Dropping your kid off at college for the first time is a big deal. It certainly was for me with all three kids. It’s such a rite of passage. This child – your baby – who has been in your care for the past 18 years is moving away. Any illusions of control over his life that you might still be clinging to are shattered. You are leaving your child behind to manage life on their own.
I’ve shared my thoughts about preparing for college before. I wrote a post about how my daughter and I were preparing for college last summer before she left home and I recently wrote about what items we bought for her dorm room that were the most useful. As a 3-time veteran of dropping your kid off at college for the first time, I even consider myself enough of an expert to offer advice to other parents.
But if you’re like me, you like to over prepare. And so, to help my fellow over-preparers, I’m sharing 25 of the best resources I’ve found to help you prepare for college drop-off day. Are you ready?
Preparing Practically
- Flying to College: How to Save Money and Reduce Stress
- Dorm Room Shopping: 50 Questions to Answer First
- 20 Dorm Hacks You’ll Wish You Knew Sooner
- College Checklist: The Most Popular Freshman Dorm Extras
- 37 Ingenious Ways To Make Your Dorm Room Feel Like Home
Preparing Emotionally
- A Stanford dean on adult skills every 18-year-old should have
- Your kid is ready, but what about you? A college survival guide for parents
- As drop-off looms, a professor’s note for new college parents
- Your student’s new life on campus — A parent guide to the first six weeks
- Empty-Nesters Share Advice For Parents Of College Freshmen
- Six Tips for Adjusting to Your Child Going to College
- “From Mom to Me Again”: 8 Ways to Get Going
- Learn To Let Go: Parenting A College Student
- Dropping Your Child Off at College
- What You End Up Saying When You Drop Your Kid At College
- 20 Great Tips For Dropping Off Your Child At College (Without Losing Your Mind)
- So You Just Dropped Your Kid Off At College
- Preparing kids for college is not for the weak
- You’ll Survive Dropping Your Kid Off at College! Tips From Parents
- How To Drop Your Child Off At College (Without Losing Your Mind)
- The 12 Emotional Stages Of Dropping Your Kids Off At College
- A parent’s guide to dropping your kid off at college
- Survival Guide to Dropping Your Kid Off at College
- The College Drop-off and the Long Drive Home
- Rob Lowe on sending his son off to college
And the best possible advice about college life always comes from the Gilmore Girls.
Hi! I’m Katy and I started Midlife Rambler when my youngest child was a senior in high school. I was staring at the coming empty nest and wondering what was next for me. Does that sound like you? Then you’ll love our community of fun, feisty women. We’re looking forward to finally focusing (just a little) on ourselves and talking about all the things we enjoy: fashion, beauty, travel, entertaining, and being the best possible you.
Thanks so much for including my work! It’s an honor to be in these authors’ company!