<p>"I told our son to keep a list of expenses for the first two months to get an idea of how much money he needs."</p>
<p>That's a smart idea, you should have a good estimate by then. :)</p>
<p>My daughter got $300 a month this past year as a freshman. Trust me, that does not go far in LA. Then again, she is in a sorority and that drives expenses up. I don't think boys go through as much. As for campus jobs, my understanding is that they go first to kids who have work study grants, which she does not have. She would love to work on campus at a place like Ground Zero. We realize that working 20-30 hours a week this summer at $8 an hour will not cover her expenses, especially with the cost of gas, so we will still have to subsidize her somewhat next year. No one ever said kids are cheap.</p>
<p>Thank you for sharing your thoughts on expenses cdmn. I think LA is very expensive and that it is possible that you can go through $300. a month quickly between visits to Jamba Juice, school supplies, transportation, hair cuts, etc.</p>
<p>Hi everyone. My daughter was very responsible, and had a work-study job every year which covered all of her clothing and entertainment expenses. She told me of other kids she knew who would buy expensive items like Xboxes at the USC bookstore and charge them on credit cards. The parents would see "USC Bookstore" on the bill, and assume the expense was for textbooks! There is a USC-owned clothing store across the street called "The Library" which sells designer jeans. They are a division of the USC bookstore. Perhaps charges from there show up as USC bookstore, too? Another student she knew used to take her friends out to the pub on campus, and charge it to her discretionary acct. We had a good laugh over that one!</p>
<p>The correct answer here is absolutely nothing. He is a freshman with his mealplan so his food and living is fully covered. Anything else is extra and can be earned with a job which he will have more than enough to do. Just give him money for books and thats it, anything else is a gracious donation on your part.</p>