Back to College Essentials for your College Student

Many years ago when I was a young mom, I heard a woman with successful, happy, productive grown children give some advice that has stayed with me throughout the years: our job as parents is not to raise children but to raise adults.

With my oldest getting ready to head back to her university to begin her senior year, and my second about to begin her freshman year in college, we’ve been making some important college purchases.

All that shopping got me thinking about the college essentials we have purchased over the years that have helped my kids develop the attributes that I want them to be learning while they are away at school.

Here is what I came up with:

Getting the most out of life – Amazon Prime Student

As a long time Amazon Prime customer, I recently learned about Amazon Prime Student. We already use Amazon all the time and now that my girls are heading off to college I want them to have the same benefits and convenience while they are away at school.

Amazon Prime Student has all the awesome benefits of Amazon Prime but at a fabulous discounted price so it fits tight student budgets and provides great savings. I am glad that my girls will have access to something so useful. It is already benefitting them because they will be able to purchase their textbooks at a much better price than what they will find on campus. Amazon Prime Student is a tool they will use frequently and I know it will simplify their busy lives while they are at school.

With thousands upon thousands of movies to stream, great prices on products, free 2-day shipping, and special college deals for $49.00 a year, Amazon Prime Student is a great investment. In addition to the perks I just mentioned, my girls will get the first six months free when they sign up, have access to Prime Photos (free unlimited photo storing), and Prime Music (with over a million songs). Definitely a college essential.

Self Reliance – Cooking

After the novelty of non-stop fast food wears off, even coeds become willing to try their hand at cooking. It helps that we sent her a “cooking” themed gift through Amazon Prime with a cookbook, apron, and other kitchen items for her birthday her sophomore year of college. I loved that we could ship the things we chose directly to her so it was really easy to get things to her.

Yes, our kids go to college to learn (and hopefully someday to “earn”!), but they also benefit when they learn basic life skills like knowing how to cook. My daughter has turned out to be a confident cook and is an even better baker than I am. She is also more health conscious because she knows what goes into a well balanced meal and how her body feels when she is eating right and exercising.

Creativity – Various tools for kitchen and hobbies

The challenge and pace of college can sometimes take the fun and creativity out of life. In order to learn about the importance of finding a balance to life, we encouraged our daughter to maintain old hobbies such as drawing and music, as well as working on new passions.

As my daughter found that she really enjoyed cooking, she wanted to purchase a small electric mixer and some other items to help her in the kitchen. Without a car and quite a distance from reasonable shopping, Amazon came to the rescue. Not only were the items she purchased well priced, they have been well used as well. We also Amazon Primed yet another birthday gift that she treasures, a drawing tablet that connects to her laptop, allowing her to freehand draw and sketch right into her computer.

Fiscal Responsibility – Budgeting Software

Two concepts I firmly believe in are “It’s not what you earn but rather what you spend.” and “Things that aren’t earned are often under-appreciated.”

With four kids to get through college, my husband and I have a system in place where we gradually shift financial responsibility for school to our children so that our kids are paying most of their own way by their senior year (rent, utilities, groceries, books, spending money).

To make this happen, our kids work summer jobs from the time they are able, occasionally work a small job on campus, and worked hard in high school to earn academic and community scholarships. We not only want our children to graduate with a degree; we also want them to have the ability to manage their income and know the value of a dollar. To help them succeed, we purchased money management software through Amazon Prime for our kids to get in the habit of tracking their expenses and planning for experiences (like being an exchange student in Germany) or items they want.

In the long run, this may prove to be one of the most invaluable things we will do to help our children succeed in college and beyond. While a daunting goal at first, our girls have done really well stepping up to the plate and our oldest will be graduating debt free next spring.

Relaxation – Movies, books, and fun!

Believe it or not, successful people know how to relax. Whether it’s walking out in nature, curling up on the couch with a good book, or having friends over to watch favorite movies, relaxation is essential to a happy, balanced life. With Amazon, my daughter was able to stay within her budget and has been able to find used books and movies at super reasonable prices.

There is still so much for my kids to learn and work on but I believe we’re off to a good start. For fellow parents, I hope that you will feel inspired to try some of these ideas out.

It’s totally up to you where you decide to start but with Amazon, Amazon Prime, and now, Amazon Prime Student, the sky is the limit!

What essentials are you sending your kids off to college with?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.