Ideas thread for what to take/not take to Uni.......

[MissMarplesBloomers]

We have found already that the student forum on the Warwick Uni website has been a valuabel resource.

Also advice from past students on here & other friends so thought I'd share a few "ooh ...good tip" moments that we've already had as the lists are mounting up!!

-Keep stuff to take to a minimum, check the list of stuff provided first or else the kitchens end up with 8/10 sets of everything by the end of first week.

-ditto for groceries, stick to dry/tins so tehy last longer & the shared cupboard in the kitchen/fridge shelf may not be that big!

• plain white china/crocks can be muddled/lost/appropriated with all the other IKEA stuff in the kitchen, a couple of granny's patterned plates will stand out as yours & can be found cheaply in charity shops. Ditto cutlery. Then no biggy if it doesn't come home at end of term.

-some halls provide linen/bedding but having your own from home helps with the settling in. Eg DD is taking her double duvet & own covers as that is snuggly on a single bed.

-lots of pound coins for laundry & buses.

-Double up the amount of underwear you pack, you'll be too busy the first week to do washing!

Loads more I'm sure, all little things but useful!

Please share your top tips

Ikea STEKA £1 frying pan

some great advice here - thanks everyone.

Ds and I have just got back from a shopping trip and have heeded lots of the advice about not taking too much. We have had a lovely morning, he is so excited about starting his course

I had a school friend at the same Uni and I think we met up quite early on, but still both made lots of new friends anyway. I think saying hello to someone you know is quite reassuring and friendly, so wouldn't wait a whole week on a self-imposed ban personally !
But you do want to make some new friends too eg. on your course/ in your corridor.

Wow great advice here thanks all.

DD has already got herself a Dodo AcadPad as she's seen how useful my one is!

I think we will have at least one box of stuff that we might not need but will take, I can see if everyone is being minimalist she'll end up with either no kettles/toasters or 8 ! Would rather take it away again if not needed.

I am torn between the fun of buying new/own bedding etc with it's expense & the economic but tattier second hand stuff that we might not get back but won't care!

Now big question, I know it is better to have ones own laptop but is it feasible to cope without (or with small notepad) if absolutely skint?
(Are there grants available once enrolled?)

I ask because my DD always works better in a library/classroom setting, and is quite focussed, mainly because she is so easily distracted once back home/in halls. So she could use the ones provided. I plan on getting her a good external hardrive for storage but really can't stretch to a new lappy with all the other stuff to get.

We have split the difference on bed linen - one set from home, one new set! Ds doesn't drink tea or coffee so we haven't bought a kettle yet but we did buy a cheap sandwich toaster (£6 in Sainsburys).

Any old laptop will do because universities have the fastest network connections in the country (they invented the internet and are responsible for planning and updating the infrastructure on behalf of the rest of us).

A cheap printer and some spare cartridges would be a complete blessing though, as well as a packet of printer paper, as printing out can cost as much as 5p a page in the library.

TBH I think there's a case for taking as little as possible and then doing a charity shop/Argos/IKEA run once you are there and have seen what's needed. But I know people like to pack up the car like it's a refugee situation.

The computers provided are usually in separate rooms from the library books, so that's not always ideal. Students now link up wirelessly during lectures and in the library etc with Eduroam and multitask anyway. It's a more efficient way of working really.

PS A tablet computer is really handy in lectures and so on. That might be a good alternative to a posh laptop for everything but writing essays.

Sorry to barge in late :). Speaking from (x4) recent experience - best to let them figure out what they need/can afford on the budget. Going to uni is important step into independence , so let them figure it out :). It is hard to believe but they are actually not children anymore - just let them go and make their own mistakes mummies :) All mine became very good cooks, learned to organize themselves , budget etc. Of cause they will still need money.. And think of a good shoulder to wet after you dropped them off, it is very very sad ...

laptops need not cost a fortune, although spending more will get faster and lighter ones www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/Products/cat/Clearance

some others www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Windows-7-Dell-Latitude-D630-Laptop-2-2Ghz-4Gb-Ram-500GB-HDD-Warranty-Office-/230980829801?pt=UK_Computing_Laptops_EH&hash=item35c787c269

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/POWERFUL-Windows-7-HP-Compaq-6910p-Laptop-Core-2-Duo-2-0Ghz-4Gb-Ram-Office-CHEAP-/320956847780?pt=UK_Computing_Laptops_EH&hash=item4aba84d6a4

Halls rooms are often tiny, and halls kitchens are too for the number of people sharing them, so as little as humanly possible. If you can't fit it all in a family sized car, then it's probably too much stuff.

