Advice re DS packing for year abroad in the US

Delphigirl · 2022-06-03T07:21:05+00:00

Hi, looking for advice from those with kids at us universities, or with experience of year abroad. DS is lucky enough to be going to California for his year abroad, and has to be there mid August. He will be staying in a shared room in residence. Apart from clothes and tech, how much stuff do you think he needs to bring to set up his dorm? He instinct is to bring bedding and that’s basically it, but would that be a bit grim? US kids seem to ship in furniture and all sorts. Should I be doing a target order to greet him with at least a rug and some extra storage and eg desk lamp, or let him work it out when he gets there? I have bought twin XL sheets but that’s it so far…. all thoughts gratefully received.

EmpressoftheMundane · 03/06/2022 12:26

But as little as possible. He can assess what he needs and easily buy it once he is there.

The GPB isn’t particularly strong compared to the USD, but there won’t be any savings in buying here.

Ewi · 03/06/2022 12:31

I wouldn't buy an furniture. It's only a year and he will have to get rid of it at the end, so will have to go through the faff of thrift or selling it etc.
If he does want something far better to just get it ordered once he is there and can assess his living situation better.
Take the minimum and buy things as and when needed. He will be fine without a rug and various bits for a year.

Original poster

Delphigirl · 03/06/2022 12:32

Thanks very much both - I’m sure you are right. Will send over stuff to make a comfy bed and leave it at that.

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bizzey · 03/06/2022 18:33

DS has just come back from US!.

These are my thoughts ..

DS did not know his address till the day he arrived at the uni campus.

Due to the timing of the introduction meeting he had to go a day early and book a hotel for the night , so don't expect all those details in advance!

He went with double duvet,2 pillows and bedding all vacuum packed.

In fact , he vacunmed packed nearly everything !
(He is an expert vacumn packer now !!)

He also had to take books ,tools, equipment and stuff for his course

He got it all into a 23K suitcase !

(Plus rucksack with laptop etc in)

He bought things while there and did send a box back with heavy stuff in as he was holidaying for a few weeks before coming home.

He shared with another English student.
Really don't think they bought anything for their room.

They had a functional desk and space and stuff.

His underpants and socks collection has trebled though !!!
I think he was buying them instead of washing them 🤣🤔.

I can help with more questions if you want .

bizzey · 03/06/2022 18:38

Ohh should say....I told him to donate the duvet and pillows at the end of his time there.
It would have cost more to send them home than what you can buy here (Asda/Amazon)

bizzey · 03/06/2022 18:39

Plus ...I wanted to make sure he had enough room in his suitcase for all MY souvenirs !!

Canyouengineerfreespeech · 03/06/2022 18:50

Most stuff - including bedding- is way cheaper in the US. I would take the bare minimum and buy everything on arrival.

Original poster

Delphigirl · 03/06/2022 18:50

bizzey · 03/06/2022 18:33

DS has just come back from US!.

These are my thoughts ..

DS did not know his address till the day he arrived at the uni campus.

Due to the timing of the introduction meeting he had to go a day early and book a hotel for the night , so don't expect all those details in advance!

He went with double duvet,2 pillows and bedding all vacuum packed.

In fact , he vacunmed packed nearly everything !
(He is an expert vacumn packer now !!)

He also had to take books ,tools, equipment and stuff for his course

He got it all into a 23K suitcase !

(Plus rucksack with laptop etc in)

He bought things while there and did send a box back with heavy stuff in as he was holidaying for a few weeks before coming home.

He shared with another English student.
Really don't think they bought anything for their room.

They had a functional desk and space and stuff.

His underpants and socks collection has trebled though !!!
I think he was buying them instead of washing them 🤣🤔.

I can help with more questions if you want .

Oh that’s great thanks so much. At his place we can send parcels to wait for him up to a week before he arrives, so was thinking of sending a bag with duvet etc ahead with “sendmybag” and he can travel with hand luggage only. But worried BA will lose it with how things have been recently…. Did your DS have a great time?

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Original poster

Delphigirl · 03/06/2022 18:51

Canyouengineerfreespeech · 03/06/2022 18:50

Most stuff - including bedding- is way cheaper in the US. I would take the bare minimum and buy everything on arrival.

I wasn’t going to buy anything else, we have so much bedding and towels. But I did find twin xl sheets cheap on Amazon . Co.uk to my surprise, so have bought those…

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bizzey · 03/06/2022 19:01

@Delphigirl He had the time of his life !!!

He went January and came back now with BA ..hate to jinx it everybody....but had no issues at all

In fact he had landed and was in passport controll...and I was still stuck in traffic in a cab !!!

(Luckily the walk to baggage collection...is loooonnnng !!)

So I was there in time .( Heathrow)

Put his US time on your phone !

Made life so much easier for this little old brain !

I mean ...I know I can add and subtract in "5's" ...but so much nicer
just ...seeing it there !!

bizzey · 03/06/2022 19:06

I am sure you both have this ...but if not....
We were in contact regularly..( opps almost daily !)
By WhatsApp.

It really made things easier for contact ..(but not when he was chatty at his 8pm and rings me !)

ifonly4 · 03/06/2022 21:28

DD presently doing a year abroad in Europe with uni. She paid for an extra suitcase on coach and plane for clothes and toiletries!, but everything else she sorted on arrival. Is there anywhere on uni website he can order bedding?

