This post was sponsored by GOJO Industries, the makers of PURELL® Advanced Hand Sanitizer. The opinions are completely my own based on my experience.
When my son announced his decision to go away to college this fall, I knew this would be no problem. I planned to pack my bags and accompany him. He was less than thrilled to think his new roommate would be his mom, so my plans didn’t come to fruition. I’m sure the college wouldn’t have been thrilled with that situation either! Since I can’t go along to protect him, I’ve had to do the next best thing; purchase items to help him have a healthy and happy school year. If you are sending a child off to school for the first time, I’ve got you covered with a list of five items college kids need, but most of us forget to pack.
1. A First Aid Kid. Kids get sick easily in a new environment or get scrapped up playing intramural sports. A small plastic tote filled with bandaids, headache medicine, sunblock, stomach relief medicine and other basics can get them through the first year. And, in one case a mom told me about, her son used the plastic tote to marinate steaks whenever they had a campus cookout.
2. A list of serial numbers for electronics. While theft is rare on the college campus my son is going too, the local police department recommended this, because kids sometimes leave their electronics lying in the cafeteria and they get stolen. This helps with tracking if the items are sold to pawn shops.
3. An ethernet cord. Several parents have warned that their kids’ emails and college accounts have been hacked when using the dorm wifi. They recommended an ethernet cord to avoid wifi.
4. PURELL® Advanced Hand Sanitizer. I’ve seen plenty of college dorms and they are messy! Having a supply of PURELL® Advanced Hand Sanitizer, PURELL® Hand Sanitizing Wipes and PURELL®JELLY WRAP™ Carriers can help keep those germs at bay! Using PURELL Advanced Hand Sanitizer three times a day for 30 days can help reduce the risk of getting sick. Plus they can wipe down their electronics, which can carry germs. (We purchased ours at Target.)
5. A small lock box for prescription medication. This was recommended by my son’s doctor to keep the medication secure.
Do you have any items to add to the list? What do you think is a must for a student going away to college?
These are indeed some of the must-haves of every student going away for college needs!
These are really great items that they certainly need. Purell is a really great one to have on hand.
Kindergarten to college, it’s a must. I wish it was in dispensers on the walls!
Wow – my son was already in and out of that stage – but great list – I didn’t think of much of this really – and didn’t know about the ethernet cord for stopping the hacking!
Very good tips! Times have sure changed since I was in college 😛
This is a great list. I never would have thought of the ethernet cord, but that is a great idea since dorm wifi systems have been hacked.
These are all excellent points, especially the lock box. Kids these days will snatch anything to give it a try.
This is a great list for college bound kids. My teen wants to go to college when he completes highschool. he has started his 10th grade year and I am trying to start getting prepared.
My son goes to college as well. Those are great tips. You really need to bring a little bit of everything to get them started.
This is a good list. I don’t think Purell was even around when I was in college. It probably would have helped me from getting sick!
These are important items that are often overlooked. My son didn’t go away, so he had everything he would need at home.