college parents: hidden costs

[Anonymous]

I'm looking for a link or list of costs beyond those on the college web sites. So far I've come up with
housing for summer internships
storage locker during summer
minifridge if allowed
eating out/groceries if campus food is bad
cab fare for off-campus activities
printer cartridges
car if on-campus housing not available for upperclassmen
spring break travel someplace besides home
haircuts
museum entrance (hopefully discounted)
laundry

anyone have a sample spreadsheet or can add to my list?
Did you budget for any recreation?

[Anonymous]

Are you planning to send money earmarked for all of this?

If so, then definitely add money for booze and drugs.

I'd look at some budget for sundries / some food / transportation, etc, but the student should manage the budget themselves.

[Anonymous]

Depends a lot on the college and what's included and where it is. My DC goes to a SLAC in a small town. Not much to spend money on. Museum entrance fees definitely not a factor. A certain number of printer pages and loads of laundry are included in tuition. We give DC $1000/semester to cover all other expenses, including food, clothing, gas, personal care products, etc.

[Anonymous]

Many things not necessary, which I'm going to guess you know - ex, off-campus housing: if a student knows they aren't going to have a car, they will be motivated to act early to secure a place within walking distance, or know the bus schedule.

Spring Break: my kids go where they can afford/have budgeted for.

[Anonymous]

travel. Airfare cross country can break the budget, especially if you go with child to set up room and return and they come home for holidays. Also, depending on school, parking fees.

[Anonymous]

BIG ISSUE: heard this one right from the dean at a southern college. A name you all know. 80% of the kids pledge a sorority or a frat. They are EXPENSIVE. So even if the college has given serious financial aid to a student, there is still a have and a have-not atmosphere on campus because the financial aid kids cannot afford to pledge a sorority or frat.

[Anonymous]

If your DC goes to school in a very different climate, you need to take into account extra clothing.

A very homesick teen might need more care packages, phone calls home.

[Anonymous]

Cab fare?

[Anonymous]

Wow, this really shocks me, OP. I have two kids in college and here's how your list applied to them:

housing for summer internships - they lived at home
storage locker during summer - they brought everything home and stored it in a combo of their bedroom, the basement and the garage
minifridge if allowed - yes - it was like $60 for a semester
eating out/groceries if campus food is bad - they were just given $250 each month and this is one of the things it needed to cover
cab fare for off-campus activities - they walked or took the bus
printer cartridges - didn't bring a printer
car if on-campus housing not available for upperclassmen - no car brought to campus - again, they walked or took mass transit
spring break travel someplace besides home - ha!
haircuts - part of that $250 sent each month, but my girl just waits until she's home from school
museum entrance (hopefully discounted) - my kids have no desire to go to museums while at school, but they're not in school in Manhattan or anywhere that has any impressive ones
laundry - part of the $250 sent each month

The $250 also covers tampons and toiletries, birth control/condoms, bus fare, magazines, snacks to keep in the room, school t-shirt/sweatshirt, etc. Neither were involved in greek life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow, this really shocks me, OP. I have two kids in college and here's how your list applied to them:
housing for summer internships - they lived at home
storage locker during summer - they brought everything home and stored it in a combo of their bedroom, the basement and the garage
minifridge if allowed - yes - it was like $60 for a semester
eating out/groceries if campus food is bad - they were just given $250 each month and this is one of the things it needed to cover
cab fare for off-campus activities - they walked or took the bus
printer cartridges - didn't bring a printer
car if on-campus housing not available for upperclassmen - no car brought to campus - again, they walked or took mass transit
spring break travel someplace besides home - ha!
haircuts - part of that $250 sent each month, but my girl just waits until she's home from school
museum entrance (hopefully discounted) - my kids have no desire to go to museums while at school, but they're not in school in Manhattan or anywhere that has any impressive ones
laundry - part of the $250 sent each month

The $250 also covers tampons and toiletries, birth control/condoms, bus fare, magazines, snacks to keep in the room, school t-shirt/sweatshirt, etc. Neither were involved in greek life.

ok, but no other costs?
My friend's daughter is in the midwest and opted to leave a lot of stuff in a storage locker between semesters as it couldn't fit into the car trunk...comforters, winter clothes, books the student might want to keep as references...still it takes her or her husband 3 days to drive out, pack up stuff in the storage unit, and drive back
kids who study art and history do museums

are group printers in the dorms or library, usually? Or do kids just email the work to their instructor?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:BIG ISSUE: heard this one right from the dean at a southern college. A name you all know. 80% of the kids pledge a sorority or a frat. They are EXPENSIVE. So even if the college has given serious financial aid to a student, there is still a have and a have-not atmosphere on campus because the financial aid kids cannot afford to pledge a sorority or frat.

But there are tons of kids who have no interest in frats/sororities, so those who can't afford them will certainly not be the only ones not pledging. Another good reason to find a school with little to no Greek system. That was high on my DC's list when searching for schools -- no Greek.

[Anonymous]

I was on financial aid in college, covered all my own 'extras' - bus fare, laundry, shampoo, etc.

Travel costs were a big thing. I went to college near home so as not to have plane fares to deal with.

Sororities were present, but not huge. I wasn't terribly interested, but the $ factor was there. It wasn't an expense I wanted to shoulder, and certainly wasn't covered by FA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was on financial aid in college, covered all my own 'extras' - bus fare, laundry, shampoo, etc.

Travel costs were a big thing. I went to college near home so as not to have plane fares to deal with.

Sororities were present, but not huge. I wasn't terribly interested, but the $ factor was there. It wasn't an expense I wanted to shoulder, and certainly wasn't covered by FA.

Back then, it did. A college friend and her husband were covering tuition, basic living expenses, and a baby out of their student loans. Not any more. Your kid can take out private unsecured loans to close the gap if that's what you want.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:BIG ISSUE: heard this one right from the dean at a southern college. A name you all know. 80% of the kids pledge a sorority or a frat. They are EXPENSIVE. So even if the college has given serious financial aid to a student, there is still a have and a have-not atmosphere on campus because the financial aid kids cannot afford to pledge a sorority or frat.

But there are tons of kids who have no interest in frats/sororities, so those who can't afford them will certainly not be the only ones not pledging. Another good reason to find a school with little to no Greek system. That was high on my DC's list when searching for schools -- no Greek.

I completely agree. but OP asked for the hidden expenses. At this particular college I just visited, 80% of the kids pledged which left a big gulf between the rich and the financial aid kids. It disturbed the faculty and they said that these frats and sororities are very expensive, so even if they give full freight to a student, the college can't step in and say they will pay all the frat-related fees. The social life apparently revolves around the frats and the sororities so you are left out in the cold if you can't join.

[Anonymous]

Orientation freshman year. This is mandatory at many schools, and there's an extra fee.

Also, the pre-orientation biking/whatever week-long trips. These aren't mandatory, but they will send your kid attractive brochures and your kid will want to go.

Health insurance, depending on whether or not your current health insurer has coverage (participating doctors, clinics) in the area where DC will be attending college.