pack.</p>
<p>My son lives at Highland Lakes on Clairmont. It's a huge complex with lots of students from Emory. It has a couple of pools and a gym. Much nicer than I ever had in college!</p>
<p>Longstreet is old and shabby but the kids love it anyway. My son was next door in Trimble, which also will be torn down. Those dorms have a great location, though--right across the parking lot from the DUC, where the dining hall and mailboxes are located. It's just one block from the Quad/library/ Cox hall food court, just one block from the gym, just one block from Dooley's, so all in all a good place to be.</p>
<p>The food at the DUC is actually quite good--the biggest complaint is that it gets repetiitve. There are plenty of choices but I think a lot of kids just get into a rut.</p>
<p>And my son found that the best time to do laundry is usually during the day when everyone else is in class, or to get up early--at college, everyone thinks they can do their laundry late at night while they are pulling an all nighter (but then we don't want to know about that).</p>
<p>By the way, if you and your daughter go to BB&B at home, she can order the items she wants at your local store on a scantron, and BB&B will have it boxed and ready for you to pick up at the store near campus in Atlanta. That way she can have the fun of shopping and you can still have the drudgery of setting it up for her. Make sure you buy a few of the long-corded power strips for multiple plugs because these older dorm rooms don't have enough outlets, especially where you can use them.</p>
<p>boysx3, that's a great tip about BB&B... I hadn't considered that, but that sounds like the way to go. We had already gone into a BB&B and looked at irons, ironing board, shower caddy, etc. I just didn't want to buy it here and have to fly cross-country with all that stuff... and being cheap, I didn't want to have it all shipped either. Thanks for the tip!</p>
<p>NorCalDad,
I'm an entering freshman and I wanted to let you know there are actually 2 meal plans that freshman can choose from one has unlimited meals and the other has 15 meals/week and more money on the DUC card. Your daughter can switch when she gets there if she wants to</p>
<p>SEWcurious, yes you're correct... however, the cost is the same for each meal plan, and we thought that for the $50 added to Emory Card Dooley Dollars for Plan B that it wasn't enough to have 6 fewer meal opportunities each week. Oh well, at least I know my daughter won't starve! ;)</p>
<p>My son will be entering this year. I (repeat, "I") have been doing some shopping for his dorm room; the child is extremely "gender appropriate" and doesn't really care too much. If he says, "Yeah, whatever...that seems fine," one more time.........</p>
<p>I learned that Bed, Bath, and Beyond has a pretty good setup. You can buy what the college student will need at your local store, and then pick it up all neatly packaged at the Atlanta store. </p>
<p>We won't need this, because we're just driving down our van from North Carolina. But his roommate and friend from Palo Alto will probably like this. Perhaps your daughter would feel more comfortable too, and would have more time to shop while still in SFO. Perhaps you too.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>