Their wardrobe in halls will be smaller than their wardrobe at home, so taking all of their clothes may not work. Also limit the number of shoes- when you're lacking in floor space, it's hard to find places to put 10 pairs of shoes. However, a sensible pair of boots for when it gets icy/snows are pretty much a must.

For the kitchen, if nothing is provided, I would say you can easily get away with 1 saucepan, 1 frying pan, one baking tray, 2 plates, 2 bowls and 2 sets of cutlery.

The main thing not to forget is all the important paperwork needed for enrollment. Having 2 forms of ID is pretty useful too. And passport photos.

Reading slow's comments reminded me of another tip. As she mentioned the wardrobes are small so it is best to bring wire coat hangers as you can get more stuff in rather than the wider wooden ones. Wilkinsons sold them cheaply last year.

Not something to take but check your home insurance. Some policies cover students belongings up to a certain amount, usually between £2k and £5k as long as they return home during the holidays.

If your home insurance doesn't cover students belongings get a specific student policy but check limits for valuables and if they cover mobiles. Many student policies either don't cover mobiles at all or will only cover them if they're specified regardless of the value.

Pianomama - absolutely agree. It's ten years since I left uni but I'd have died if my parents had been doing all this on my behalf. I worked, saved, and bought what I needed as I was an adult!

Pianomama & Wibblypig But that's the whole idea of this thread

DD & I are enjoying reading everyones tips & doing this together but it's down to her in the end.

No way am I doing all the work FOR her but it is fun doing these lists WITH her.

Those small notebook thingys are fine as long as they have a wordprocessing package, internet, powerpoint and excel. a dongle can be handy too. I fact they are better than a full size laptop because more portable and better than a tablet because they have a keyboard and cheaper office software. Unless doing some weird science course.

I think it is useful to sit down and go through the budget together on a spreadsheet just so that everyone is clear what comes from the student loan co, what from parents, what from other rels and what from jobs and also what the outgoings are going to be and which accounts they are going to come out of and when. My sis added the interest on the student loan and put it under 'debts' on her DC's spreadsheets.

Also it is useful to establish where bank and student loan correspondence is going to go to, and the arrangements for DC to open it and agree where to file it and keep it.

Also it is useful to discuss next summers holiday budget in advance: suggest they put money aside every month right from the start, that sort of thing.
Also keep some money in hand which you don't tell them about to give them six weeks into this first term, because it is an expensive first term, and they havent got the hang of budgeting and will most likely run out so you can top up the groceries or whatever.
Also look at the list of recommended textbooks/reading and make sure there is a budget to get them or that they are reserved from the library. Textbooks and reading lists can be really expensive and DC may not like to tell you they couldn't afford to buy them and missed the last one out of the library.

Slightly OT buy how easy is it to survive at uni without a parent to give you and your luggage a lift in a car at the start and end of each term?

Is it possible? I am a single parent who doesn't drive and although it will be 3 years before DS goes to uni (if he still wants to) I'd like to think ahead.

Mandy, my mother drives, my father didn' t, but he was too ill to be left for long, so she left me tinthe.mercy of Network Rail. It was fine. I imagine now everuthing is smaller ( iPods, laptops) it would be even more fine.

Drawing pins and/ or blu tak. No point taking posters if you can't put them up! Good way to make friends with people who've forgotten, too.

Mandy it's also possible that your DS could arrange lifts if need be or at least for some of his possessions to be transported whilst he gets a train. It will be ok.