She found other students are very supportive of newbies, glad to offer a meal or company. She's having the time of life.

Pallisers · 03/06/2022 21:36

I've sent 3 to college in the US. US students who are from the other coast do an order for bedding etc. at Target or Bed Bath and Beyond or similar and pick it up when they arrive. Vacuum packing a great alternative.

Make sure he gets a mattress protector (bedbug proof ) and a mattress pad (bed bath and beyond will have both). A tote for bathroom stuff is also useful.

If he is in a dorm room, no furniture is necessary (nor will it fit).

He should probably buy a standing fan or desk fan for his room. Most colleges give a list of things first years will need so if you go on the website for his college and look at new students section, you'll find a good list.

He should get a power strip that meets the college requirements (I may have the name wrong but basically a strip that allows you to plug in multiple things without shorting the system.

good luck to him! DD back in US after a semester in Europe and she had an absolute blast.

Utterlyexhausted · 03/06/2022 21:42

Honestly, I'd return any bedding you bought in the UK for his trip..all sizes of bedding between the UK & US is different and as someone said up thread, it'll probably be cheaper in the US (Amazon, Walmart, target, bed bath & beyond, etc). I wouldn't risk it not fitting properly (especially the fitted sheet)

Leeds2 · 03/06/2022 23:09

My DD did her undergrad and Master's at US universities. At the first, she shared a room with one other girl and everything was provided furniture wise apart from a desk lamp and a fan. They also did a college trip on a coach to the nearest shopping mall in the first week, so could get anything she wanted then.
They also had reps from Bank of America at Freshers' Week to open up a US bank account.

Original poster

Delphigirl · 04/06/2022 08:57

bizzey · 03/06/2022 19:06

I am sure you both have this ...but if not....
We were in contact regularly..( opps almost daily !)
By WhatsApp.

It really made things easier for contact ..(but not when he was chatty at his 8pm and rings me !)

Yes WhatsApp is our main form of comma even now!

OP posts:

Original poster

Delphigirl · 04/06/2022 08:58

ifonly4 · 03/06/2022 21:28

DD presently doing a year abroad in Europe with uni. She paid for an extra suitcase on coach and plane for clothes and toiletries!, but everything else she sorted on arrival. Is there anywhere on uni website he can order bedding?

She found other students are very supportive of newbies, glad to offer a meal or company. She's having the time of life.

Lovely to hear that! Good top will ask about uni bedding. Mind you it’s California so I was only going to send over a thin summer duvet, that will probably just fit in his bag

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Original poster

Delphigirl · 04/06/2022 09:05

Pallisers · 03/06/2022 21:36

I've sent 3 to college in the US. US students who are from the other coast do an order for bedding etc. at Target or Bed Bath and Beyond or similar and pick it up when they arrive. Vacuum packing a great alternative.

Make sure he gets a mattress protector (bedbug proof ) and a mattress pad (bed bath and beyond will have both). A tote for bathroom stuff is also useful.

If he is in a dorm room, no furniture is necessary (nor will it fit).

He should probably buy a standing fan or desk fan for his room. Most colleges give a list of things first years will need so if you go on the website for his college and look at new students section, you'll find a good list.

He should get a power strip that meets the college requirements (I may have the name wrong but basically a strip that allows you to plug in multiple things without shorting the system.

good luck to him! DD back in US after a semester in Europe and she had an absolute blast.

Ooh this is all good stuff Pallisers thanks.
I’m not going over with him but I could order this to be delivered I guess. Or order it to be collected and he just Ubers to get it. @Leeds2 interesting about the mall trip. I suppose if anything like that is laid on he will find out nearer the time. I have heard that they do a secondhand sale of stuff like desk lamps and waste paper baskets and mini fridges that the previous year abandoned/donated so that would be great if he can just repurpose some stuff. I wonder if he can get a fan this way...

OP posts:

Original poster

Delphigirl · 04/06/2022 13:01

@pallisers thanks so much for the bed bath and beyond recommendation! You can order stuff now in the local store and they pack it and hold it until the named date - so he can literally drive past it on his way from the airport, stop curbside, they hurl it in the back of his Uber, and off he goes to college. Amazing. They had everything including fan and power strip. I even ordered shower gel, shampoo and laundry detergent. He can go with a single suitcase for his clothes.

one q - does he need some sort of lockable storage given he is sharing a room?

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Pallisers · 04/06/2022 17:16

@Delphigirl, none of mine took a lockbox to the dorms with them - if your stuff isn't safe from your roommate, you should be requesting a move tbh. Afaik they never locked their rooms when they went to class either - but they weren't in colleges in downtown areas so no random passersby.

If you google college packing lists you'll find some ideas for things he may need (for example hangers for his clothes).

Also, not sure if this is universal but all of mine use the app Venmo to transfer money between friends. might be worth his while downloading it.

Cascais · 04/06/2022 17:19

Buy it when he’s there

Original poster

Delphigirl · 04/06/2022 17:24

Fab thanks. Yes he is already a venmo user thanks 👍

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Ponderingwindow · 04/06/2022 17:27

its really easy to shop near most colleges. They will have brought in extra stock of all the common things college students buy at the start of the year. For most basics, I have to imagine it will be cheaper to just buy things locally than to bring them from abroad. He can even do a pickup order at Target or Walmart for the absolute essentials so that he can grab it very quickly on the first day.