Preparing for university

littleredhen · 13 January 2018 at 7:15PM

My dd will hopefully be going to university in September, I would like to start getting a few things in preparation for her living in halls, what kind of things should I buy and where are the best deals, we live in Scotland, thank you

lika_86 · 13 January 2018 at 7:20PM

Don't buy anything until you know where she's going and what she'll need. Better to start putting a bit of money away for stuff closer to the time. However, having said that, hold off on throwing away anything that might be useful - duvet that is being replaced for example.

ska_lover · 13 January 2018 at 8:42PM

Good advice from Lika

I would wait too, to see the exact rules and regulations of her halls, and what is provided

Some halls won't let you bring any electricals because they wont have been pat tested by them but others are fine and will pat test students property after moving in

Mosts parents seem to go well over the top, bear in mind that most halls of residence bedrooms are pretty small

Savvy_Sue · 14 January 2018 at 1:48AM

As a veteran of the 'you are not seriously suggesting that we can put all this stuff in the car and still leave room for you' years, this is another vote for not buying much now.

Two of mine went to Warwick which has a very handy superstore just on the edge of campus. Bedding and kitchen equipment all on special offer in September / October. Most universities would have reasonable access to similar provision.

More important than 'stuff' is life skills, so - as I've said before - mine were all left to do their own laundry once they hit sixth form. That way you learn not just HOW to use the washing machine, but WHEN, ie before you put your last pair of clean pants on.

They also had an allowance from which they needed to withdraw cash to buy their own bus tickets and lunches (or make them at home).

And even before that they'd all learned to cook and would prepare food for the family.

They could also prep the shopping list for me: I had a list with everything we used regularly and their job was to check level of supplies against that list and note what we needed. Any time they were in the supermarket with me I'd get them working out best VFM.

By all means start a little savings pot for 'stuff', but make sure the life skills are well bedded in as well ...

bluebear36 · 15 January 2018 at 5:56PM

littleredhen wrote: »

My dd will hopefully be going to university in September, I would like to start getting a few things in preparation for her living in halls, what kind of things should I buy and where are the best deals, we live in Scotland, thank you

Advise her not to take anything too expensive with her. Her roommate (if sharing) will probably be fine, but people will be in and out of her room frequently, and there is bound to be someone with sticky fingers.

lika_86 · 16 January 2018 at 11:44AM

bluebear36 wrote: »

Advise her not to take anything too expensive with her. Her roommate (if sharing) will probably be fine, but people will be in and out of her room frequently, and there is bound to be someone with sticky fingers.

Really?! Nobody was 'in and out of' my room at university. The only people who came in my room were invited friends.

Also a roommate is unlikely in the UK.

onomatopoeia99 · 16 January 2018 at 5:51PM

Whether your child is going to be getting meals cooked for them or self-catering will inform what they take to an extent. I came away with some old pots and plastic plates that my parents used in their touring caravan when I went to uni.

As for no electricals and PAT, I imagine the average 18 year old is going to pretty mortified if the university won't let them plug in the charger for their smartphone! Never mind the laptop or computer to actually do their uni work on.

lika_86 wrote: »

Really?! Nobody was 'in and out of' my room at university. The only people who came in my room were invited friends.

Also a roommate is unlikely in the UK.

Shared rooms were pretty much unknown when I was at university as well.

Seems to be an American thing. No-one came in to my room unless I invited them.

Kim_13 · 16 January 2018 at 8:05PM

Not all accommodation will provide the same things, e.g. Some basic accommodation might not have a toaster included, but the newer ones may have everything, including sanitary waste bins for the en-suite and even those cutlery storer things you have in a drawer (not sure of the name.)

The individual bedrooms can be locked so really the only issues with valuables going missing will arise if a student forgets to lock their door when they go out.

Food thefts on the other hand are a different matter. My advice is to keep anything that doesn't need to be kept in the kitchen in the bedroom.

bluebear36 · 16 January 2018 at 10:29PM

onomatopoeia99 wrote: »

Whether your child is going to be getting meals cooked for them or self-catering will inform what they take to an extent. I came away with some old pots and plastic plates that my parents used in their touring caravan when I went to uni.

As for no electricals and PAT, I imagine the average 18 year old is going to pretty mortified if the university won't let them plug in the charger for their smartphone! Never mind the laptop or computer to actually do their uni work on.

Shared rooms were pretty much unknown when I was at university as well.

Seems to be an American thing. No-one came in to my room unless I invited them.

The halls at my university 20 years ago were a mix of rooms for 1 or 2 people. The 2 person rooms were cheaper per person so were popular. I know one of my course friends had great problems with her roommate inviting all and sundry into their room. So no, not solely an American thing!

bluebear36 · 16 January 2018 at 10:31PM

:mad:

lika_86 wrote: »

Really?! Nobody was 'in and out of' my room at university. The only people who came in my room were invited friends.

Also a roommate is unlikely in the UK.

Maybe times have changed because shared rooms were very common at my university.

Edit, I've just looked at the accommodation for my uni and they still offer twin rooms. I suspect a lot of other unis are the same.

need_an_answer · 17 January 2018 at 1:57PM

I would second the idea of putting a little money aside to buy the things needed a little nearer the time.

It really does differ from uni to uni and also from accommodation to accommodation.

Some places had single beds,some doubles so it's not even as generic as saying buy a duvet.
We did find however that around August just before uni starts there are some good sales in the homeware sections of Tesco so you are able to pick up a lot of the stuff needed.

bedding including pillows and duvet.(we sent ours off with 2 sets of covers and pillowcases to ease washing.)
Towels
basic saucepans and a small selection of trays and casserole dishes.
tea towels
cutlery
crockery
small amount of cleaning materials,capsules for washing powder work well as its usually communal washers/dryers
basic food stuff,pasta rice,sauces tins of food,soups are all good things to consider.

places like wilkinsons are also a good place to buy reasonable quality without spending too much money.

I now have a student in the second year so first year was quite recent,it's also worth remembering that whist it feels that they are going miles away,they are still going to be living near shops ans as such quite enjoy going out together once they are there buying the things they need.
(hence a further prompt back at the idea that you perhaps look at not buying too much up front now)

it's exciting times ,but don't get carried away buying too much stuff until you know where they are going,or indeed if they are going(things can change vey last minute )

good luck to you all.

Preparing for university

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